Olive-Oil Baked Salmon

By Ali Slagle

Updated Dec. 30, 2024

Olive-Oil Baked Salmon
Armando Rafael for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
Total Time
25 minutes
Rating
4(1,890)
Comments
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If you’re looking for a baked salmon recipe that produces silky fish with flavors that go with anything, you’ve found it. This fish gets so tender because it’s cooked at a moderate temperature and cushioned by a shallow pool of olive oil and lemon juice. Add lemon peels or other seasonings to the baking dish before the salmon cooks and they’ll infuse the oil; this mixture will become your sauce. Once the salmon is done, let it rest and squeeze more lemon juice into the sauce. The results are reminiscent of squeezing a lemon wedge over a piece of fish, but the flavor is a little more luxurious and developed. Any extra sauce can be used on a salad, steamed vegetables or crusty bread.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • ¼cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 4(6-ounce) salmon fillets or 1 (1 ½-pound) salmon fillet (skin-on or skinless), patted dry
  • Salt and pepper
  • 2lemons
  • Optional flavorings: rosemary, thyme or oregano sprigs; smashed garlic; fresh or dried chile; olives; anchovies; bay leaves; crushed fennel or coriander seeds
Ingredient Substitution Guide
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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Drizzle the oil in a baking dish that will fit the salmon. Place the salmon in the dish, skin-side down if applicable. Season with salt and pepper.

  2. Step 2

    Using a vegetable peeler, peel thick strips of zest from 1 lemon, then add to the baking dish. Juice 3 tablespoons of the lemon and pour over the salmon. Nestle in the optional flavorings if using. Bake, basting halfway through with the lemon oil, until just cooked through, 13 to 20 minutes, depending on the size of the fillets. (You will know if the salmon is done when the fish flakes when cut into with a knife or fork or when an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part reaches 120 degrees.)

  3. Step 3

    Transfer the salmon to plates to rest at least 5 minutes; discard the skin if applicable. Remove and discard the lemon peels and any aromatics you don’t want to eat, like herb sprigs. Squeeze about 1 tablespoon of the reserved lemon juice into the baking dish until the sauce is tangy but not puckery. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Eat the salmon with a spoonful of the lemon sauce.

Ratings

4 out of 5
1,890 user ratings
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Comments

Chris R

Why does everyone instruct that salmon be cooked until it flakes. If it flakes it is overdone and will dry out quickly. Remove from oven before it flakes, let it rest a bit and it will be the perfect texture and moist and luscious.

Ernest P

Note from an Alaskan: This recipe is fine with farmed salmon (it's only a few ounces of olive oil and adds a great lemon-rich baste), but if you have wild red/sockeye salmon or wild silver salmon, the olive oil thing is genius. Those wild fish are kind of dry when baked without a little fat. With wild king salmon (fatty and rich), I'd back off a bit on the olive oil. You're paying a premium for wild king, so let it do its own thing.

Karl

I find it interesting that the foodie community tends to prefer salmon at 120 or minimally cooked (someone comments that "if it's flaky, it is overdone") - am I the only one who likes salmon cooked more like to 140 in the thickest part? At 120 the texture seems a bit too raw for my taste, and my kids think it's gross. Sufficiently fatty cuts remain plenty moist at 140 or even 150 (for the thinner parts that get more cooked). Don't feel ashamed if you like your salmon more cooked!

ellen h

Superb preparation for wild salmon. I added tomatoes, olives and thinly sliced fennel.

MS

Absolutely perfect

Gary

Simple and delicious

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