Baked Sockeye Salmon

This Baked Sockeye Salmon in cooked in the oven and yields flaky, tender and juicy salmon.

This Sockeye salmon, also known as red salmon is an easy weeknight recipe.

One of the best ways to cook salmon is simply to season it and bake it in the oven.

Recipe highlights

This baked salmon is simple to make, requires just three ingredients and it is ready in under 30 minutes.

Baked salmon is the perfect recipe for seafood fans. It is perfect because the salmon flavor really shines through.

Baked salmon is ideal for meal prep; one recipe can be repurposed into multiple dishes like this Salmon Sushi Bake.

Salt, lemon and pepper compliment the salmon flavor and let it be the star of the show.

Baked Salmon Ingredients

This recipe uses simple ingredients to compliment the sockeye salmon.

• Sockeye salmon: This red, vibrant salmon is wild caught from Alaska where we go fishing every summer. It has a beautiful color, texture and exceptional flavor.
• Lemon: The acidity and aroma of lemons is perfect to enhance the fish flavor and highlight the freshness of the wild salmon.
• Salt and pepper: This essential seasonings amplify the flavor of the fish without overpowering it.

How to bake Sockeye salmon

Prep and debone the salmon

These fillets I'm using are wild-caught and they have the bones. I like to debone the salmon before baking it as it is easier to remove the fish bones.

I like to use fish tweezers to remove the bones from the salmon. Run your fingers along the top pressing gently to feel the bones.

Pat the salmon dry to remove excess moisture and allow the salt and pepper to adhere to the flesh.

Leave the skin on and bake skin side down. This will preserve the salmon juices and keep it moist.

You can easily remove the skin after the fish is baked.

Season salmon

The seasonings for this recipe are just your basic salt and pepper. I like to brush the salmon with a little bit of avocado oil before adding the salt and pepper.

I like using kosher salt and black pepper. If you fin the pepper flavor overwhelming you can use a milder variety such as white pepper.

I like to cover most of the salmon flesh with lemon slices. They infuse aroma and flavor while letting the salmon flavor be the most prevalent taste in this dish.

Bake the salmon

Place the salmon skin-side down on rimmed baking sheet cover in aluminum foil or baking dish.

Bake salmon until internal temperature reaches 145 Fahrenheit. Use an instant-read thermometer to ensure your salmon is properly cooked.

What to serve with Baked Salmon

This sockeye salmon is great by itself. Squeeze a wedge of lemon and garnish with chopped dill.

Serve salmon with a side of rice and broccoli and you will have a perfectly balanced dish.

You can also drizzle the salmon with some chipotle mayo for an extra kick of flavor or with some sweet Thai chili sauce.

Storage, reheating and freezing tips for salmon

Store any leftover salmon in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.

To reheat the salmon, use the oven or an air fryer. You can cover the salmon in aluminum foil to prevent it from drying.

I do not recommend reheating salmon in the microwave as it will give it a rubbery texture and intensify the fish aroma.

You can freeze the cooked salmon. I recommend using a vacuum sealer to freeze individual pieces and avoid freezer-burn.