Japanese Baked Salmon (with a quick, simple marinade)

This simple recipe for Japanese baked salmon combines the classic flavors of teriyaki into a light marinade that can then be doubled as a finishing glaze. It works best if you can marinate it overnight but works with just 20 minutes too. Bonus tip: leftovers from the fridge taste really good cold.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Japanese

Diet Low Fat, Low Lactose

Keyword easy salmon recipe, salmon marinade

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 15

Marination Time 20

Servings

Calories 386kcal

Author Agile Test Kitchen

Equipment

1 baking sheet or pan at least 9 x 13"

Ingredients

1 lb salmon fillet cut into at least 2 pieces for 2 servings
¼ c soy sauce or tamari for gluten free option
2 Tb mirin (Japanese sweet rice wine for cooking)
2 Tb sake omit, if you don't have sake
1 Tb sugar or sweetener of choice
1 teaspoon finely grated ginger or ½ teaspoon ginger powder

Other

oil to brush on the baking sheet to keep the salmon from sticking

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Remove pin bones from salmon if desired. (You can feel them if you run your finger along the top of the flesh. Use fish tweezers and pull in the same direction that the bone is running through the fillet.)
Mix together remaining ingredients (soy sauce, mirin, sake, sugar, ginger). Pour over salmon and marinate at least 20 minutes to overnight in an small container or ziploc bag. Flip half way through, so each side of the filet gets submerged in the marinade. (See Note 1 for marinade time notes).
Remove salmon from marinade. Put onto an oiled or parchment lined baking sheet.
Bake for 10-20 minutes depending on thickness of the salmon. The salmon should reach an internal temperature of 145 degrees F. (A general rule of thumb for cooking salmon is 10 minutes of cooking time for each inch of the height of the salmon fillet.)

Optional Sauce - for a bolder, stronger flavor

While the salmon bakes, you can take the leftover marinade and boil it down in a pan until it lightly coats the back of a spoon.
As it cools, it will further thicken into an intense teriyaki sauce that can be used as a finishing glaze.
The marinade by itself results in a subtly, lightly soy flavored salmon. If you crave intensity, drizzle this sauce on top of the cooked salmon.

Notes

The longer the salmon sits in the marinade, the more deeply flavored it become but also more water comes out. This results in a 'meatier,' jerky like salmon.
- If you want your salmon as moist as possible, marinade for just 20 minutes.
- The salmon can sit in the marinade in the fridge for up to a week.
Use King salmon for premium moistness in the fish. Coho and sockeye salmon are good options too but may be a little drier.
Try not to overcook the salmon, in order to get the juiciest piece of fish possible.
Instead of baking, you could also grill or pan fry the salmon.
This recipe also works well with other oily fish such as steelhead trout, tuna, swordfish, and black cod.
For a vegetarian option, use firm or extra firm tofu.

Recipe adapted from Charmaine Solomon's 'Complete Asian Cookbook.'

Nutrition