← Back to the recipe

Print: Lemon Butter Baked Salmon

Press Ctrl+P (⌘P on a Mac) to print.

Big type for easier reading on US Letter or A4; long recipes run onto a second page.

Baked Salmon · Lemon Butter

Lemon Butter Baked Salmon

Tender, flaky salmon baked under a garlicky lemon butter in about 20 minutes. It's the easiest way to start cooking fish at home.

Scan for the recipe
Prep
8 min
Cook
14 min
Total
22 min
Serves
4
Level
Easy

Ingredients

  • 4 salmon fillets, about 6 oz each, skin on or off
  • ¾ tsp kosher salt
  • ¼ tsp black pepper
  • 3 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 lemon, half juiced, half thinly sliced
  • 1 tsp lemon zest
  • 1 tbsp fresh dill or parsley, chopped

Cook to 145°F inside (check with a thermometer).

Steps

  1. Heat the oven to 400°F (200°C) and line a sheet pan with parchment.
  2. Pat the salmon dry and set it on the pan, skin side down, with space between the fillets. Season with salt and pepper.
  3. Stir the melted butter with the garlic, lemon juice and zest. Spoon it over the salmon and lay a lemon slice on each fillet.
  4. Bake until the salmon flakes easily with a fork and reaches 145°F (63°C) in the thickest part. Thinner fillets finish sooner.
  5. Spoon the buttery pan juices over the top and sprinkle with dill.

Tip: If the fillets have skin, the cooked flesh slides right off it when you lift with a spatula.

Tip: Frozen fillets work: thaw them overnight in the fridge, then pat very dry.

Storage: Refrigerate within 2 hours, up to 2 days. Enjoy cold over salad or flake into pasta.

Estimated nutrition per serving: 440 calories · protein 35 g · carbohydrates 2 g · fiber <1 g · sugars 0 g · fat 32 g (saturated 11 g) · sodium 430 mg. Estimate from USDA FoodData Central; not medical or dietary advice. Based on 8 of 8 ingredients.