This Garlic Butter Baked Salmon is tender, flaky, and brushed with a drool-worthy garlic butter sauce! Baked on a sheet pan with your favorite veggies, it’s quick, easy, and perfect for busy weeknights.
Looking for more ways to cook salmon? Try these simple salmon patties.
The Best Baked Salmon Recipe Ever!
Garlic butter baked salmon is, hands down, one of the easiest and tastiest seafood dinners you can make. It requires just a handful of ingredients and comes together in a snap. And spoiler alert, those ingredients are a collection of everything you love, so you know this will be a winner.
Veggies are a must, along with the fish and the killer garlic butter sauce! Broccoli, green beans, sugar snap peas, and asparagus work best because they cook in the same time as the fish. If you’d like to add root vegetables like potatoes or carrots, those should be roasted for 10 minutes before you add the fish and other ingredients to the pan.
All in all, if you want a quick and simple recipe that delivers a healthy, crowd-pleasing meal in about half an hour, this one’s for you!
Is Salmon Good for Your Health?
High-quality seafood is excellent for your health, and salmon has got to be one of the most popular options. This tasty, buttery fish is a good source of healthy protein, vitamin B12, Omega-3s, and more helpful nutrients. So yes, adding salmon or other seafood to your weekly menu is a good idea for most people. (Of course, if you’re pregnant or have other conditions that make seafood a concern, check with your doctor before adjusting your diet!)
What You’ll Need
Let’s take a closer look at the ingredients for this quick, sheet pan dinner. There are only a few, and all of them are delicious. Here we go:
- Salmon Fillets: It’s helpful to have all of the salmon fillets roughly the same size and weight (about six ounces each is perfect).
- Broccoli: Fresh broccoli is my veggie of choice here, but you can use whatever you like.
- Garlic: Mince up a little fresh garlic to rub over the salmon.
- Butter: I use unsalted butter, since I’m already salting the dish.
- Brown Sugar: Just a spoonful, for a little bit of warmth and sweetness.
- Dried Herbs: Oregano, thyme, and rosemary add lots of fragrant goodness.
- Salt and Pepper
- Lemon: A little fresh lemon squeezed over the dish gives it a lift.
- Chopped Fresh Parsley: For garnish.
How to Make Garlic Butter Baked Salmon
There are two steps to making this recipe, but both of them are super easy! First you will make the garlic butter sauce, then you’ll add it to the salmon and bake everything together. Here’s the skinny:
- Make the Garlic Butter. This part is very fast. Just melt the butter (in the microwave or on the stove), and then whisk in the brown sugar, oregano, thyme, and rosemary.
- Preheat the Oven and Arrange the Ingredients. Next, preheat the oven to 400°F, and while it heats, get out a big sheet pan. Lightly grease the pan, and arrange the salmon and vegetables across it. Rub minced garlic over the salmon fillets, and pour the butter mixture over everything. Squeeze lemon juice over as well, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Bake! Slide that sheet pan into the oven, and let it roast for about fifteen minutes, or until the fillets flake easily with a fork.
How Long Do You Bake Salmon?
Salmon is usually done baking in about 15 minutes. You can tell it is cooked through when it flakes easily with a fork. Be sure to preheat your oven so that the salmon goes into an oven that is at the right temperature for baking. And of course, the most reliable and easy way to tell when meat is done is just to use a meat thermometer! The safe internal temperature for salmon is 145°F.
Ingredient Substitutions
If you’re missing an ingredient (or two or three!), don’t worry! This recipe is versatile and adaptable. No butter? Use olive oil. Can’t stand broccoli? Skip it, and use your favorite veggies! Can’t find brown sugar in your pantry? Grab some honey! No need to fret – make it your own.
Just know that this baked salmon recipe is a restaurant-worthy dish that you can make in the comfort of your own kitchen. 👏
How to Store Cooked Salmon
- Properly stored, cooked salmon will last 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator. Place completely cooled salmon in an airtight container; close and store in the fridge.
- You can also freeze cooked salmon. Place completely cooled salmon in covered airtight containers or heavy duty freezer bags. Keep in the freezer for up to 4 months.
ENJOY!
Garlic Butter Baked Salmon Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 (6 ounces each) salmon fillets
- 4 to 6 cups broccoli florets
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
- salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
- 1 lemon, halved, divided
- chopped fresh parsley, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400˚F. Grease a sheet pan with cooking spray.
- Arrange broccoli florets and salmon fillets on the sheet pan. Rub minced garlic over each fillet. Set aside.
- In a mixing bowl whisk together melted butter, brown sugar, oregano, thyme, and rosemary.
- Pour the butter mixture over the salmon and veggies.
- Take half of a lemon and squeeze lemon juice over everything; then, season with salt and pepper.
- Place the sheet pan in the oven and cook for 15 minutes, or until the fish flakes easily with a fork and the internal temperature is 145˚F degrees.
- Remove from oven and garnish with parsley. Serve with lemon slices.
Notes
- Properly stored, cooked salmon will last 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator. Place completely cooled salmon in an airtight container; close and store in the fridge.
- You can also freeze cooked salmon. Place completely cooled salmon in covered airtight containers or heavy-duty freezer bags. Keep in the freezer for up to 4 months.
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
Looking forward to trying this! I went through the comments and I didn’t see this answer…maybe just my oversight, but is there no garlic in the Garlic Butter Sauce?
The recipe calls for you to rub the salmon with the garlic 🙂
Do you bake the salmon with skin side down or do you recommend skinless salmon? I’d like to try this recipe this week.
If you’re using skin-on salmon, yes, you want to set it skin-side down. Always bake salmon with the skin side down as this will help protect the fillet from the heat of the pan and it will help the salmon retain its juices. Skinless salmon works just as well, but I like to use it with skin on because the skin keeps the fillet intact.
Thank you! Just made this tonight and was amazed how fast and easy this was! I used halved brussel sprouts and cut asparagus in place of broccoli. I squeezed a little more lemon on just prior to serving. Excellent taste and the sauce wasn’t over powering either!
That’s great to hear! I’m very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
I much prefer baking with the skin up. The skin gets crunchy and delicious, and the fat in the skin soaks into the rest of the fish and makes it more flaky and tender. The salt pepper butter and garlic needs to be rubbed on both sides
Can this be frozen after cooking?
Yes, you can freeze cooked salmon. The texture and flavor won’t be as good as before freezing, but frozen cooked salmon will last about 3 to 4 months in the freezer. Seal it tightly in freezer bags or airtight containers.
The SALMON was delicious! I wasn’t the biggest fan of putting the same sauce on the broccoli, although it still tasted very good! I would also recommend taking your salmon out around 125 degrees rather than 145, it will hold so much more moisture and I promise it’ll be safe!
That’s great! I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for chiming in! 🙂
Love this recipe! If I freeze the baked salmon how do I reheat it so it doesn’t get too dry? Thanks!
So incredibly quick, and so delicious! I’m done prepping by the time the oven reaches temperature! I couldn’t find dried rosemary, so I used fresh, and it turned out great. Tip: the more lemon, the better!
Ok to use salmon with skin on?
Yes, that will work.
Such a good recipe! I make it about twice a month for family and friends and everyone loves it. We’ve recently had to become a little more health conscious and try to cut out things like butter. Do you think that after rubbing the garlic on if olive oil was brushed on and then seasonings sprinkled on top if it would still turn out good?
Butter IS healthy Lauren! Ghee is even healthier. Our bodies need saturated fats from foods like nuts, avocados, butter, and fish. You can check out Dave Asprey’s blog to learn more. Moreover, olive oil doesn’t have a high smoke point and it should never be used for cooking (only for toppers likes salad dressing and dipping bread- if you eat bread)! Good luck!
If I make it with asparagus do I need to cook the asparagus for ten minutes prior and then bake the additional 15 minutes in the over with salmon?
Hi!
If the asparagus stalks aren’t too thick, then you shouldn’t have to roast them any longer than what is suggested for the other veggies. However, if you feel like they would need more time to cook, then you could definitely give them about an 8 to 10-minute head start.
This was SO GOOD!! My whole family loved it, including both kids. We actually had it with brussel sprouts and it was absolutely delicious. I doubled the recipe since we had a large filet and two bags of brussel sprouts. I also used Italian Seasoning instead of the individual seasonings. Fantastic recipe! Will be my salmon go-to.
That’s great! I am very glad you and your family enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Delicious with EVOO as a sub for butter. So quick and simple, it will be made often for me, and also when company comes!
I’m very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂