Honey Garlic Salmon

The Best Salmon Recipe

I absolutely love salmon, and one of my favorite recipes is Honey Garlic Salmon. Just picture it: perfectly cooked salmon fillets, covered in a delicious glaze of honey and garlic. Every bite is bursting with flavor! The honey and garlic sauce makes the salmon incredibly juicy, moist, and so full of flavor—and it’s healthy, too!

What makes my honey garlic salmon recipe stand out is how simple it is. Just like my baked cod recipe, this is one of the quickest salmon recipes you can make at home. From prep to plate, it takes just 15 minutes to whip up this delicious dish. It’s proof that you don’t need anything fancy to create amazing food—sometimes, the simplest ingredients make the best meals.

If you’re looking for something tasty and easy to cook, give this wild salmon recipe a try for dinner. With an average rating of 4.5 and over 1500 votes, it’s a tried-and-true recipe that guarantees moist, flavorful salmon every single time!

Why This Recipe Works

With over 1,500 reviews and >4.5 stars in rating, my honey garlic salmon is the best salmon recipe online because it’s easy to make yet bursting with flavor. The combination of sweet and savory garlic honey glaze perfectly complements the richness of the salmon.

Plus, you can customize it to your liking whether you pan sear, grilling salmon, or baked salmon. It’s a favorite among many for its consistently delicious results.

Salmon

United States is a salmon powerhouse because nearly one-third of the world’s wild salmon supply comes from here.

As a result, there are many types of salmon available in the market. To get the freshest and best salmon, here are my buying tips:

• Wild caught salmon. If you find wild salmon in your market, buy it. Wild salmon comes from the pristine waters of Pacific Northwest and Alaska and packed full of omega 3 fatty acids.
• Farmed salmon. If you are buying farmed salmon, choose those imported from Norway. Avoid the ones from China. Chinese farms use potentially carcinogenic (cancer-causing) chemicals to raise the fish.
• For the freshest fish, shop on the day when your grocery stores restock their fish.
• Wild salmon looks orange in color whereas farmed salmon is pale orange in color.
• Avoid salmon color that is bright orange or red. It means food dye has been added to the fish.

Wild Salmon Vs. Farmed Salmon

I chose wild salmon for my honey garlic salmon because it has a richer flavor, is healthier, and supports sustainable fishing practices.

• Wild caught salmon nutrition. Compared to its farmed counterpart, wild salmon provides a more robust base for the sweet and savory notes of the honey garlic glaze.
• Lower in fat and high in omega-3 fatty acids. Wild salmon is a healthy choice for you and your family.
• Sustainable. Wild salmon is environmentally friendly. Salmon farming is notorious for its unhealthy and unnatural living conditions.

The diagram above summarizes the difference between wild salmon and farmed salmon. To learn more, read Bon Appetit article.

Ingredients

To make this Honey Garlic Salmon recipe, you will need the following ingredients:

• Salmon fillet.
• Minced garlic.
• Honey.
• Apple cider vinegar or lemon juice – add lemon wedges during the cooking process to jazz up the citrusy note.
• Salt and pepper.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients.

How To Make This Recipe

Step 1: Season the surface of the salmon with salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper. Set aside.

Step 2: Mix the honey, water, apple cider vinegar or lemon juice, and a pinch of salt together. Stir to combine well.

Step 3: Heat up an oven-safe skillet (cast-iron skillet preferred) on high heat. Add olive oil and pan-fry the salmon, skin side down, for about 1 minute. Turn the salmon over and cook for another minute. Turn it over again so the skin side is at the bottom.

Step 4: Add the garlic to the pan and sauté until slightly browned. Add the honey mixture and lemon wedges to the skillet and reduce the sauce until it’s sticky.

Step 5: Finish it off by broiling the salmon in the oven for 1 minute or until the surface becomes slightly charred (optional step).

Step 6: Top the salmon with parsley and serve immediately.

Secret Tips & Techniques

Follow my expert tips below, and you’ll whip up restaurant-quality salmon at home that’ll satisfy even the pickiest eaters. Not a fan of salmon skin? Just wait until you uncover the secret techniques to make it irresistibly crispy.

• Sear for Crispy Skin: When cooking the salmon, I always start by pan searing it skin-side down in a hot cast-iron skillet with a little olive oil. This helps crisp up the skin and creates a delicious texture contrast with the tender flesh of the salmon.
• Olive oil: Olive oil is my go-to choice for this because it has a relatively high smoke point and its unique flavor profile works perfectly with the salmon.
• Cast-iron skillet: I love using a cast-iron skillet for cooking salmon. It heats evenly, retains heat well, and is incredibly versatile. It helps cook the salmon consistently, giving it that perfect crispy exterior while keeping the inside tender. Plus, the natural non-stick surface and patina of the skillet make it the best tool for cooking salmon to perfection!

Pro Tip: Scraping the salmon skin against the direction of the scales can help make it crispy. This action helps to remove excess moisture and roughen the surface, which promotes better crisping during cooking. It also allows the heat to penetrate more evenly, resulting in a uniformly crispy texture that you just can’t stop eating.

Frequently Asked Questions

What To Serve With This Recipe

Salmon is best served with healthy side dishes like garlic broccoli. For a healthy meal and easy weeknight dinner, I recommend the following recipes.

Brown Butter Garlic Honey Roasted Carrots

Sauteed Asparagus

Garlic Green Beans

Broccolini with Garlic Butter

I hope you enjoy this post as much as I do. If you try my recipe, please leave a comment and consider giving it a 5-star rating. For more easy and delicious recipes, explore my Recipe Index, and stay updated by subscribing to my newsletter and following me on Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram for new updates.

Other Recipes You Might Like

• Salmon Patties
• Garlic Herb Roasted Salmon
• Shrimp Kebab
• Seafood Boil
• Garlic Lemon Butter Crab Legs

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4.54 from 1534 votes

Honey Garlic Salmon (The Best Recipe!)

By: Bee Yinn Low

Garlicky, sweet, and sticky, this honey garlic salmon recipe will be your go-to for a quick and healthy dinner. It's one of the best salmon recipes that takes only 15 minutes to make but tastes like it's straight out of a fancy restaurant!

Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes minutes

Servings: 3 people

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Ingredients  

1x2x3x

• ▢ 12 oz. salmon, cut into 2-3 fillet strips
• ▢ salt
• ▢ black pepper
• ▢ 1 pinch cayenne pepper
• ▢ 2 tablespoons honey
• ▢ 1 tablespoon warm water
• ▢ 1 1/2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar , or lemon juice
• ▢ 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ▢ 3 cloves garlic, minced
• ▢ 1/2 lemon, sliced into wedges
• ▢ 1 tablespoon chopped parsley

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Instructions 

• Season the surface of the salmon with salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper, and then set aside.
• Combine the honey, water, apple cider vinegar (or lemon juice), and a pinch of salt in a bowl, and stir well to mix.
• Heat an oven-safe skillet (preferably cast iron) over high heat. Add olive oil and pan-fry the salmon, skin side down, for about 1 minute. Flip the salmon and cook for another minute. Then, turn it over again so that the skin side is facing down.
• Add the garlic to the pan and sauté until it is slightly browned. Then, add the honey mixture and lemon wedges to the skillet, and reduce the sauce until it becomes sticky.
• Finish by broiling the salmon in the oven for 1 minute, or until the surface becomes slightly charred (optional step).
• Top the salmon with parsley and serve immediately.

Video

Notes

• Sear for Crispy Skin: When cooking the salmon, I always start by pan searing it skin-side down in a hot cast-iron skillet with a little olive oil. This helps crisp up the skin and creates a delicious texture contrast with the tender flesh of the salmon.
• Olive oil: Olive oil is my go-to choice for this because it has a relatively high smoke point and its unique flavor profile works perfectly with the salmon.
• Cast-iron skillet: I love using a cast-iron skillet for cooking salmon. It heats evenly, retains heat well, and is incredibly versatile. It helps cook the salmon consistently, giving it that perfect crispy exterior while keeping the inside tender. Plus, the natural non-stick surface and patina of the skillet make it the best tool for cooking salmon to perfection!

Nutrition

Serving: 1g, Calories: 251kcal, Carbohydrates: 13g, Protein: 23g, Fat: 12g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 6g, Cholesterol: 62mg, Sodium: 52mg, Potassium: 589mg, Fiber: 0.2g, Sugar: 12g, Vitamin A: 172IU, Vitamin C: 4mg, Calcium: 23mg, Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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