This soy and honey glazed salmon comes together so fast, but tastes like a gourmet dish from a fancy seafood restaurant.
This is seriously one of the best salmon dishes that I’ve ever had! Chris, a very picky fish eater, wolfed down his entire piece (and it was a large one) and said that I can feel free to make this one any day. “Even on steak days??” I asked, “Sure!” he said, “as long as you make the steak too”.
The secret here is the soy and honey marinade / glaze, which coats the salmon with a perfect balance of sweet and salty. Garlic, green onions and sesame seeds pack some delicious flavor and the ginger gives it a nice kick.
Soy and Honey Glazed Salmon | this marinade is also delicious on broiled chicken thighs!
You’ll get hooked on this soy and honey glaze! Try it on chicken thighs or even pork tenderloin. And… definitely on this salmon.
Soy and Honey Glazed Salmon | It comes out moist and super flaky every time!
This is also a fantastic make ahead recipe. Just make the marinade, coat the fish and leave it to marinate in the fridge while you prepare everything else. Then it’s just about cooking it for 20 min or so and dinner is ready.
Fair Cooking!
Jenya 🙂
Scroll Down for detailed INSTRUCTIONS with photos!
Ingredients
- 2 salmon filets (about 1 lb for 2 people)
- 1/4 cup honey
- 3 tbs soy sauce
- 1 tbs sesame oil
- 3 tbs olive oil
- 1/2 tbs minced fresh ginger
- 1/2 tbs minced garlic (1 or 2 cloves)
- 3 chopped scallion (white parts only, save green parts to sprinkle at the end)
- 1/2 tbs sesame seeds
Instructions
1) In a bowl, whisk all of the ingredients together except for the salmon. Remove any bones from the fish and cut off the skin (see instructional photos below).
2) Place the salmon in a ziplock bag, add the marinade and lightly massage it into the salmon so it is evenly coated. Marinate in the fridge for at least 20 minutes and up to 3 hours.
3) Preheat oven to 400. Layer a sheet pan with foil (don't skip this step, or clean up will take forever!), remove salmon from marinade and shake off excess. Reserve the marinade. Cook salmon in preheated oven for 15 minutes.
4) Meanwhile, place the rest of the marinade into a small saucepan and simmer on medium to medium low heat to thicken slightly into a glaze consistency, about 4 to 5 min. Watch to not burn it!
5) Remove salmon from oven, raise heat to a broil, brush salmon with the thickened glaze all over and broil for 3 to 5 minutes, until starting to brown on the edges. Again, watch closely to not burn! You just want to crisp the top slightly.
6) Remove from oven, brush with more glaze, even spoon some over. It’s delicious! Taste for salt. I like to sprinkle a little Maldon or kosher salt as soon as the fish comes out, while it’s still warm so the salt melts.
7) Serve with side of choice. Some roasted potatoes and a green salad are perfect, or try an Asian flavored slaw (will post my favorite one soon!) or some mashed potatoes and broccoli. It's delicious with anything.
Fair Cooking!
Notes
This recipe is for 2 people, but the marinade as is should also enough to coat 4 filets. If cooking for more, just double the marinade ingredients.
If you want to use the marinade / glaze for chicken thighs or pork tenderloin, just follow the recipe and cook the meat until it registers 160 for the thighs or 140 for the tenderloin. Then coat with glaze and give it a broil.
Instructions with Photos
Just click on a picture to see the slide show!
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- Remove any bones from the fish
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- I highly recommend investing in some good fish bone removing tweezers! Or just use regular tweezers, but commit them to fish deboning…or your eyebrows might smell a little fishy 😉
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- Remove the skin by sliding a sharp knife under it, while lightly pressing the skin down.
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- You want to leave all the flesh on the fish. This might take a little practice if you haven’t done it before
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- Chop the green onions, mince the garlic and prep the ginger
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- The easiest way to peel the ginger is by using a spoon. Hold it by one end and scrape with the spoon away from you
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- I also find it easier to grate both the ginger and the garlic. No need to wash in-between, since it’s all going in the same bowl
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- Place all the ingredients into a bowl
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- Add the rest of the ingredients
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- Whisk all together
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- Place salmon into a ziplock bag (or you can use a bowl)
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- Cover with marinade
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- Massage lightly to coat the fish evenly and marinate in the fridge for at least a half hour and put to 3 hours.
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- Preheat oven to 400, remove salmon (reserve the marinade) and place on a baking sheet coated with foil. Make sure you coat with foil or it will be a pain to scrub off!
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- While the salmon is cooking, pour the rest of the marinade into a small saucepan and cook over med to med low heat for about 5 minutes, until it thickens to a glaze consistency
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- Broil the salmon just until brown. Watch closely to not burn! This takes just a few minutes
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- Serve with your choice of sides
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- Get ready to impress everyone at your dinner table
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- And enjoy every delicious, flaky bite!
I’m having a party and would like to prepare this dish a day ahead and serve at room temperature. How do you think this would hold up and taste?
Your pictures are great!
Hi Elizabeth, glad you like the recipe and pictures 🙂 I’ve made this salmon many times and the left overs always taste great! Here are some ideas for how to make it ahead and maximize freshness and taste: 1) you could pre-mix the marinade the day before and marinade the fish for a couple of hours the morning of the party and then bake it. It’s really minimal cleanup if you cover the baking pan with foil. You’ll just have to wash the sauce pan you used to boil the marinade in. 2) Or you could marinate the fish and bake it the day before, reserving some of the glaze and refrigerating it. The day of the party, you could reheat the glaze, brush the tops of the salmon and give the fish a quick broil or just serve it at room temp. Let me know if you have any more questions. Hope your party turns out wonderful! Jenya