Your Guide For Cooking Salmon

Salmon remains one of the most well-loved and frequently eaten fish in the U.S. According to Seafood Source, Americans grilled, fried, steamed, and poached a record-breaking amount of seafood in 2021. Amongst the top contenders, salmon took the silver medal as the most popular seafood item, just below shrimp (canned tuna finished in a surprising third place). 

Salmon's popularity, however, should come as no surprise. Not only is it incredibly healthy, high in protein and omega-3 fatty acids, it's equally just as versatile, meaty, and flavorful. Whether coated in breadcrumbs as a brain-boosting alternative to fish sticks, piled high on top of a bagel with cream cheese, or basted in barbecue sauce, there are so many ways to cook this cold water fish.

For those looking to add more salmon to their regular diet, there are a plethora of ways that will suit a busy household. Read on for the ultimate guide on how to cook salmon at home.

We love how the sous vide cooking technique, once reserved for only the most high-end of restaurants, has, in recent years, become accessible to home cooks thanks to the machinery becoming more affordable. Sous vide cooking is essentially low and slow cooking. Ingredients are placed into vacuum-sealed bags, then submerged in a warm bath, heated, and kept at a specific temperature. The machinery involved not only maintains the specific temperature but also works to keep the water circulating, ensuring your food is cooked evenly and thoroughly. The process sounds like the most relaxing cooking technique, and even better, it makes it impossible to overcook your food.

To sous vide anything requires knowing the ideal internal temperature of your finished product and then working backward by setting the machine's water temperature to that precise number. While the desired internal temperature will change slightly depending on the kind of salmon you are cooking, aim for a finishing internal temperature of between 120 – 125 degrees, with wild salmon sitting at the lower end of the scale and farmed at the upper end. Then add whatever marinade ingredients and salmon into the bag, remove any excess air when sealing it, and submerge it into the bath for approximately 45 minutes. You can then finish the sous vide salmon with a bit of butter in the frying pan to crisp up the skin if desired or serve as it is.

Like baking, roasting salmon is a fantastic, fuss-free method of cooking this popular fish. Simple and effective, roasting is an excellent method for quick, hands-off cooking — the perfect solution to having dinner on the table in a flash on a busy work night.

There are two different ways to roast salmon, depending on the amount of time you have. The first is a quick option: Simply preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit, lightly grease a baking tray to prevent sticking, and then lay however many fillets of lightly marinated salmon with their skin still on onto the tray, skin-side down. Depending on the thickness of the fillet, the whole cooking process shouldn't take more than about 15 minutes. That's enough time to make a salad, blanch some beans, or cook pasta for a quick and easy mid-week meal solution.

For those with more time to linger in the kitchen, slow roasting a side of salmon, as Samin Nosrat suggests in "Salt Fat Acid Heat," is a show-stopping dinner party dish and well worth the time to achieve the tender, flaky results. 

Steaming salmon is likely a less common method for cooking this particular fish in the U.S. Still, it's one worth trying. Steaming is a healthy, easy cooking method that helps accentuate the best qualities of many foods. It is a method that has spent far too long being shunned for being boring rather than celebrated for its ability to highlight delicate textures and subtle flavors, allowing the ingredients to shine.

There are a few key things to ensuring your steamed salmon is a success. First, flavor the fish with plenty of aromatics like garlic, ginger, lemon, dill, or scallions. This is true with every cooking method, but especially here, as steaming won't add caramelization, char, or additional flavors; instead, it accentuates what is already there. 

Next, if cooking more than one fish fillet at a time, leave space around each piece of fish so the steam moves around to cook. After you set up your steamer and bring the 1 inch or so of water to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and add the steaming basket of well-seasoned fish. Cover with a lid and steam for five to 10 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish. For a light and flavorful dinner, serve fish with steamed jasmine rice and green vegetables.

There's just something irresistible about that smoky, charred flavor from grilling fish — salmon especially. The smoky flavors match perfectly with the meaty fish; the combination is simply irresistible. When it comes to grilling fish, there are several methods to choose from that result in a perfect piece of fish.

Depending on the marinade, seasoning, or spice rub, you can place fish directly on the grill itself, though make sure you have cleaned and prepared the grill in advance to ensure it's clean, non-stick, and ready to go. You won't have to worry as much about sticking if you're using a dry blend of herbs and seasonings, like with our cajun grilled salmon recipe. However, wetter marinades, especially ones that encourage caramelization due to their sugar content, might require a different method of grilling for best results.

Try wrapping salmon in a bit of foil for sweeter sticker glazes and marinades, similar to the en papillote method. This will help keep all those rich juices on the salmon rather than burnt on the grill. The heat inside the enclosed foil case will work to cook your fish in record time. Place the foil packets directly onto the grill and cook for the required time, removing the need to flip the fish or scrape off any bits of burnt food from the grates themselves.

There's something about home-curing salmon that feels a bit like alchemy. Those who have successfully cured fish at home will know the sense of pride and accomplishment you feel when presenting the dish to friends. Despite feeling a bit fancy, most of the curing's hard work is done by nature, making it an approachable way to wow friends. Plus, doing it yourself can help to save a bit of money, usually spent on this coveted delicacy.

Curing salmon involves just a couple of key ingredients: salmon and salt. The rest will vary down to the recipe but can include pepper, lemon, herbs, and brown sugar. Just like the short list of ingredients, only a few key steps are needed to create tender cured fish.

First, pat down either a side of salmon or individual fillets with a paper towel to remove any excess moisture. Then rub and cover the flesh of the fish with copious amounts of salt, plus pepper and brown sugar or herbs if using. Reserve a little of this curing mixture for the skin as well. Once fully covered with salt, tightly wrap the fish with plastic wrap and set it on a baking tray. After 12 – 24 hours in the fridge, pressed under a heavy object, the fish should be fully cured and ready to slice and pile onto a blini or bagel. Eat your heart out, store-bought lox!

Meatier fish like salmon make a great addition to stir-fry because it holds its shape well, unlike more delicate, flakier fish that tend to fall apart during cooking. There are two ways to stir fry salmon, depending on whether or not you are keeping the fillet whole or breaking it into bite-sized chunks instead. Despite its sturdiness, salmon still doesn't take well to being tossed around too much. Therefore, it's best to cook the salmon before or after the vegetables, then throw the mix all together at the end. 

You can begin by heating a small bit of oil in a wok, then cooking the salmon skin-side down like you would with pan-searing. Pour over the marinade, flip it over only briefly to sear the flesh, then remove from the pan to stir-fry vegetables. This method will serve the salmon directly onto the plate with the stir-fried vegetables scattered on top or below the fish.

Alternatively, give Jeremy Pang's method a try. Cut skinless, boneless salmon into bite-sized chunks. Then cook any harder vegetables first, removing them from the wok before cooking the more delicate fish to sear and flash fry. Finish the dish by adding the cooked vegetables back into the wok alongside a generous amount of sauce, melding the flavors together briefly before serving. 

Has this list inspired a craving for salmon? We're not surprised. For those who've added salmon to your grocery list this week, you may wonder how best to choose and store freshly purchased salmon fillets.

Firstly, don't be afraid to ask if the fish is fresh when heading to the fish counter. The fish shouldn't smell overly fishy. The same is true once you've brought the fish back home and tucked it into the fridge. If it smells overly fishy by the time you go to use it, you may want to reconsider whether it's still good. Freshly caught salmon will only remain fresh for around two days in the fridge when stored in the meat drawer at a temperature of 32 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Fresh fish is somewhat of a use it or lose it situation. So, if you plan on making salmon later in the week, it's best to move it to the freezer immediately for more fresh-tasting results rather than letting it linger for a few days before doing so.