Our best salmon recipes include everything from our pan-fried salmon fillet recipe with tips to how to get a perfectly crispy salmon skin to a Vietnamese caramelised fish recipe made with salmon and Russian salmon potato salad and smoked salmon blini. Our best salmon recipes are not only easy salmon recipes that come together quickly, they’re healthy salmon recipes.
If you’re looking for fish recipes, consider our best salmon recipes. Salmon is not only incredibly healthy and delicious, it’s also very versatile. I’ve currently got a salmon tray bake in the oven with spring veg and will share that recipe later this evening.
Until then, amongst our best salmon recipes, we have devilled eggs with smoked salmon, blini with smoked salmon, a salmon ceviche-style appetiser, a fish soup with salmon, salmon potato salad, salmon pasta, clay-pot salmon, and a recipe for a salmon fillet with perfectly crispy salmon skin.
If you’re a regular reader you would have noticed that we’ve been publishing some salmon recipes recently. Perhaps the biggest pandemic food trend here in Cambodia is the salmon trend – more on that in another post! – which means that my favourite fish is readily available and fairly affordable.
For a country and culinary culture that has traditionally eaten freshwater fish from the rivers and lakes that can often have a muddy taste, the fashion and passion for salmon, an ocean fish who loves icy waters, is both surprising and not so surprising. What’s not to love about salmon?
Salmon is one of the most delicious fish thanks to its fattiness (don’t worry, they’re healthy fats!), which give salmon a sublime richness, along with the soft texture of salmon, and salmon’s sweetness – which is also what makes it a perfect match for the shari, the vinegar rice that’s the main component of sushi.
Salmon is super healthy. It’s high in vitamins, especially B vitamins, is rich in high quality protein, and is high in potassium. Salmon is also one of the most nutritious foods thanks to those good fats – omega-3 fatty acids, which are essential and responsible for good stuff such as reducing inflammation, improving cell function, decreasing blood pressure, and reducing the risk of strokes and cancer.
Before I share our best salmon recipes, I have a favour to ask. Grantourismo is reader-funded. If you’ve used and like our recipes, including our Thai recipes and Cambodian recipes, please consider supporting Grantourismo by supporting our original, epic, first-of-its-kind Cambodian culinary history and cookbook on Patreon for as little as US$5 a month. Or, you could also buy us a coffee. Although we’ll use our coffee money to buy cooking ingredients for recipe testing instead.
You can also support our work by using links on the site to book accommodation, rent a car or hire a motorhome or campervan, purchase travel insurance, or book a tour on Klook or Get Your Guide; shopping our Grantourismo online store (we have fun gifts for foodies designed with Terence’s images); or buying something on Amazon, such as these award-winning cookbooks, cookbooks by Australian chefs, classic cookbooks for serious cooks, cookbooks for culinary travellers, travel books to inspire wanderlust, and gifts for Asian food lovers. Now let me share our best salmon recipes.
Published 9 September 2021; updated 1 December 2022.
Best Salmon Recipes From Perfect Pan-Fried Salmon to Smoked Salmon Blini
Our best salmon recipes include everything from Vietnamese caramelised fish recipe made with salmon to a pan-fried salmon fillet recipe with Irish colcannon and tips to how to get a perfectly crispy salmon skin.
Buckwheat Pancakes Recipe for Blini with Smoked Salmon, Dill and Sour Cream
This Russian buckwheat pancakes recipe makes blini with smoked salmon, dill, sour cream, and a ‘caviar’ of gherkin and radish and it’s another of our best salmon recipes. These are cocktail size blini that are perfect for snacking and entertaining.
More like pikelets than pancakes, my blini recipe calls for smoked salmon, dill, sour cream, and a ‘caviar’ of gherkin and radish that’s inspired by the Russian eggplant caviar salad called ikra. But yes, of course you could make these salmon blini with real caviar.
I’m just conscious that we’re still in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis and many can’t afford the luxury of caviar. These salmon blini are for those of us currently on a Prosecco rather than a Champagne budget!
Russian Buckwheat Pancakes Recipe for Blini with Smoked Salmon, Dill and Sour Cream
Creamy Smoked Salmon Dip Recipe with Salty Capers, Dill Pickles, Paprika and Fresh Dill
This smoked salmon dip recipe is made with salty capers, zingy dill pickles, purple shallots, a pinch of paprika, and plenty of fresh perfumed dill and it beats a store-bought dip any day.
While it might cost you a bit more to make, nothing tops homemade and you’ll taste the difference in the fresh herbs and proper salmon. It’s utterly addictive.
I also add white pepper, garlic powder and sea salt, all of which you can adjust to your taste. I shared this as part of a serendipitous and somewhat nostalgic cooking project where I found myself recreating favourite snacks, homemade and store-bought, from the 1970s through 1990s.
Have you made my homemade olive tapenade and cheese straws recipes yet? I have more dip recipes for crackers and crudités here.
Creamy Smoked Salmon Dip Recipe with Salty Capers, Dill Pickles, Paprika and Fresh Dill
Devilled Eggs with Smoked Salmon and Caviar Recipe for Elegant Cocktail Party Canapés
Our devilled eggs with smoked salmon and caviar recipe makes an elegant canapé or a treat to savour with a glass of bubbly.
Traditionally served as part of a festive zakuski spread, you could save these retro hors d’oeuvres for special occasions. But why not indulge yourself from time to time?
They are a particularly luxurious take on my zesty Russian devilled eggs recipe. Devilled eggs were traditionally served as part of a spread of zakuski or appetisers that were the prelude to a lavish family feast.
These retro hors d’oeuvres, which were popularised in the 1970s along with other Russian dishes, such as beef Stroganoff and chicken Kiev, have never gone out of style for me, as they’re so much a part of my culinary heritage.
Devilled Eggs with Smoked Salmon and Caviar Recipe for Elegant Cocktail Party Canapés
Traditional Khmer Raw Fish Salad Recipe for Cambodian Style Ceviche Phlea Trei
This traditional Khmer raw fish salad recipe for phlea trei makes a Cambodian ceviche usually made with a local firm white fish ‘cooked’ in citrus juice. It’s an ancient Khmer dish that feels contemporary, which is why it can be found on the menus of Cambodia’s finest Cambodian restaurants.
As we use sashimi quality salmon for this dish, we’ve not marinated the salmon and allowed it to ‘cook’ in the citrus-based dressing as it traditionally is, however, the dish still has the same wonderful flavour profile and texture.
It’s a fantastic dish that, as impressive as it looks, is easy to make and comes together quickly. When served in Siem Reap restaurants it’s a visual feast for the eyes, the plates prettily strewn with edible flowers – the use of which is very traditional, not merely a contemporary flourish.
Traditional Khmer Raw Fish Salad Recipe for the Cambodian Style Ceviche Called Phlea Trei
Easy Smoked Salmon Carpaccio Recipe for an Elegant Appetiser Made in Minutes
Our smoked salmon carpaccio recipe will make you a simple but gorgeous-looking starter that can be made in minutes, making it a fantastic choice for a relaxed late spring or summer meal if you prefer to spend more time outside in the sunshine with guests than inside in the kitchen.
If you’re entertaining, you can make the dish ahead by assembling the salmon, capers and pickled onions, and refrigerating the dish, then pouring on the dressing just before serving. You can serve it sharing-style and lay it out on a table with a few other dishes, and allow guests to help themselves.
I recommend providing a basket of toasted baguette slices and dishes with additional capers, pickled shallots and fresh dill, and small jugs of dressing, so guests can customise their own carpaccio.
Easy Smoked Salmon Carpaccio Recipe for an Elegant Appetiser Made in Minutes
Easy Salmon Tray Bake Recipe for Crispy Skinned Salmon with Spring Vegetables
This easy salmon tray bake recipe makes crispy skinned salmon fillets baked so that the skin crackles but the flesh remains moist, with roasted spring vegetables that are just-done so that they’re still fresh and crunchy. Sprinkled with spring onions and fresh fragrant dill and served with lemon slices, it makes the lightest of roasts, perfect for a spring lunch.
I’ve made the salmon with spring vegetables – zucchini, asparagus, broccoli, peas, radishes, and purple shallots; I would have added some edible flowers if I could have got hold of them – but you could roast the salmon with autumn or winter veggies: roast beetroot, Brussels sprouts and cauliflower florets would work.
I add veggies such as asparagus, beans and peas near the end of cooking so that they’re just-done and still taste fresh and crunchy, almost like a warm salad. I’ve popped some lemon slices on the tray but they’re not all that practical, so provide an additional bowl of lemon quarters for your guests to squeeze onto the salmon.
Easy Salmon Tray Bake Recipe for Crispy Skinned Salmon with Spring Vegetables
Pan-Fried Salmon Fillets with Colcannon Recipe and How to Get Perfect Crispy Salmon Skin
This salmon fillet with colcannon recipe has been a favourite since we first tasted the dish at restaurant Banc in Sydney some years ago. The crispy skinned salmon fillet was cooked to perfection, the colcannon was creamy and rich, and while the red wine sauce seemed an unusual choice, its acidity worked well with a mouthful of the other ingredients.
If you love Terence’s creamy mashed potatoes recipe as much as I do, then you’re going to adore this colcannon recipe. If you’re not familiar with colcannon, it’s a classic Irish mashed potato dish with kale or cabbage and spring onions, and can entertain other ingredients, such as bacon or pancetta.
We also provide tips for cooking salmon. A lot of people get nervous cooking salmon, but it’s actually one of the simplest fish to cook. The most difficult part is carefully scoring the skin. Tip: use your sharpest knife. More tips to frying salmon and getting a perfect crispy salmon skin in the post.
Salmon Fillet with Colcannon Recipe and How to Get a Perfect Crispy Salmon Skin
Russian Salmon Potato Salad Recipe with Soft-Boiled Eggs, Gherkins, Capers and Dill
My Russian salmon potato salad recipe with soft-boiled eggs, capers, gherkins and dill makes a filling salad that you can eat year-round and it’s easily another of our best salmon recipes.
In the cool season, you can serve it with warm potatoes and seared salmon straight from the pan, while it can be refrigerated for warm weather meals, such as summer barbecues and spring picnics.
Pan-sear the salmon to your liking; tips above in the salmon fillet with colcannon recipe. We like our salmon just done if we’re eating this immediately but I’d recommend cooking it right through if you’re making it ahead and even refrigerating it for the next day.
You can add dollops of caviar for a special meal and replace the fresh salmon with smoked salmon. For the soft-boiled eggs, Terence has an excellent guide to boiling perfect eggs every time.
Russian Salmon Potato Salad Recipe with Soft-Boiled Eggs, Gherkins, Capers and Dill
Smoked Salmon Pasta Recipe for Spaghetti with Smoked Salmon, Dill Pickles, Capers and Fresh Dill
Our best smoked salmon pasta recipe makes spaghetti with smoked salmon, dill pickles, capers and fresh dill. Sour cream and lemon juice make this a pasta that’s quintessentially Eastern European.
It’s versatile – add more sour cream for a creamier texture or a dollop of caviar for a special occasion – and comes together quickly, in less than half an hour. Use the best quality smoked salmon you can afford.
The best capers are sourced from the Mediterranean and I love these capers from Pantelleria, which are considered some of the finest. I’ve used extra virgin olive oil from Valencia but if we were in Australia we’d probably use gorgeous Australian virgin olive oil.
We have a recipe for homemade dill pickles or gherkins, however, you can certainly use store-bought.
Vietnamese Clay Pot Caramelised Fish Recipe with Salmon, Turmeric, Dill, and Peanuts
This easy Vietnamese caramelised fish recipe with fresh turmeric, fragrant dill and peanuts is another of our best salmon dishes which comes together quickly, despite the fact you need to pound a marinade and paste in a mortar and pestle. It’s great exercise for the arms, trust me!
Called ‘Vietnamese clay pot fish with fresh dill’ at Hoi An’s Red Bridge Cooking School where we first learnt to make it – because it’s traditionally cooked in a clay pot – the dish tastes like a combination of two Vietnamese specialties, chả cá lã vọng from the North and cá kho tộ from the South.
Our cooking instructor recommended it be made with either salmon, mackerel, salmon, snapper, sea bass, basa, or catfish – I’ve eaten it with trout in Sapa – but we make this dish with salmon because it’s absolutely delicious and is enormously popular here and readily available.
I also adore it because salmon and dill are a perfect match. While you could certainly use salmon steaks, I prefer smaller pieces of salmon as they better absorb the turmeric marinade better, and work well with steamed rice or noodles.
Easy Vietnamese Clay Pot Caramelised Fish Recipe with Fresh Turmeric, Fragrant Dill and Peanuts
Traditional Russian Fish Soup Recipe for Ukha Made with Salmon
This Russian fish soup recipe for ukha is one of my best salmon recipes. It’s also a family recipe based on a centuries-old traditional Russian soup said to be a favourite of emperors and peasants alike.
It’s an easy soup recipe, made with fresh salmon fillets, spices, vegetables, and dill. Historically it was a fisherman’s soup, made with several types of fish, such as perch, pike, trout, and/or salmon, so feel free to add other fish to this soup, although salmon keeps me very sated.
I love to make a big pot of this salmon soup and freeze half in separate containers which I like to heat up for lunches. Serve with plenty of fresh fragrant dill, sour cream and dark rye bread.
Russian Fish Soup Recipe for Ukha – A Traditional Fish Soup Made with Salmon
Scrambled Eggs with Smoked Salmon Recipe for Christmas Breakfast
This scrambled eggs with smoked salmon recipe has become our go-to eggs recipe for Christmas breakfast and it’s another of our best salmon recipes. It’s decadent and delicious, especially when served with bubbly.
We published this smoked salmon scrambled eggs recipe over a decade again during our year-long global grand tour that launched Grantourismo back in 2010. The trip was all about inspiring you all to live like locals, travel more slowly and settle into places, and travel more experientially.
In each place we settled into for two weeks we learnt to cook local dishes or created dishes inspired by the places we were in and made them in our holiday rental kitchen. This dish fell into the latter category and it was so special to enjoy it for Christmas breakfast in Krakow, Poland, near the end of our grand tour.
Scrambled Eggs with Smoked Salmon Recipe – Our Christmas Breakfast in Krakow, Poland
Please do let us know if you make any of our best salmon recipes as we’d love to know how they turn out for you.
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