Broiled Ginger-Soy Salmon
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If you had asked me a year ago if I would ever consider buying farmed salmon, I would have politely said no while thinking: ABSOLUTELY NOT! I’ve seen too much of the disturbing footage, read too much about the detrimental effects on the environment, etc.
But in the past few months, I’ve been buying farmed salmon from a local seafood market, Hooked, which I love for two reasons: the fish is always fresh, and they only source from sustainable fisheries. Hooked gets their salmon from the Faroe Islands, and from the teensy bit of research I did online, it’s hard to imagine a more pristine and idyllic environment to farm-raise fish.
But I’m not here today to tell you to start buying farm-raised salmon. I, for one, am so skeptical these days of anything I read. There are organizations like Seafood Watch dedicated to cataloging which fisheries are sustainable and which are not, and there are organizations whose mission is to stop people from eating fish altogether, to spread the word that NO fish is sustainable, and to warn people that our seas are depleted.
Who to trust? Everything in moderation? Alas, all I know is that I do love fish, and I do love this recipe, which comes from the first SkinnyTaste cookbook. Over the years I’ve made it many times, and while I’ve always kept the marinade exactly the same, I’ve experimented with various cooking methods to avoid having to flip the fish, and I’ve finally found a method I really like.
Unlike the pan-broiled method I posted about recently, which starts the fish in a hot skillet and finishes it under the broiler, here I start under the broiler and finish in a hot skillet. This requires two pans—I know, what a pain!—but it serves two purposes: 1. Starting under the broiler makes for a less smoky experience, dramatically reducing the chances of my smoke alarm from sounding off. 2. Broiling first keeps the fish from sticking.
Anyway, this method works for me, but feel free to employ your own. Over the weekend I made it live on Facebook, too, where I also revealed my recent kitchen upgrade: butcher block countertops. Spoiler: they’re fake. I contact papered my entire kitchen. It was a very productive weekend. I hope yours was, too.
Broiled Ginger-Soy Salmon
- Total Time: 38 minutes
- Yield: 6
Description
A long-time favorite recipe from the first SkinnyTaste cookbook.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Sriracha
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon minced ginger
- 6-oz skin-on salmon fillets (this marinade is good for as many as 6)
- neutral oil, such as grapeseed
Instructions
- Mix together the soy sauce, honey, vinegar, and Sriracha in a large bowl. Add the garlic and ginger and stir to combine. Add the salmon fillets and turn to coat. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours (longer might be OK, but I’ve never tried.)
- Preheat the broiler to high for at least 10 minutes. Remove salmon from marinade, and pat skin dry using paper towels or a dish towel. Rub an oven-safe pan—I like these sizzle pans—with a small amount of oil. Place salmon fillets on pan skin-side down. Place under the broiler for 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium heat. (If you are cooking as many as 6 fillets, you’ll want to heat 2 skillets.) After the 5 minutes under the broiler—or when the fish is looking nicely caramelized on top—turn the heat under the skillet to high, add a small amount of oil to coat the bottom of the pan, carefully transfer the fillets from the sizzle pan to the skillet, lower the heat to medium, and cook for about 1 minute or until the skin is crisp. Transfer fillets to a plate to rest for 1 minute before serving.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 8 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Broiler, Stovetop
- Cuisine: Asian
Contact-paper countertops:
View of the backsplash and my knife grabber, which I love:
Wine-in-a-box looks so much classier on contact-paper countertops:
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
18 Comments on “Broiled Ginger-Soy Salmon”
You’re hilarious! I will try this salmon recipe. Thanks for the heads up on the Faroe Islands – I had to look them up. I believe this is the same as Scottish farmed salmon, which I’ve also heard good things about and have liked in the past. I think I’m going to get a sizzle plate too…. hey look completely handy.
I love my sizzle pans! They’re such a nice size. I had to look up the Faroe Islands as well. I’m not sure it’s quite the same as the Scottish farmed salmon though the location is close—I think the Faroe Islands have their own operation going, but I could be wrong. I called Whole Foods to ask where they get theirs because I had a conversation with the guy at my local WF, and they get theirs from Norway. What I find tricky is that WF is dedicated to using sustainable fish, but if you look at the Seafood Watch website, you might be deterred from buying farmed salmon from Norway bc they have it on an “avoid” list. And there is no mention of the Faroe Islands on the SW website. So, it’s so hard to know. Anyway, hieeeeee!
This looks fantastic! Is there a reason you can’t just broil it in the pan you’ll use on the stove in the second part? I think the counter tops look good and it was fun to see you demonstrate this.
Thank you!
Sara, you could try the method you’re suggesting. I tried once and had some sticking issues, but I probably didn’t grease the pan well enough. You’ll just want to make sure that while your fish is broiling you have the burner getting hot over medium or medium high heat so that when you pull the pan from the oven, it’s ready to be set on a hot burner. Let me know how it goes!
All delicious flavors in one dish! Love it
Thank you, Maria!
This looks awesome. I’m going to try it in a cast iron so I can avoid two pans. I’ll heat the burner while it’s broiling like you suggested. I do think I need a sizzle pan though. How handy!!
Hi Susan!! I think it will work beautifully. Report back if you make it! I do love my sizzle pans, too—such a great size, and yes, so handy. Hope you are well! Great to hear from you. xoxo
Where did you get the wooden box of wine? Very cool ?
The Niskayuna Wine Shop has been selling them since before Thanksgiving! It’s been so much fun having the little box around. Where do you live?
This looks and sounds delicious! I just got back from a week in NYC where I indulged in too many wonderful pasta dishes. I was looking for something healthy to make tonight and I think I just found it!
By the way, good job on the countertops!
Thanks, Trish!! They make me happy 🙂 And I know what you mean. We’ve been eating this one a lot recently especially when we have friends/family over, and everyone appreciates the lighter fare this time of year especially. So fun you had a week in NYC!! xo
Yummmmmm! Best method I have ever tried and I have tried many! Bravo Alexandra!
I cannot wait to see your book! I have preordered!
Thank you, Mary!! You are too kind. xoxo
Great way to do salmon! Had a sockeye (pacific/wild caught only!) filet, enough for two. The method was easy, it just worked and tastes great. Used a cast iron pan for the initial broiler part (wish I knew about sizzle pans, will look into them!). While that was broiling I used up some leftover angel hair pasta for a pan fried garlic noodles side dish, stovetop in the other pan. Also had some Brussel sprouts ready to go.
Set the garlic noodles aside as the broiling salmon was nicely bronzed, & transferred the salmon to that same (non-stick) stovetop pan, which was now ready-to-go & medium-hot to crisp the bottom salmon skin, about a minute or so. Nailed it!
Note: I retrieved the remaining sauce from the broiling pan, looked good & glazy, though would advise against doing that as we found it somewhat bitter as a glaze for topping the salmon at the end. It sure looked like a good idea, looked perfect as a glaze, though we pushed it off the salmon & it was better w/o that extra pan glaze). As written, this is just a great method & recipe and I’d make this again anytime.
So nice to hear this, Paul! Thanks so much for writing. Love the idea of making a garlicky angel hair pasta stirfry to go with this. And Brussels sprouts are my favorite, so this all sounds like the perfect meal. Thanks for writing!
Made this last night and it was simply delicious…even though I overcooked it by about a minute. I would love to have a sauce to put with it. But even so, I’ll make this again.
Love all your recipes, Ali
Maria D
Great to hear, Maria! I’ll brainstorm some sauce ideas. Haven’t made this in ages, but you are inspiring me to revisit it. Thanks for writing!