Salmon Marinade Ideas

The fireman texted me this picture around 4:00pm yesterday.

The text read: Eskimo Kitchen

It was wild salmon, which means he had to stand there and de-bone it.

Last time we made salmon, we just used a little soy sauce and brown sugar for seasoning. It was good, but mild. I did a few searches for marinades online and asked my sister's advice, she loves salmon.

Here's what we came up with.

Lemon Pepper & Olive oil:
Drizzle a small amount of olive oil right on the meat, then shake the lemon pepper liberally over the meat.

Asian:
1/2 teaspoon of minced garlic, 1 teaspoon of ginger, 1 teaspoon of olive oil, 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar, 2 teaspoons soy sauce. Mix this together and then spoon over the fish.

Chili Lime:
Shake Pampered Chef's Chili Lime Rub liberally over meat, making a good coat. You could easily replicate this with 2-3 teaspoons of chili powder, a tablespoon of lime juice, 1/4 teaspoon of sugar, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, a teaspoon of cheyanne pepper. Mix and taste.

Steak-like:

Drizzle steak seasoning, like Dale's Marinade and then drizzle again with just a little liquid smoke. This is a very mild seasoning that the middle boy liked best.

Thai Red Curry:

Shake Pampered Chef's Thai Red Curry Rub liberally over meat, making a nice crust. The youngest boy likes spicy foods and this was his favorite. I have no idea how to recreate this. Online it says that it's a spicy curry with citrus flavors from lemongrass and lime peel and garlic.

Garlic Soy:

1 tablespoons rice wine vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon of minced garlic, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 teaspoon olive oil. Mix together and spoon over fish.

Oh, and maple syrup on the salmon is awesome as well! So says the fireman and the girl!

I enjoyed trying all of the variations of marinades with the kids. The Asian was good, but mild. The chili lime wasn't as spicy as you'd think. It had a great flavor and was mine and the girl's favorite. The fireman liked them all. He just loves salmon.

Salmon has a very mild taste, not terribly fishy. When it's cooked all the way it flakes on your fork, but it's still a nice, firm, meaty texture. I personally feel that it needs quite a bit of flavor to spice it up, but you should try it a few ways to see what your personal preference is.

It's low in fat, high in iron and other wonderful nutrients like vitamin D, B12, B6 and Omega-3 fats, which reduces inflammation in your body, which is at the base of heart disease, arthritis and diabetes. But don't take my word for it, find out more info here or anywhere else on the web.

We had 4 large salmon filets, cut in half and marinaded. We baked on large jelly roll pans in the oven at 350 for about 15 - 20 minutes or until it flakes with a fork. It doesn't take long to cook, even though these were thick filet's. And yes, we have plenty of leftovers.

You can also grill salmon on a piece of foil, but remember to spray it with oil first, otherwise it will stick. We leave the skin on while baking as it helps from sticking, but you could remove it. When eating, we either scraped it off first, or just forked it off with each bite. Not a big deal. Some people cook it on a cedar plank, which is great for flavor, but make sure you soak the cedar plank for 4 or more hours beforehand, so it doesn't burn. And make sure you buy an untreated plank of cedar.

These are just ideas for seasoning your salmon, try them or make up your own!

Enjoy!