QUICK AND EASY BALSAMIC DIJON SALMON

This easy and quick salmon recipe is one of my favorite dishes to cook when I have company over. It’s a simple 5 ingredient recipe that is no fuss yet looks impressive enough to serve to guests. The sweet, salty, sour, bitter flavors of the sauce add such a lovely depth of flavor to the fish. While impressive enough to serve to guests, it also makes a delicious meal for busy weeknights as it can be made in under 30 minutes.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Easy and quick to make
• Only requires a few simple ingredients
• Great dish for entertaining as it looks impressive

What Ingredients Do I Need

• Salmon fillets – Get your fishmonger to remove the pin bones.
• Balsamic vinegar
• Dijon mustard
• Honey – A light or medium honey will work best.
• Sesame oil
• Sesame seeds – Optional.

How To Make Balsamic Dijon Salmon

• Mix sauce – Whisk together balsamic vinegar, honey, Dijon mustard, and sesame oil until well combined.

• Prepare salmon – Line a baking sheet with foil and place salmon pieces on it about 1″ apart from each other. Spoon balsamic sauce evenly over each piece.
• Sprinkle salmon with sesame seeds and bake – Bake at 232C (450F) for 11-12 minutes.

Recipe Tips and Tricks For Success

• Make sure to whisk the sauce until it’s completely blended with no streaks.
• Space the salmon pieces about 1″ apart so that they cook evenly.
• Don’t overcook the fish. It should be firm but still moist. You should be able to easily pierce it with a fork. If it resists the fork it needs more time and if it flakes apart too easily it’s overdone. My general rule is that it’s best to undercook than overcook salmon.
• For easy clean up make sure to line your baking pan with foil. If you don’t the sauce will burn on your pan. Trust me, you do not want to try cleaning that off.

What To Serve This Balsamic Dijon Salmon With?

One of my favorite ways to serve this salmon is with zucchini slices and roasted baby potatoes. I do an easy sheet pan dinner with this combination. It’s perfect for busy weeknights as it takes less than 30 minutes to prepare. It’s also lovely with roasted or grilled asparagus and some rice to soak up that delicious sauce.

Recipe Variations

While this recipe was specifically created for salmon I have had lovely results with Black Cod or Sablefish as it’s otherwise known. Or if you don’t want to use fish, this sauce would be wonderful with baked tofu.

Storage Tips

This dish is really best eaten right away while both the salmon and the sauce are fresh. Reheating it will overcook the fish.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS;

Are you supposed to flip salmon when cooking it? If you are searing salmon on the stovetop you can flip it in the last couple of minutes to cook the top side of the fish. Always start with the skin side down and cook this way for 90% of the time, flipping only for the last couple of minutes. When baking salmon it's not necessary to flip it as the even heat of the oven will cook it through.

How do you know when salmon is done? It should be firm but still moist. You should be able to easily pierce it with a fork. If it resists the fork it needs more time and if it flakes apart too easily it's overdone. My general rule is that it's best to undercook salmon a bit than to overcook it.

What is the white stuff coming out of salmon? The white stuff that comes out of salmon when it's cooked is a protein called albumin. When the fish is raw the albumin is in liquid form but it solidifies when heated. It's perfectly safe to eat. There is no way to remove albumin from salmon however you can prevent a lot of it being released by cooking salmon low and slow.  

Balsamic Dijon Salmon

A quick & easy recipe for baked salmon with a balsamic Dijon sauce.

www.comfortandpeasant.com

5 from 4 votes

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Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 12 minutes mins

Total Time 17 minutes mins

Course Dinner, Entree, Main Course

Cuisine American

Servings 4

Equipment

• 1 Baking pan

Ingredients

  

• 4-113g each (4 ounces) salmon fillets
• 30ml (2 tbsp) balsamic vinegar
• 30ml (2 tbsp) honey
• 22ml (1 1/2 tbsp) Dijon mustard
• 10ml (2 tsp) sesame oil
• 5-10ml (1-2 tsp) sesame seeds (optional)

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 232C (450F)
• In a small bowl whisk together balsamic vinegar, honey, Dijon mustard and sesame oil. Combine well.
  
• Line a baking pan with silver foil and place salmon pieces on it 1" apart from each other.
  
• Spoon balsamic Dijon sauce evenly over salmon and sprinkle with sesame seeds if using.
  
• Bake for 11-12 minutes or until a fork easily pierces the thickest part of the salmon. Make sure not to over cook. Spoon any sauce that has accumulated in the bottom of the pan over the salmon and serve.

Notes

See the “How To Make This” & “Tips For Success” sections above the recipe for more detailed information on the process. 

Keyword baking pan, balsamic vinegar, dijon mustard, Easy, honey, quick, salmon filets, sesame oil

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And if you’re looking for more easy and quick recipes check out my Salmon, Avocado & Spinach Salad and my 30-Minute Maple Cranberry Chicken.