Description
An easy balsamic glazed salmon with quick strawberry salsa - a perfect simple, healthy meal for busy weeknights!
Ingredients
FOR THE SALMON:
- 1 large salmon fillet (about 1 1/2 pounds)
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
- Kosher salt, to taste
FOR THE STRAWBERRY SALSA:
- 1 1/2 cups diced strawberries (about 1/2 pint of strawberries)
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 Tablespoon diced jalapeño
- 2 Tablespoons diced green onion
- 2 teaspoons lime juice
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
FOR THE SALMON:
- Heat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Place salmon fillet on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Use tweezers to remove any remaining pin bones.
- Use a pastry brush to brush half of the balsamic vinegar over the salmon fillet. Reserve the rest of the balsamic for later.
- Season salmon with a pinch of Kosher salt to taste.
- Bake salmon for 5 minutes, then use oven mitts to pull the pan out of the oven. Brush salmon with remaining balsamic vinegar, then return fish to oven.
- Bake salmon an additional 5-10 minutes, until fish flakes easily with a fork (see recipe notes for some tips on adjusting the cook time).
- Top salmon with strawberry salsa and serve immediately.
FOR THE STRAWBERRY SALSA:
- Combine strawberries, cilantro, jalapeño, green onion, lime juice, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl.
- Taste salsa and add seasoning if necessary.
- Serve immediately or store in an airtight container in the fridge for 1-2 days.
Notes
What kind of salmon should I use? We prefer using Wild Alaskan Salmon in all of our cooking for its taste, quality, and sustainability. In these photos, we're using a 1 1/2 pound sockeye salmon fillet from our friends at Wild For Salmon. Sockeye, Coho, or Chinook/King Salmon are all good choices for this recipe. Use pre-portioned salmon pieces instead of a full fillet if you prefer (you may need to shorten the bake time). You can use skin-on or -off salmon: if you bake with the skin on, just use a spatula to slide the skin off the fish after baking (we don't recommend eating the skin here).
You may need to adjust the cook time depending on the size/shape of your salmon fillet and your preferred level of doneness. This recipe is written to bake a 1 1/2 pound, 1" thick salmon fillet until not quite well done. Salmon is done when it flakes easily with a fork. The USDA recommends cooking fish to an internal temperature of 145 degrees F, which typically results in quite well-done salmon. If you prefer your salmon less than well done, you may want to cook it to an internal temperature of 120-130 degrees F. A kitchen thermometer is very helpful here!
Make-Ahead Tip: Make this strawberry salsa up to a day in advance and store in an airtight container in the fridge until you're ready to use it.
What to do with leftovers. Salmon doesn't reheat especially well, so we recommend eating the fish as soon as it's cooked! If you do have leftover salmon, we recommend serving it cold as part of a salad. Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 1-2 days. Serve leftover cold salmon and strawberry salsa over arugula or spinach with a handful of chopped walnuts and a balsamic vinaigrette!
Serve this salmon with some parmesan spinach gnocchi, easy crusty French bread, or a quick lemon herb pasta!
This recipe was originally published in 2015. It was updated in 2020 with additional photos and notes.