How to grill salmon well


How to grill salmon well
This is not as simple as it might at first appear. A properly grilled piece of salmon should be crisp on the outside and moist on the inside. This soft interior is achieved by very strict timing (cooking fish just right is a sign of a true chef), as undercooked it is unpleasant, and overcooked the salmon dries out.
470K 3.9/5 based on 221 reviews
Grade this recipe:

Last modified on: October 13th 2010

Keywords for this recipe:
For 12 people, you will need:
  • 1 salmon fillet 12 salmon fillets

Change to the quantities for: 2 people 4 people 8 people 12 people
How long will it take?
Time required for this recipe:
PreparationRestingCookingStart to finish
11 min.5 min.6 min.22 min.
At what time:
  • When will I finish if I start the recipe at ... ?
    When should I start for the recipe to be ready at ... ?
  • Work this out...

Step by step recipe


Stage 1 - 5 min.
How to grill salmon well
Heat a plate.

Get salmon portions that are fairly thick (about 2 cm or 1"), with skin, and of as even thickness as possible. The best part for this is the back of the salmon.

Wash and dry them.

Put a non-sick pan on medium heat, and when hot, add the salmon skin side downwards, without any fat or oil.

Stage 2 - 3 min.
How to grill salmon well
Leave to cook like this for 3 minutes, season with salt and pepper then turn over.

Stage 3 - 2 min.
How to grill salmon well
When turned, pull off and discard the skin, which should now come off easily.

Stage 4 - 3 min.
How to grill salmon well
Scrape the top of the salmon with a serrated knife to remove all the grey part and discard it. This is the fat which is unattractive and tasteless.

Stage 5
How to grill salmon well
Remove the fat completely. Be thorough, especially around the central backbone where it is thicker, as shown by the green arrows.

Stage 6 - 1 min.
How to grill salmon well
Salt and pepper the top side, then turn over again.

Stage 7 - 3 min.
How to grill salmon well
Now comes the tricky moment: knowing when to stop cooking.

the simplest method is to stick an thermometer into the middle, and to stop when the temperature reaches 60°C (140°F).

Stage 8
How to grill salmon well
If you don't have a thermometer, you can watch the cut end of the pieces for the change from translucent pink (red arrow): undercooked, to opaque (green arrow): cooked.

Remove from the heat immediately as soon as the centre turns opaque.

As a general rule, you should allow 3 minutes cooking per side.

Stage 9
How to grill salmon well
It's quite likely that a sort of white paste will form on the slice during cooking, as shown by the green arrow. This is normal, and you can remove it by scraping with a small spoon. Once again it's unattractive and adds nothing to the flavour.

Stage 10 - 5 min.
How to grill salmon well
Place the salmon pieces on a hot plate, then cover with aluminium foil.

Leave covered like this for 5 minutes which will tenderize the salmon.

Stage 11
How to grill salmon well
The salmon is now ready to be used in your recipe,for example salmon with sorrel as in this photo.

For a simple healthy meal, you can serve it as it is with just a sprinkle of lemon juice. This is also the best way to judge how well you have cooked the salmon.
Remarks
Use white pepper rather than black if possible, it's less visible on the salmon.

Pay attention to the cooking time. If your are watching for the change from translucent to opaque, don't hesitate to remove the fish from the heat while it is still very slightly translucent, as it will finish cooking while standing.
Keeping
To eat right now.
Source
Home made.
Nutritional information
Whole recipe
Energetic valueProteins CarbohydratesFats
4,080 Kcal or 17,082 Kj480 gr0 gr240 gr
204 %185 %0 %36 %
Per 100 g
Energetic valueProteins CarbohydratesFats
170 Kcal or 712 Kj20 gr0 gr10 gr
9 %8 %0 %2 %
Per person
Energetic valueProteins CarbohydratesFats
340 Kcal or 1,424 Kj40 gr0 gr20 gr
17 %15 %0 %3 %
% are calculated relative to a Recommended Dietary Intake or RDI of 2000 k-calories or 8400 k-joules by day for a woman (change to a man).
Possible allergens in this recipe: Fish
How much will it cost?
  • For 12 people : 48.00 €
  • Per person : 4.00 €

Change currency:

Note: Be careful, these prices are only an estimate, you can consult the table of prices by ingredients used for this estimate.
This recipe uses (among others)
Salmon filletSalmon fillet: You can check-out other recipes which use it, like for example: Gravlax, Fillet of salmon meunière, Grilled fillet of salmon with corn-salad cream, Cretan-style salmon , Baked salmon fillet, ... All
Other recipes you may also like
Rillons de Tours
Rillons de Tours
Rillons de Tours (a town in the West of France, in the Loire valley) is a winter pork recipe. Bacon is cooked long and slow in lard and white wine until "confit". Rillons can be eaten like potted meat (rillettes) with bread, wine and pickled gherkins, but they can also be used instead of lardons in...
July 30th 2016203K4.4 2 hours 19 min.
Oven-roasted Sprouts
Oven-roasted Sprouts
Here is an original way to pep up Brussels sprouts: roasted in the oven. Cooked this way, they will be lightly crisped on the outside and melting in the middle.
February 10th 2016158K4 53 min.
Big knife-cut chips (French fries)
Big knife-cut chips (French fries)
These chips (French fries) are made from potatoes steamed then fried in their skins. Usually we make big ones (3 times the usual French fry) and serve 2 or 3 per guest.
February 21th 2011269K4.1 1 hour 19 min.
Courgettes (zuchinis)
Courgettes (zuchinis)
A classic gratin, but with the courgettes cooked separately to prevent too much juice being released during the oven cooking, and so make a dish that is barely moist.
October 13th 2010496K 13.7 1 hour 20 min.
Crackers
Crackers
These crisp savoury biscuits are ideal for dipping into a sauce as an aperitif snack. It is quite easy to make your own crackers at home and they are much healthier and even more delicious than the commercial kind.
December 9th 2012115K 14.8 1 hour 38 min.
News list of cooking-ez.com

Sign up to receive the latest recipes (next batch due to be sent on 2024-09-01)

Your first name or nickname
Your e-mail
I am not a leaving thing
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Post a comment or question
Posted by:
I am not a leaving thing
Follow this recipe (as 20 people already do)
If you are interested in this recipe, you can "follow" it, by entering your email address here. You will then receive a notification immediately each time the recipe is modified or a new comment is added. Please note that you will need to confirm this following.
I am not a leaving thing
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Alternatively: you can subscribe to the mailing list of cooling-ez.com , you will receive a e-mail for each new recipe published on the site.

Back to top of page