What is your preferred method for cooking salmon?

What is your preferred way to cook salmon?

  • Oven roasted

    Votes: 4 9.8%
  • Pan fried

    Votes: 2 4.9%
  • BBQ (direct, grill sheet, cedar plank)

    Votes: 25 61.0%
  • Steamed (parchment, tinfoil)

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Poached

    Votes: 1 2.4%
  • Uncooked (sashimi, ceviche, etc)

    Votes: 5 12.2%
  • Smoked

    Votes: 4 9.8%

  • Total voters
    41

sly_karma

Crew Member
Tell us why you settled on this particular cooking method.
 
Good thread!
I love salmon all ways, but I have started cooking fillets wrapped in foil on the bbq as it keeps the moisture in and you can’t really overcook it.
Oven baked is also so tasty!
Smoked salmon is probably my favourite food in the worlds but it’s not as healthy with the salt content. More of a treat/snack for family and friends to share.
 
Try mixing mayo, lemon juice and a shot of Sriracha in a bowl.
Spread the mixture on your salmon fillet and lay it on a sheet of foil, but not enclosed.
(We prefer a nice boneless winter spring filet)
Heat the BBQ to 400 deg and cook for 10 mins.

Smoked salmon would be a close runner up!
 
I'm big on pan fried, mostly because it's just two of us and I can cook smaller portions and get them just right.

Lately more and more has been consumed raw... so tasty. Hopefully I can get a good fatty red Chinook at sand heads on Friday.
 
We cook salmon many ways. Lately I have been cutting my fillets into 1”1/4 strips so I can sear them on all 4 sides finishing with skin down to crisp up. This way you can get your spices all the way around and seal in the fat.
A simple sauce I’ve recently done is
Butter
Cream
Dill
Garlic
Onion
Lemon
You can’t go wrong with salt, garlic, lemon and butter
 
I'm big on pan fried, mostly because it's just two of us and I can cook smaller portions and get them just right.

My mantra is “there is something magical about hot oil and fish”. I love pan fried salmon steaks, (we all know that bones add flavour) or a filet portion with scored skin. However, the list above has so many great methods. Dry rubs also a favourite.

Not sure fresh pink salmon is for you? Try an air fryer, filet portion of pink with scored skin facing up, turn over for the last minute. 130 probe temperature max. It might change your mind.
 
I have been enjoying salmon collars lately. Coked over charcoal and basted with teriyaki sauce. My wife also loves salmon ceviche. I started making sushi and poke last year as well. Trying to branch out as my family was getting tired of the more classic presentations. Though smoked is always a hit. New this year I bought a dehydrator and am going to try making salmon jerky.
 
If you haven't tried this, try this.

 
Good thread!
I love salmon all ways, but I have started cooking fillets wrapped in foil on the bbq as it keeps the moisture in and you can’t really overcook it.
Oven baked is also so tasty!
Smoked salmon is probably my favourite food in the worlds but it’s not as healthy with the salt content. More of a treat/snack for family and friends to share.
Wrapped in foil is essentially steaming. BBQ at that point is just a heat source, oven would give same result.
 
We cook salmon many ways. Lately I have been cutting my fillets into 1”1/4 strips so I can sear them on all 4 sides finishing with skin down to crisp up. This way you can get your spices all the way around and seal in the fat.
A simple sauce I’ve recently done is
Butter
Cream
Dill
Garlic
Onion
Lemon
You can’t go wrong with salt, garlic, lemon and butter
Tweak it a bit, hit the skin first. You'll get it crispy fairly early on, rather than potentially overcooking the flesh while trying to crisp the skin.
 
Skin side down on the grill, cooked so it’s slightly firm to the touch: not soft but not too firm. After resting it should be slightly pink in the centre, and juicy.

If it’s overcooked I have very little interest in eating it, except maybe after it’s cooled and been turned into salmon salad for sandwiches.
 
BBQ. If its fresh, just salt pepper butter. if its been frozen awhile i use the Famous salmon marinade. cook to 125 internal then slide the meat off the skin onto a plate and leave the skin on the grill to crisp for a few minutes.
 
Fresh coho on the BBQ is my favourite! I use a lemon pepper grinder and liberally sprinkle that over the whole fillet. Place skin side down on a sheet of tinfoil and cook on the BBQ at medium heat.

Depending on the thickness (thinness) of the fillet I may have only the thicker portion over the active burner so that the tail part doesn't get overcooked.
 
Try mixing mayo, lemon juice and a shot of Sriracha in a bowl.
Spread the mixture on your salmon fillet and lay it on a sheet of foil, but not enclosed.
(We prefer a nice boneless winter spring filet)
Heat the BBQ to 400 deg and cook for 10 mins.

Smoked salmon would be a close runner up!
A twist on a classic by adding the sriracha. I'll try that. Mayo, lemon and dill is the classic we use. I have started to cook in oven this way instead of bbq so I can step it up to broil for a couple minutes at the end. Get a light browning on the mayo.
 
My mantra is “there is something magical about hot oil and fish”. I love pan fried salmon steaks, (we all know that bones add flavour) or a filet portion with scored skin. However, the list above has so many great methods. Dry rubs also a favourite.
I've settled on pan frying as my go-to. Essential that it not be overcooked, and I go by eye, watching the cut edges of the fillets. Hit it hot and hard on the skin side, watch for the meat to turn opaque up to the centreline, then flip. This side is quicker, the opacity need only be 1/4-1/3 of the thickness - there should be a small band of meat that hasn't yet changed colour. Get them off the heat right away that last part will complete while you're plating.

This method is perfectly workable with preheated oil on a roasting tray in a hot oven (450-500°F), but it's harder to keep an eye on the fish when it's behind a door. The BBQ works too, as long as you're really organized with all the rest of the meal components at hand, or you have a dedicated BBQ meister who can focus on that while you put everything else together.

So for me, I find frying pans easiest. Constant visual checks on the fish while everything else comes together. And of course, cast iron for the win. I'll never buy one of those plastic coated disposable pans again.
 
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