Blackened Salmon
Posted: 06/22/21
Updated: 03/22/22
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Perfectly flaky blackened salmon is an easy and delicious way to spice up a fish dinner. A blend of savory spices coat tender salmon fillets as they’re pan-seared in butter to develop a beautiful crust. This dish is a great source of filling protein, healthy fats, and incredible flavors.
What Makes This Recipe So Good
- The combination of butter and incredible spices form the most beautiful, crisp, delicious crust on the salmon fillets.
- It’s a super quick and easy recipe! Salmon doesn’t need much cooking at all, so you’ll have an amazing dinner on the table in no time at all. Easy enough for after-work dinners, tasty enough for guests.
- The blend of spices used on this blackened salmon are bold but perfect. That being said, you can absolutely adjust them to your perfect ratios and blends!
Chef’s Tips
- To get a really good crust on your blackened salmon, the butter and skillet need to be hot. Don’t put the salmon in the skillet too early! You’ll also want to pat the salmon fillets dry before seasoning them. If they’re very wet, they won’t crisp up.
- If you like a little heat-meets-sweet action, add some brown sugar to your spice mixture. We love, love, love salmon with a brown sugar crust.
- The easiest way to check whether your blackened salmon is ready to eat is to use an internal meat thermometer. For medium-rare salmon, you’ll want it to be about 120-125° Fahrenheit at its thickest point. Well-done salmon should be 145° Fahrenheit internally. If you don’t have an internal thermometer, you can eyeball it! Well-done salmon will be pink and completely opaque, but rare salmon is translucent and more of a bright red. Images like these give an idea of what each temperature looks like. In addition to coloring, check the texture! Fully cooked salmon will flake easily when you dig into it with a fork.
Other Delicious Recipes You’ll Love
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Blackened Salmon
Perfectly flaky blackened salmon is an easy and delicious way to spice up a fish dinner. A blend of savory spices coat tender salmon fillets as they're pan-seared in butter to develop a beautiful crust. This dish is a great source of filling protein, healthy fats, and incredible flavors.
fillets
Ingredients
For the Seasoning
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon white pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
For the Salmon
- 1 pound salmon cut into 4 fillets, patted dry
- 3 tablespoons butter
- ½ of one lemon sliced
Equipment
- Small bowl
- Cast iron skillet
- Tongs
Instructions
- Combine all spices together in small bowl. Whisk or stir to evenly distribute.
- Liberally coat flesh of salmon fillets with spice mixture, gently massaging spices into salmon to ensure they stick.
- Melt butter in cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add seasoned salmon fillets to skillet, spice-side down. Cook 4 to 5 minutes, then flip and squeeze lemon juice onto flesh of fillets. Cook skin-side down 2 to 3 minutes, depending on thickness of fillets.
Notes
- Make it Dairy Free: Use dairy free butter.
- Make it Paleo: Use ghee instead of butter, and make sure your spices don’t include any sugars or non-paleo additives.
Nutrition Information
Serving: 1fillet, Calories: 248kcal, Carbohydrates: 3g, Protein: 23g, Fat: 16g, Saturated Fat: 7g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 5g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 85mg, Sodium: 716mg, Potassium: 616mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 1g, Vitamin A: 766IU, Vitamin C: 7mg, Calcium: 32mg, Iron: 1mg, Net Carbs: 2g
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
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