Skillet Teriyaki Glazed Salmon is a quick and easy weeknight meal! It comes together in a snap and it's delicious! Flaky, juicy fish flavored with soy sauce, lime, brown sugar, and ginger for a tangy sauce. What's not to love? It's the perfect combination!
Update Notes:This post was originally published in April 2013, but was republished with tips, step by step photos, and a recipe change in June 2020.
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👩🏻🍳 Skillet Teriyaki Glazed Salmon Dinner
You know those days when you're in a pinch wondering what to serve for dinner? This should be your go-to meal!
It's a great meal when you are feeling too tired to cook. It's healthy, delicious, and easy to make.
Or if you're tired of the same boring meal OR you want to make a super special meal for date night? Yep, this is the meal!
The homemade teriyaki sauce is so simple and flavorful. Serve over a bed of Lemon Dill Rice to make it extra special!
And for another fantastic salmon dish, try this easy Baked Thai Salmon, or this Air Fryer Orange Glazed Salmon!
🥘 Ingredients Needed
- salmon fillets - wild Alaskan salmon is my first choice.
- low sodium soy sauce - choose low because it has reduced sodium - just a better choice!
- ground ginger and dry mustard - aromatic and tons of flavor.
- lime juice and garlic - to add bright freshness.
- brown sugar - for sweetness!
🔪 Instructions
- Whisk together the sauce - soy, ginger, lime juice, garlic, dry mustard, and brown sugar in a bowl.
- Spray a skillet with nonstick spray and heat over medium heat. Add the salmon fillets to the skillet and cook until lightly browned.
- Flip salmon over (I recommend using this awesome omelet turner) and continue to cook.
- Pour soy sauce and brown sugar mixture over the salmon fillets. Cook until the sauce has thickened and the salmon is done, about 2-4 more minutes.
👪 FAQs
You can remove the salmon from the skillet and place on a serving dish, then cook the sauce a bit longer so it can thicken up. Note that it also thickens as it cools, so as long as it's not totally runny, it's probably done.
Rice and Asian Coleslaw would be delicious! Nothing too fancy, even this simple broccoli dish would be perfect!
Depending upon the thickness of the fillets it will only take a couple of minutes per side. Then you will need to cook just a few more minutes to allow the sauce to thicken. The whole thing should be done in about 10 minutes!
This will depend on the size of the fillet, but per serving this will average about 300 calories per serving!
Categorizing food as 'healthy' is different for different people, but I would say this is definitely healthier than a lot of other dinners out there that are packed with processed ingredients and empty fats. Salmon offers some significant nutritional benefits!
Place the salmon in an airtight container, drizzle it with any remaining sauce, and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
You can certainly microwave the leftover salmon, but because of the uneven heating, you will end up with some areas that are way overcooked and some that aren't even really warm yet. The best way to reheat is to place it in a shallow baking dish in an oven at 275 degrees F for about 15 minutes.
Technically you can, however when you thaw and reheat, it won't be very appetizing. So I don't recommend that you freeze the leftovers.
💭 Top Tips
When shopping for salmon
There are some tips to keep in mind when shopping for salmon. Many people like to make sure to buy wild salmon to avoid potential contamination with pesticides and antibiotics from farmed salmon.
Almost all Atlantic salmon are farmed, but Alaskan salmon are still plentiful in the wild due to regulations preventing overfishing.
Mercury contamination of wild Alaskan salmon has been shown to be well below acceptable limits as well.
Fresh or Frozen?
I like to use fresh salmon when I can, but I also buy frozen pieces to use in a pinch. They can easily be thawed under cool running water and then prepared according to directions.
Do you eat the skin?
That is a really good question, because depending on the environment in which the fish was living, the skin and fatty layer right underneath the skin possibly could have built up pockets of toxins.
However, there are nutritional benefits to eating the skin, since it contains good concentrations of those necessary omega-3’s. If you stick to eating wild salmon and don’t consume it more than once a week or so, it may be OK to eat the skin so that you can benefit from the extra nutrients.
But if you are concerned about environmental contaminants in your food, removing the skin and fatty layer underneath could give you some peace of mind in minimizing your risk.
Should you wash it before cooking?
No need to rinse, and in fact, rinsing can just spread bacteria around your kitchen without making your fish any safer.
Making sure your salmon is not spoiled and cooking it to the proper temperature will ensure that it is safe. According to the USDA, the minimum cook temperature for salmon is 145 degrees F.
📖 Variations
This dish can easily be started on the stove and finished in the oven, if you prefer to make it more hands-off.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Sear the salmon on the stovetop and when you flip it over and add the sauce, simply tuck it into the oven (this works best if you have an oven-safe skillet!). It will take only 5-6 minutes to finish cooking.
For a sauce with even more depth of flavor, try this recipe for Teriyaki Sauce and substitute it in the recipe below!
If you are interested in other great seafood recipes, don't miss my roundup post where I have collected over 45 of the best seafood recipes on the interwebs. Bookmark it so you always have delicious seafood recipes at your fingertips!
📋 Recipe Card
Skillet Teriyaki Glazed Salmon
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
- ¼ teaspoon dry ground ginger
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- ¼ teaspoon minced garlic
- ⅛ teaspoon dry mustard
- ¼ cup firmly packed brown sugar
- 4 salmon fillets
Instructions
- Mix together the soy sauce, ground ginger, lime juice, minced garlic, dry mustard, and brown sugar in a medium bowl.2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce, ¼ teaspoon dry ground ginger, 1 tablespoon lime juice, ¼ teaspoon minced garlic, ⅛ teaspoon dry mustard, ¼ cup firmly packed brown sugar
- Spray a little nonstick spray in a large skillet and warm over medium heat. Add the salmon fillets to the skillet.4 salmon fillets
- Cook the salmon fillets until lightly browned (about 2 minutes on each side).
- Pour the soy sauce and brown sugar mixture over the salmon fillets. Cook until the sauce has thickened and the salmon is done, about 2-4 more minutes.
Notes
- I recommend wild Alaskan salmon. I have used both fresh and frozen salmon filets with success. If you buy frozen, just make sure to thaw prior to cooking.
- If your salmon is done before your sauce has thickened, remove the salmon from the skillet, then simmer the sauce a bit longer so it can thicken up. It will thicken a bit as it cools as well!
- To make this in the oven, preheat to 375 degrees F. Sear one side of the salmon on the stove top in an oven-safe skillet. After you flip it over and add the sauce, place it in the oven for 5-6 minutes to finish cooking.
- Serve over plain rice, or use this flavorful recipe for Lemon Dill Rice (which is my favorite way to serve it.)
- Store leftovers in an airtight container, drizzle with the remaining sauce, and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Freezing is not recommended.
- Reheat by placing the salmon in a shallow baking dish in an oven at 275 degrees F for about 15 minutes.
Video
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimate. The nutritional values for your final dish may vary based on measuring differences and products used.
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Happy cooking!
Chef Mireille
my kind of easy weeknight salmon dinner. I love the sweet and sour Asian flavors in this. This salmon would even go great in a salad!
Kristin
Oh definitely - this would be really tasty in a salad!
Michelle Frank | Flipped-Out Food
What a beautiful meal! My husband hates salmon because it tastes "too fishy," but I absolutely love it. I keep looking for ways to sneak this healthy fish onto my husband's dinner plate, and I think this might just do it.
Kristin
Haha! I know, sometimes we have to get a little creative. Hopefully this will be one fish dish that he will love. 🙂
Tawnie Kroll
I loved preparing the salmon like this - so easy and delicious!
Kristin
I agree, I love how easy it is and so tasty too. Thanks, Tawnie!
Traci
I'm already crazy about salmon, but your teriyaki marinade + the fact that it's cooked so quickly in the skillet makes this the perfect recipe!
Kristin
Yay! Glad this is a good recipe for you. Thanks! 🙂
Anita
A new way to prepare salmon for my family and they are loving it. Thanks for sharing. 🙂
Kristin
You are welcome! So glad you guys like it!
Christopher
Pretty! This was an incredibly wonderful post.
Many thanks for providing this information.
Kristin
Thanks for stopping by, Christopher! 🙂
Maureen
Kristin, I just wanted to tell you I've been wanting to try this recipe. We tried it tonite, and we LOVED LOVED LOVED it!!! Thanks for sharing it! It was deee-licious and a nice change from the grilled salmon with dill that I usually make! I will be adding this recipe to my list of regular dinner items!!!!! 🙂
Kristin
I am so glad you like it! It is definitely one of our fav dinners too! I am interested in your salmon with dill recipe. I have not done that before. 🙂
Thanks for stopping by and letting me know how it turned out!
Maureen
Honestly, My salmon with dill recipe isn't anything special. I buy fresh salmon and grill it either on the grill or in the broiler and just top it with lemon dill sauce, when its close to being done. (grilling it is nice b/c it makes the outside crunchy) You can make the sauce with fresh or dried dill, lemon juice, and melted butter, or just buy a jar of the dill sauce in the supermarket in the fish dept! Nothing fancy and definitely not as interesting as your recipe!
Kristin
Oh, but it sounds great! I am gonna try it!
Aimee @ ShugarySweets
YUM. I love salmon and am always hunting for new recipes!
Kristin
Me too! Salmon can get boring if you don't have a bunch of different ways to prepare it. Thanks for stopping by, Aimee! 🙂