Blackened Salmon

Learn how to make Blackened Salmon at home! Including how to make your own homemade blackened seasoning. All you need is 20 minutes and pantry staples to make this dish. This Blackened Salmon goes perfectly on salads, with rice, on pasta or in tacos!

Looking for more Salmon recipes? Try my Honey Garlic Salmon or my Easy Teriyaki Salmon!

Salmon is one of my favorite things to make for dinner. It’s healthy, low carb and so easy to make! I make this blackened salmon almost twice a week! It’s perfect on salads, sandwiches, tacos and served with rice and a veggie. It’s also great for meal prep!

I rubbed the salmon with a spicy homemade blackening seasoning and brushed it with an AMAZING lime butter. This salmon is out of this world amazing!!

The lime butter is the best part! Simply melt butter and add some lime zest, garlic, salt and pepper. It’s the perfect topping for this blackened cajun salmon. I like to make extra lime butter and put it on my veggies that I serve alongside the salmon.

The trick to blackening the salmon is high heat. Searing the salmon in a hot pan keeps the salmon crispy on the outside and moist on the inside. The high heat and quick cooking also helps to seal in the moisture.

What is blackened salmon?

Blackened refers to rubbing your protein in a dry spice rub them cooking over VERY high heat in a cast iron or non stick pan. The high heat and oil create the browned crust on top of the salmon. Blackening works best of firmer fish filets like tuna, mahi mahi and salmon. Shrimp and chicken also great blackened!

Ingredients

• Salmon: I like to use fresh (never frozen if possible) wild caught salmon.
• Oil: Any type of neutral oil or olive oil works well for searing salmon.
• Butter: Is drizzled over the blackened salmon before serving. It takes this dish to another level! It is optional but so so good!
• Garlic: Minced garlic is added to the garlic herb butter sauce. You can use grated garlic if you don’t have fresh on hand.
• Lime: You’ll need lime zest as well as juice for squeezing on top before serving!
• Cilantro: Or parsley for garnish before serving.
• Blackening seasoning: Homemade or store-bought would both work! Look below for how to make blackening seasoning at home.

How to make blackened seasoning

Making your own blackened salmon seasoning at home couldn’t be easier! Simply combine paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper, cayenne, dried thyme, dried basil and oregano in a small bowl. You can always make extra and store the homemade blackened seasoning in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 months. After that the spices tend to loose their potency.

How to make Blackened Salmon

• Rub with seasoning: Pat the salmon filets dry and rub each filet with the homemade blackening seasoning.

• Sear salmon: Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.  When the pan is hot add in salmon, blackening side down. Cook for about 3-4 minutes on each side. Take off of the heat. When the salmon is cool enough to handle peel off the skin.
• Make the lime butter: In a small bowl combine melted butter, lime zest, salt and pepper. This could also be made with lemon zest!

• Serve and enjoy!: Spoon the lime butter over the salmon and serve immediately with chopped parsley or cilantro!

What to serve with Blackened Salmon

Toppings for salmon:

• Pineapple salsa
• Pico de gallo
• Guacamole
• Corn black bean salsa

Side Dishes:

• Salad
• Roasted Broccoli
• Roasted Cauliflower
• Mashed Potatoes
• Cilantro Lime Brown Rice
• Lemon Parmesan Rice
• Spanish Rice
• Cauliflower rice or quinoa
• Caesar salad

Other ideas:

• Blackened Salmon Tacos: One of my favorite ways to serve this! I load mine up with sour cream, shredded lettuce, red onion and salsa.
• Blackened Salmon Salad: Serve it on top of my Mexican Salad or a Homemade Caesar salad.
• Blackened Salmon Sandwich: Top the salmon with my corn black bean salsa and put it on your favorite roll or brioche bread!

Tips for cooking salmon

• Make sure to pat down the salmon before searing. This is especially important if you are using thawed frozen salmon. This helps to get all of the excess water out of the salmon and helps it to get nice and crispy when you cook it!

• Leave the skin on the salmon during cooking. This helps the salmon stay together and not fall apart when flipping.
• Don’t try to flip the salmon if it is sticking. Give it a minute or two and it should release naturally from the pan on its on.

Storage and Reheating Instructions

• Storage: This blackened salmon recipe is best served the day of however you can store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
• Reheating: The best way to reheat salmon is by cooking it on low heat until warmed through. Heating the salmon on too high of a heat will cause it to get dried out. I recommend heating it in the oven or toaster oven at 300 degrees until warmed through, about 15 minutes.

Here are more Easy Salmon Recipes to try!

• Sweet and Sour Salmon
• Hoisin Glazed Salmon and Veggies in foil
• Easy Teriyaki Salmon
• Super Easy Thai Salmon
• Blackened Salmon with Lime Butter Sauce
• Sweet and Spicy Honey Sriracha Salmon