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4 salmon collars with different toppings on a rectangular black plate with parsley garnish and lemon wedges
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Fun Baked Salon Collars (oven or air fryer)

Can salmon be fun? They can be when you take them by the collar and make them try on new seasonings. Or just hit it with the old salt and squeeze of lemon for the classic izakaya style salmon collar found in Japanese restaurants.
Course Appetizer, Main Course
Cuisine American, Asian
Diet Low Fat, Low Lactose
Keyword fun appetizers
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Servings 4
Calories 179kcal
Author Agile Test Kitchen

Equipment

  • 1 baking sheet lined with parchment paper or foil and brushed with oil

Ingredients

  • 1 lb salmon collars pectoral fins removed, optional
  • 2 teaspoon oil such as olive oil, coconut, or avocado
  • salt to taste (for me this is a ½ teaspoon of pink Himalayan salt) see Note 2 for Optional Fun Flavorings
  • lemon wedges for garnish and squeezing on top tableside

Optional Flavorings instead of salt

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
  • Spread the salmon collars on a baking sheet brushed with oil. Line with parchment paper or foil if preferred, and brush with oil so the salmon skin will stick to it.
  • Lay the salmon collars skin side down and with the flesh side face up.
  • Brush salmon collars with oil.
  • Season with orange flesh salt or optional flavorings.
  • Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes until cooked through. The salmon should be firm to the touch and register 145 degrees F in the thickest part of the flesh.
  • Air Fryer Instructions: You do not need to preheat the oven. Instead of 400 degrees, air fry fry at 375 degrees for 10-15 minutes. (My quarter pound sized salmon collars were finished cooking in 10 minutes, but I like leaving them in the oven for 12-15 minutes for extra browning and crispiness of the toppings.)
  • Serve hot with lemon wedges on the side. Take care to avoid the bones and caution guests of their existence.

Notes

This recipe serves 4 as an appetizer or 2 as a main course. This assumes each salmon collars is about ¼ lb each.
  1. Like regular salmon fillets, discard the bones and cartilage plates when eating. Eat the skin if you wish. Take caution when eating and warm guests who have not eaten collars before. 
  2. Optional Fun Flavorings - Consider any of the following seasonings instead of salt to make your collars more fun. 
    • Use enough to coat the top side of the collar (skin side down). This will be about ½ - 1 tsp.
    • Playing around by mixing and matching these seasoning is a great idea too. A general rule of thumb is to use 1 wet seasoning and top with 1 dry seasoning. 
Wet seasonings (use in place of oil in the recipe) 
  • Hoisin sauce
  • BBQ sauce
  • Wasabi paste
  • Mustard 
  • Honey
  • Citrus
  • Softened or melted butter
  • Hot sauce
Dry Seasonings
  • Everything bagel seasoning
  • Puerto Rican saizon seasoning
  • Trader Joe's salmon rub
  • Furikake
  • Old Bay 
(I have mixed all 5 of the dry seasonings together and coated a salmon collar with it to see what would happen. It was actually quite tasty but a little bit salty.) 
 

Nutrition

Serving: 4g | Calories: 179kcal | Protein: 22g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 62mg | Sodium: 50mg | Potassium: 556mg | Vitamin A: 45IU | Calcium: 14mg | Iron: 1mg