This Honey Garlic Salmon is a terrific way to serve salmon that is just sooooo crazy quick and soooo crazy delicious! Head here to see all my quick and easy salmon recipes!
Honey Garlic Salmon recipe original published March 2015. Refreshed with new photos and video in 2017.
HONEY GARLIC SALMON SAUCE
This Honey Garlic Salmon recipe is all about the sauce. Just four simple pantry essentials in the right proportions – soy sauce, honey, garlic and vinegar.
I used to just whisk up the Sauce and pour it over pan seared Salmon. Then I started adding the sauce into the skillet with the salmon, and that’s even better, so I decided it was time to refresh this recipe (which I posted originally posted in March 2015!) plus I’ve added a recipe video.
When you first mix up the sauce, you won’t think it’s anything special. In fact, it’s pretty flat tasting just as it is. There are some sauces that steal the limelight in a dish – like Sweet & Sour Sauce and the Lemon Cream Sauce in this baked fish.
And then there are other sauces that are designed to compliment the dish it’s served with, rather than taking centre stage itself.
This Honey Garlic Sauce is one of those (as is Garlic Butter with salmon!) Once it’s cooked with the salmon and it caramelises…. WOWEE!!!
HOW LONG TO COOK SALMON?
3 to 4 minutes on the first side and 2 to 3 minutes on the second side for a standard fillet that’s about 2.5cm / 1″ thick at the thickest part.
This will yield a salmon that is perfectly cooked to medium rare – so the flesh flakes when you cut into it, it’s beautifully moist and coral inside rather than a pale pink / white.
Salmon is a fatty fish so it’s more forgiving if overcooked slightly. But when perfectly cooked, it’s a thing of beauty!!
This Honey Garlic Salmon recipe is a firm favourite in my household – and it’s been a reader favourite for many years now, ever since I first published it!
It’s a terrific quick and easy way to cook salmon that makes the most of all that we love about salmon – it’s juicy flesh, the salmon flavour, and how the surface caramelises beautifully when seared with the right sauce.
For a quick and easy meal, serve it with a side of steamed vegetables, like broccolini or asparagus shown in the photos. Add some bread or mashed potato for mopping up the sauce, and you’ve got a quick dinner on the table in less than 20 minutes! – Nagi xx
More fish recipes!
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
Honey Garlic Salmon recipe video!
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Honey Garlic Salmon (5 Ingredients, 15 Minutes)
Ingredients
Sauce
- 4 tbsp honey
- 2 tbsp soy sauce (all purpose or light soy sauce)
- 1 tbsp white vinegar (or sub with any other vinegar except balsamic)
- 1 large garlic clove (or 2 small) , minced
Salmon
- 2 salmon or trout fillets, skinless (6oz / 200g each)
- Olive oil
- Salt and pepper
Optional Garnishes
- Sesame seeds
- Finely sliced chives or shallots/scallions
Instructions
- Take salmon out of the fridge 20 minutes before cooking. Pat salmon skin dry with a paper towel and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Whisk together the Sauce ingredients in a small bowl.
- Drizzle oil in a non stick fry pan and heat over medium high heat (or just under, if your stove runs hot). Place salmon in the pan, and cook the first side for 3 – 4 minutes until golden. Turn, then cook the other side for 2 – 3 minutes or until golden.
- Pour Sauce over salmon. Cook for 1 minute or until it starts to thicken slightly. Check the side of the salmon to tell how cooked through the middle is – I like mine medium rare inside. (Note 1). If Sauce thickens too much before your salmon is cooked to your taste, just add water 1 tbsp at a time.
- Remove onto serving plates.
- Serve salmon drizzled with Sauce, sprinkled with sesame seeds and chives/shallots, if desired.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
LIFE OF DOZER
Currently in Fiji and receiving the usual daily reports from Dozer’s boarder – all is well and there are (apparently) no signs of separation anxiety. Hmph!!
This really is a simple but fabulous recipe!!!! I added a thinly sliced chilli with seeds and pith removed so got the flavour but without the heat and served with basmati rice and sliced steamed beans cooked for the last 4 mins in the rice it was truly delicious and so quick! Huge thanks for sharing this recioe
That was insane! SOOOOOOOO good. I didn’t expect it to be so good.
Don’t deviate from the recipe!
Another brilliant dish Nagi, thank you 👏
Delicious… will cook it again. Thank you so much.
I have made two of your recipie’s so far. Sausage rolls (balls) and Honey garlic Salmon. Just delicious on both counts! Can’t wait to make the next one. And your tip on rolling spring rolls (lettuce leaf) is genius. I love them but never want to go thru the hassle of rolling them. Now I can easily!
The recipe is great and the sauce is addictively good. ( I’ve been making the sauce and putting it on almost every meal; it’s particularly good in astir fry. Just pure Yum.
Thank you so much for this recipe.
A very tasty and delicious recipe. Super easy and amazingly good. I used rice vinegar and roasted garlic. This may become a family favorite.
This was so delicious! Only thing I did differently was I added about 2 tspn brown sugar, red pepper flakes, and some Hoy fong chilli garlic sauce. That kicked it up a notch and Oh My Goodness! This is going in rotation!
Soooooo good! Simple ingredients, so flavorful. The kids and adults loved this salmon recipe. I baked my dish (20m at 400 degrees, then broiled for 7m on 450)
instead of pan frying is the only change I made. Thanks for sharing!
Easy and delicious! I will do this again. I’m not usually a fish fan, but with this sauce, I am!
This meal was so easy to make and so yummy! Will be making it again.
Simple and delicious. Served with slivered almonds, capers and lemon slice, with green salad.
The rabbits ate all of the dill in my garden. So, I had to find a new salmon recipe. What luck…it was delicious!
Fantastic recipe! Thank you so much ☺️
Hi! I like this recipe, but my sauce doesn’t thicken when I’ve put it on the stove. It gets looser, more watery. I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong…
This was a very delicious meal that was truly enjoyed by my family. I didn’t have to buy these ingredients as I already have them in my pantry! I added a little bit more of the vinegar as the honey was sweet for me. This is better than adding brown sugar or any sugar for that matter! I made this sauce with chicken too! Greatly recommend this dish. I will try to cook your another recipes Nagi! Thank you that I came across your recipe!
What type of honey did you use?
I just made this tonight for our Good Friday meal
This recipe so simple and all the ingredients are my staples result…
Delish! I couldn’t get enough of this it was the best tasting salmon I’ve ever made and I’m a good cook but Nagi this is the best served with a side of garlic prawns freshly made creamy coleslaw and kalamata crusty bread to mop it all up with oh my to die for! Thank you.
Made this for lunch on Good Friday. Followed the instructions down to the minute and it was perfect!
I made this tonight and it was finaminal! I didn’t have honey so I used 2tbs brown sugar and it turned out awesome. So glad I decided to pick this recipe tonight. Thank you!
This recipe was quick to make and quite tasty!