Baked Salmon

Have I ever mentioned that I love salmon? One of my favorites. I like it smoked, sashimi, sushi, teriyaki, bbq’d, steamed, baked, roasted, fried, etc. The only time I don’t like salmon is when it is overcooked. I’ll eat it canned, but only in a salmon salad sandwich (I would prefer tuna though).

I got this recipe from Spoon It On a few years back (yes, I get a lot of recipes from her, because our kitchen motto is the same: quick, easy, and delicious)

Baked Salmon ~ Adapted from Spoon It On

I don't measure my ingredients, I adjust according to taste and my experience from previous attempts.

Salmon – fillet or steaks, I used a whole fillet of salmon here
1/2 to 1 lemon, sliced
1/2 stick butter ** see note below
seasoning salt ***see note below
steak spice *** see note below

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F

1. Rinse and pat dry salmon fillet. Place in roasting pan or pan that allows the salmon to lay without overlapping except where the fillet is thin. The pan needs to have sides so that when you cover it with tin foil, the foil doesn't touch the fish.

2. Slice a lemon and set aside. (Just cut enough for the size of your fish)

3. Cut half a stick of butter into squares (If you like it more buttery, then cut more)

4. Sprinkle seasoning salt, steak spice over salmon (I season generously because my first attempt making this was too bland).

5. Place lemon slices on salmon nicely spaced apart (for more lemony flavour you can squeeze a little bit of lemon juice over the fish).

6. Place butter on salmon, once again spaced evenly on salmon (I line the butter every 1.5 inches along the length of the salmon and on top of the lemon slices).

7. Cover with tin foil and bake until desired doneness (I usually bake for 40 minutes but that's because it is the entire side of 1 salmon. If you use a smaller piece, it will be done anywhere between 20 and 30 minutes. It is done when the salmon flakes when you stick a fork in the thickest part of the fillet though I like mine to still be a little "pink" there).

** For a healthier option, drizzle olive oil and use less butter or completely omit butter if you want

*** You can basically use any seasoning you like. Try Montreal Steak Spice, Garlic Plus, Mrs. Dash, Italian seasoning…the list is endless. Or even try herbs such as dill, oregano, etc. And you can garnish with parsley or cilantro when ready to serve. In the past, in place of the steak spice and seasoning salt, I've tried using lemon pepper seasoning (don't over season with this mix as it is a strong one).