50 Salmon Recipes to Make for Dinner Tonight

updated Jan 3, 2024

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Overhead shot of four cooked pieces of salmon in a cast iron, topped with green onion. — Credit: Photo: Alex Lepe ; Food Stylist: James Park

If you’ve been saving salmon for special occasions, it’s time you know that it makes an incredibly weeknight friendly dinner. Depending on how you cook it, you can get a salmon dinner on the table in less than 10 minutes and with just a few ingredients — without it tasting dry or overcooked. Really.

Why Salmon Is a Weeknight Dinner Hero

If you’re new to cooking with salmon, you might feel intimidated. Don’t be! Not only is it easy to pull off, it’s also super-versatile and doesn’t need a lot of extra ingredients or prep work to shine. Here’s why it’s a weeknight dinner hero:

There are a lot of ways you can cook salmon: It can be baked, broiled (one of my favorites!), or slow-roasted (my other favorite!); it can be pan-seared, poached, or grilled; it can be made in the slow cooker and the air-fryer.
You can cook salmon straight from frozen. This works best when you’re baking it, so we still recommend planning ahead and defrosting the frozen salmon overnight in the fridge most of the time.
Did we mention it’s easy? You don’t need a lot of extra ingredients or prep work to turn a couple salmon fillets into a really good dinner. It could be as simple as some garlic, butter, fresh herbs, or mustard. If you’re feeling ambitious, consider stirring together a simple marinade to soak the fish while the oven heats up or you gather the rest of the ingredients for dinner.

Ready to get cooking? Here are 50 easy salmon recipes you can cook any night of the week.

In This Article

Why Salmon Is a Weeknight Dinner Hero
Stovetop Salmon Recipes
Baked Salmon Recipes
Broiled Salmon Recipes
Grilled Salmon Recipes
Recipes with Smoked Salmon and Canned Salmon

Stovetop Salmon Recipes

If you’re going for a saucy salmon dinner or love crispy-skinned fish, you’ll want to stick with cooking it on the stovetop.

1 / 17

Honey Garlic Salmon

Five ingredients and 20 minutes are all you need to make incredibly tender, flaky salmon fillets coated in a super-flavorful, sweet-and-savory sauce.

2 / 17

Salmon fillets are cooked in a butter lemon-caper sauce in this easy-yet-elevated skillet dinner.

3 / 17

Lemon-Soy Glazed Salmon

Lemony, umami-packed salmon is prepared in under 20 minutes, making a perfect weeknight dinner.

4 / 17

Serve this easy salmon dinner over creamy polenta, mashed potatoes, or orzo to catch every drop of the creamy spinach and sun-dried tomato sauce.

5 / 17

Harissa Orange Glazed Salmon

A mix of orange zest, harissa, and honey make this glazed salmon super flavorful.

6 / 17

Blackened Salmon

In just 10 minutes, you’ll be rewarded with mouthwatering pan-seared salmon that boasts a ridiculously crispy skin and spicy, smoky flavor.

7 / 17

Crispy Skillet Salmon with Mustardy Cabbage

Crispy-skinned salmon fillets sit on top of a bed of savory sautéed cabbage in this easy skillet dinner.

8 / 17

One-Pan Firecracker Salmon

Firecracker salmon is coated with a sweet and spicy sauce, which is such a great partner to the richness of the fish.

9 / 17

Garlic Butter Pan-Seared Salmon

Once you try this buttery method, you'll never pan sear plain salmon again.

10 / 17

Saucy Skillet Salmon

Cooked in a fresh tomato-based sauce that’s punched up with garlic, balsamic, and a hint of fresh thyme, salmon picks up sweet, tangy flavor.

11 / 17

15-Minute Chile-Lime Salmon Tacos

The salmon is kissed with a punchy chile-lime coating, and stuffed in a warm tortilla with lime-tinged avocado, crunchy shredded cabbage, and a sprinkle of fresh cilantro leaves

12 / 17

Honey-Glazed Salmon

If you, like me, pick up fillets at the store without actually knowing how you’re going to prepare them, this recipe — made entirely out of pantry staples — is for you.

13 / 17

Easy 5-Ingredient Teriyaki Salmon

Just 15 minutes stands between you and a plate of pan-seared salmon fillets cooked in a simple teriyaki sauce.

14 / 17

Seared Salmon with Soy, Scallions, and Ginger Go to Recipe

15 / 17

Ottolenghi's Bridget Jones' Pan-Fried Salmon with Pine Nut Salsa

While the bold, salty-sweet flavors of this chunky salsa might overwhelm a piece of mild white fish, full-flavored, fatty salmon is the perfect partner.

16 / 17

Simple Pan Seared Salmon

Simply seasoned, the salmon is pan fried until the exterior is super crispy while the interior remains buttery soft.

17 / 17

Buttermilk-Poached Salmon

The sharp tang of buttermilk makes it the perfect poaching liquid for salmon.

Baked Salmon Recipes

There’s no shortage of ways to cook up salmon in the oven. If you feel a little intimidated about cooking salmon, try one of our recipes for slow-roasted salmon – they’re foolproof.

1 / 13

Oven-Baked Salmon

This is your template for cooking perfectly tender salmon in the oven.

2 / 13

Slow Roasted Green Goddess Salmon

Trader Joe’s Green Goddess Seasoning blend is the key to the best low-effort, high-reward salmon dinner.

3 / 13

Lemon Pepper Salmon

All you need is one baking dish, 10 minutes to mix a marinade, and 20 minutes of bake time to make satisfying and flaky lemon pepper salmon.

4 / 13

Cilantro-Lime Salmon

A mix of tart lime juice, plenty of garlic, and fresh cilantro pack this weeknight-friendly dinner with tons of flavor.

5 / 13

Slow roasted miso salmon isn't just big on flavor and irresistibly tender, it's also foolproof and nearly impossible to overcook.

6 / 13

Sheet Pan Mustard Maple Salmon

This whole meal of mustard-glazed salmon, crispy potatoes, and asparagus cooks on a single sheet pan.

7 / 13

How To Cook Frozen Salmon in the Oven

This is the fastest, smartest — most delicious way to cook frozen salmon filets for dinner without thawing.

8 / 13

Brown Sugar Glazed Salmon

This sweet-and-savory salmon steams inside a foil packet, resulting in flaky, juicy fish with minimal cleanup.

9 / 13

Panko-Crusted Salmon with Dill and Lemon

This classic salmon dinner comes together in 20 minutes with just a handful of ingredients.

10 / 13

Foolproof Salmon Baked with Olive Oil & Herbs

Blanketed with fresh herbs, shallot, and olive oil, this is the most foolproof salmon recipe you'll make.

11 / 13

Trader Joe's Sheet Pan Crispy Salmon & Veggies

All it takes is three ingredients from Trader Joe's and a sheet pan to pull off this salmon and mixed vegetable dinner.

12 / 13

Air Fryer Miso-Ginger Salmon

An easy miso ginger marinade adds a ton of flavor to your weeknight salmon dinner.

13 / 13

Suya Spiced Slow Roasted Salmon

This recipe pairs the Nigerian Suya spice mix with slow roasted salmon for a delicious combination of flavors and textures.

Broiled Salmon Recipes

When you’re short on time, go ahead and cook your salmon under the broiler. You’ll have dinner on the table in less than no time.

1 / 5

Broiled Saffron, Lemon, Honey, and Garlic Salmon

Crispy-meets-tender salmon marinated in saffron, lemon, garlic, and honey.

2 / 5

Broiled Salmon with Lemon, Herbs and Mustard

A simple of Dijon mustard and fresh chopped herbs give this 15-minute meal a fancy twist.

3 / 5

Broiled Salmon with Spiced Baharat Butter

A pat of aromatic spiced butter gives this quick weeknight dinner a fast and fancy twist.

4 / 5

Sheet Pan Crispy Salmon and Potatoes

This sheet pan supper will show you just how quick and simple it can be to get a salmon dinner on the table any night of the week.

5 / 5

Honey Mustard Salmon and Shredded Brussels Sprouts

This 5-ingredient broiled sheet pan dinner cooks in about 20 minutes.

Grilled Salmon Recipes

Don’t forget about cooking salmon on the grill. You can cook it right on the grates to get impressive grill marks, wrap it in a foil packet for an impossibly tender fillet, or cook it on a cedar plank.

1 / 5

It’s no secret that grilled salmon looks impressive (those caramelized grill marks, that juicy, rosy interior!), but did you know that grilled salmon is stunningly fast and easy, too?

2 / 5

Grilled Salmon Caesar Recipe

Every component of this leveled-up Caesar salad is cooked on the grill – from the romaine and salmon to the lemon and croutons.

3 / 5

Easy Grilled Salmon with Plum-Basil Relish

A simple fruit relish gives grilled salmon a pop of bright, fresh flavor.

4 / 5

Garlic Butter Salmon in Foil

A side of salmon cooked in a foil packet with garlic butter is the easiest way to serve salmon for a crowd. Cook this one on the grill or in the oven.

5 / 5

Salmon Grilled on a Cedar Plank

This is such a simple and elegant technique for cooking salmon. The fish steams gently in the heat of the grill, staying incredibly tender and moist. It also picks up smoky flavors from the grill and woodsy flavors from the cedar, along with whatever was used to soak the planks.

Recipes with Smoked Salmon and Canned Salmon

1 / 10

Salmon Benedict

If you love eggs benedict and salmon, you will love how this classic brunch dish gives you the best of both worlds: rich hollandaise sauce, luscious lox, and a runny egg.

2 / 10

Smoked Salmon Egg Boats Go to Recipe

3 / 10

Smoked Salmon and Crème Fraîche Kettle Chips

Top potato chips with smoked salmon and suddenly they're a classy cocktail snack.

4 / 10

Crème Fraîche Scrambled Egg and Smoked Salmon Sandwiches

A blanket of smoked salmon and some crème fraîche is the tastiest way to upgrade your scrambled eggs and English muffin.

5 / 10

Smoked Salmon Soba Noodle Salad

A few piece of silky smoked salmon instantly jazz up even the most basic noodle salad.

6 / 10

Salmon Rillettes

Salmon rillettes are creamy but light, flavorful without being overpowering. Think of it as salmon’s answer to paté.

7 / 10

Spicy Salmon Black Bean Salad

This spicy, smoky bean salad packs a whole lot more flavor into it than you’d expect of something that takes all of six minutes to make.

8 / 10

Spicy Canned Salmon Cakes

These salmon cakes start with canned salmon and use a breading method similar to the best crab cakes for an easy-fancy weeknight dinner.

9 / 10

Salmon Cakes with Creamy Garlic Sauce

Fish cakes are quite possibly the best way to give leftover salmon a second lease on life.

10 / 10

Salmon and Kale Caesar Wraps

Everything you expect in a Caesar wrap, with a twist.

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