This Easy Garlic Butter Baked Salmon is perfectly cooked and full of flavor! This is the one of the BEST salmon recipes I have ever made!
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If you love salmon, you are going to LOVE this Easy Garlic Butter Baked Salmon recipe. I love making salmon for a quick and healthy weeknight dinner. Salmon is packed with nutrients and also cooks very quickly – not to mention, delicious. I prefer to bake my salmon in the oven because it’s so much easier – instead of standing over a hot stove to sear the salmon, it roasts in the oven for 12-15 minutes. And if you line the baking sheet with foil, it is the easiest cleanup ever. Salmon is the champion of easy weeknight dinners.
Garlic, lemon and butter are classic flavors with salmon for a reason. For this recipe I made a compound butter by adding garlic, lemon zest, salt and herbs to softened butter. I used softened butter instead of melted butter to allow the flavors to bloom while the butter melted into the salmon in the oven, instead of just immediately running off as they would with melted butter.
How to Bake Salmon In the Oven
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with foil for easy cleanup.
- Arrage salmon on the baking sheet and pat dry with a paper towel.
- Mix together butter, garlic, parsley, salt, pepper and lemon zest.
- Spread the butter mixture evenly over the salmon..
- Bake for 12-15 minutes until the internal temperature reaches 145 or the salmon flakes easily with a fork. Squeeze fresh lemon juice over salmon just before serving.
HOW DO YOU KNOW WHEN SALMON IS COOKED?
The best way to tell if salmon is cooked is to use a instant read thermometer, such as this one (affiliate). The USDA recommends cooking salmon to an internal temperature of 145 degrees. Another easy way to check if the salmon is done is to see if it flakes easily with a fork. It will also change color from translucent to opaque.
What Side Dishes go with Baked Salmon?
I often serve my Garlic Butter Baked Salmon with rice and a simple salad. It’s also great with my Lemon Parmesan Roasted Broccoli and some Crispy Roasted Potatoes!
Looking for more salmon recipes? Try my Sweet Chili Garlic Salmon or my Chili Lime Baked Salmon. For something different, try my Salmon Sushi Bowls or my Easy Salmon Patties!
Ingredients
- 1.5 lb salmon filet
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter softened
- 4 Garlic cloves minced
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 tbsp fresh parsley chopped
- 1 lemon zested, then cut into wedges
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
- Arrange salmon on a baking sheet, pat salmon dry with a paper towel. set aside. (line baking sheet with foil for easy cleanup).
- In a small bowl, mix together softened butter, garlic, salt, pepper, parsley and lemon zest.
- Spread the butter mixture over the salmon.
- Bake salmon for 12-15 minutes, or until internal temperature reaches 145 degrees F.
- Squeeze lemon wedge over salmon before serving.
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Tracy says
I added a few more seasonings and broiled it for just a minute or so after it was done and omg! 10/10! And I am a salmon lover and this was everything!
Meghan says
Yay, so glad you loved it!
Lynn South says
Delish
Kim says
What a great, easy way to cook salmon! I love salmon but my family was not a big fan until I made it like this. Only change I made was to use salted butter, no extra salt added. Absolutely delicious!
Jen says
If I could give this ten stars, I would! Absolutely delicious. I added some dill in too, but did the rest as written. And it was so easy! Pan cooking fresh salmon intimidated me, so I’m really glad I stumbled on this recipe. I put some veggies in to roast at the same time, and also made some sauteed greens to go with it. A+++!!
Meghan says
Yay, I’m glad to hear that!
Taryn says
Made it for dinner tonight and really liked it. Added a little more salt at the end but that’s just personal preference. The cooking method was spot on!
Meghan says
I’m so glad you loved it Taryn!
Kat says
My husband and I both thought we didn’t like salmon but I wanted to give it one more shot because it’s so healthy. Turns out we’d just never had the right recipe! This was absolutely delicious and amazingly fast to put together. It’s going in the rotation for sure. Thank you!
Meghan says
Aww yay! That makes me so happy! Thanks Kat.