This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Garlic butter baked salmon in no time at all! Start with a simple lemon garlic butter sauce that’s super fancy but also really easy to make. Then we just pour this on top of a filet of salmon and bake in the oven wrapped in foil. The salmon is flakey and tender this way and the garlic butter flavor is out of this world!
GARLIC BUTTER.
I mean, if that’s not convincing enough to make this recipe, let me also mention that my garlic butter baked salmon takes roughly 25 minutes to make from start to finish and requires just a few simple pantry staple ingredients.
When I tell you this recipe is simple, I mean it is really the simplest. If you can combine a few ingredients in a small saucepan and then baste your fish (salmon in our case), you can make today’s recipe. The lemon garlic butter sauce is so delicious; you’re going to want to put on every kind of protein you can think of. And guess what? Clean up is a breeze because we’re wrapping the salmon in foil and tossing it in the oven or the grill!
As a bonus, it’s keto-friendly, gluten-free, paleo-friendly, and so it’s ideal for when you’re serving guests that may have different dietary restrictions.
Making salmon at home doesn’t have to be complicated. It’s one of the easiest things to cook if you bake salmon in foil. This recipe is adapted from one that my mom and I came up with together. We’ve been making it for almost two decades now, and the only thing I did differently here is to mix the lemon and butter and make a sauce beforehand. Before, my mom and I used to brush the salmon with a little oil and drizzle the lemon juice and then sprinkle the remaining ingredients on top. Though it tasted delicious, I find that making the garlic butter sauce and allowing the garlic to simmer with the lemon juice makes a more flavorful and slightly thicker sauce that won’t run down the sides as much as the drizzle-on-top sauce does.
Also, in the summertime, we just place the salmon in foil on a hot grill that’s at around 375ºF. And it’ll cook up in about the same time, give or take a minute or two. Barbecued garlic butter salmon is sooo good.
Ingredients for garlic butter baked salmon
The best part is, this whole recipe calls for less than ten ingredients! Here’s what you’ll need to make it.
- large salmon filet
- lemon juice
- minced garlic
- butter
- seasonings (red pepper flakes + Italian seasoning)
- salt + pepper
How to make the best salmon in foil
- Start by heating the lemon juice, minced garlic, Italian seasoning, and the red pepper flakes together in a small saucepan. Let the lemon juice reduce by half, so you’re left with one tablespoon.
- Add one tablespoon of cold, cubed butter at a time and let it melt into the saucepan. Grab the handle and swirl; it melts so quickly this way. Repeat with remaining butter. Add salt and pepper and stir. DONE.
- Place the salmon on a large piece of foil, one large enough to wrap the entire salmon filet in. Slowly drizzle the sauce over the salmon using a spoon. Cover the salmon with foil so that all the sides are properly closed and the sauce doesn’t leak out.
- Bake. This amount of time works for most recipes, however, if your filet is super thin, check closer to the 10-minute mark. If it’s very thick, check around 14-16 minutes. Remember, we’re going to broil it for the last couple of minutes, so you don’t want it to be completely cooked when you check on it.
Can I use garlic butter sauce on other types of fish?
Sure, you can! You can marinate raw shrimp in this sauce for 10 minutes and then cook the shrimp in a hot skillet. You could also use this with tilapia, cod, or mahi mahi. Just remember that the baking time for various types of fish will vary depending on the fish and the thickness of the filet!
Why this recipe works
- My biggest tip for this baked salmon in foil recipe is to use good quality salmon. I find wild-caught salmon works best. Pink salmon or ‘farm-raised salmon’ sometimes leaves the fish wet and gross, because, let’s face it, we’re steaming it in foil. I encourage you to use Sockeye or Coho salmon if you can find it.
- It is straightforward to make and perfect for those that might be at a beginner level for cooking fish. There’s so flipping, sautéing, or any other fancy techniques required. It also happens to be the perfect 20-minute meal for when you need dinner on the table in a heartbeat.
- The sauce holds together because we add in butter slowly to emulsify the sauce. Try not to rush this step, you need this to happen slowly.
Garlic Butter Baked Salmon in Foil
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ pound sockeye or coho salmon preferably wild-caught
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons butter cold, cubed
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon chopped parsley for garnishing (optional)
Instructions
- PREP: Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 375ºF. (see notes)
- SAUCE: In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the lemon juice and minced garlic, allow the lemon juice to reduce to 1 tablespoon. Add in 1 tablespoon of butter, remove pan from heat and swirl so the butter starts to melt. Place back on the heat for a few seconds, removed and continue to swirl until butter completely melts. Repeat with second tablespoon of butter. When butter is completely melted, add the Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Then, remove sauce from stove.
- BAKE: Place the salmon filet in a piece of foil large enough to fold over and seal. Using a brush or spoon, brush the salmon with the garlic butter sauce. Cover with foil so that all sides are properly closed so the sauce does not leak. Bake the salmon for 12-14 minutes or until mostly firm to the touch. Open the foil and allow the fish to broil under the broiler for 2-3 minutes, keeping an eye on it so the fish does not burn. Remove from oven, top with parsley. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Baking time may vary slightly due to thickness of fish. Feel for firmness on the thickest part of the filet to make sure your fish is cooked through.
- I suggest using a good quality salmon for this recipe. Try to avoid using ‘pink salmon’ as this type of salmon is quite watery and will release lots of water in the baking process causing the fish to be wet and not flakey.
- The salmon can also be wrapped in foil and barbecued at 375º-400ºF for about the same amount of time give or take a minute or two. Allow the salmon to ‘broil’ the same way you would in the oven, by opening the foil and allow the fish to dry out for just 1-2 minutes.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like This? Leave a comment & rating below!
I made this ahead to take on a recent camping trip. It was easy to put together and I froze it before we left. We cooked it on a charcoal grill. My husband -a real salmon fan- said it was the best salmon he’s ever had…not just the best I’ve cooked, the best EVER!
Thanks for the recipe
So glad to hear that! Prepping and freezing is a great idea, thanks for sharing that tip 🙂
I just saved this recipe from Pinterest and tried it today on our salmon. This was very tasty!
Thank you for the simple recipe I’ll be using from now on 😉
Does this recipe work with other types of fish? Like Nile Perch fish ?
I’m unsure Sam, I’ve only tested the recipe with wild-caught salmon.
Good recipe. Can’t go wrong.
I have a suggestion purely for eye appeal.
Portion your fish before cooking, maybe wrap in separate foil pieces. By so doing your fish will that much more appetizing., you will avoid the ragged torn edges. Much better. We eat with our eyes too.
I just made this for my husband & I and we loved it. I’m eating it now as I type this comment. Only recipe I will go by!
I have made this for my son’s lunch. Says it can’t be beat. It’s hard to please him, so we have a winner.
Made this for my husband who is a fish eater, and he loved it!! Cooking time was more like 25 minutes, but so easy and so yummy, will definitely make again!
Sooooo easy. Loved it!!!
For anyone wanting to make the sauce in advance, it can be made and then put in a good quality thermos for up to 2-4 hours depending on the quality of the thermos. I do this all the time with buerre blanc sauces, and it works beautifully.
Thanks for the tip! 🙂
Yum. And i made extra figuring this would be great crumbled over fresh spinach for a salad.
I cooked mine much longer (25 mins) to get the desired result, but was still Delicious!
Easy to make, tasted great, and family enjoyed it.
WOW!!!! New favorite salmon recipe! Great taste and so easy, thank you for sharing your family recipe ?
Loved the salmon recipe! A hit and will be making it again
I made it with Sockeye Salmon. It was delicious. I didn’t put the Italian seasoning because I didn’t want it to have too strong of an oregano taste. It came out perfect. I am so intimidated by making fish but this recipe made it easy. Thank you.
Tried it with pink salmon, actually turned out amazing! Great recipe!!
I’ll be making this for the fourth time tonight. It’s really great. Thank you!
I’m planning to make this for my friends during their next visit, it looks definitely delicious. Although, I have a few questions. If I make the sauce and let it sit for a few hours before applying it to the salmon, would the taste be ruined? And what is your best suggestion so I won’t fail if I want to barbecue it? I’d appreciate if you’d like to reply. Thank you so much, have a nice day 🙂
Hi Elisa, I apologize for replying so late, this somehow ended up in the spam pile. I do suggest making the sauce right before you’re ready to serve the salmon. The sauce contains lemon juice and butter so it could easily separate if allowed to sit. I would heat up the grill to 500ºF and then lower it to 375ºF. Also, oil the piece of foil with a little olive oil before you place the filet on there so that it doesn’t stick. Then fold the foil over the salmon so that it is completely covered. Allow to cook for 10 minutes, open the foil and check, allow about 2-5 minutes as necessary. Feel for firmness if you’d like it cooked all the way through. Open up the foil the last 1-2 minutes of cooking so any leftover liquid evaporates! Hope you enjoy it! 🙂
Would this recipe work with steelhead trout instead of salmon?
I’m unsure as i’ve only tested it with salmon.
This by far is the best salmon recipe I’ve tried. I’m not a big fan of cooking with lemon (I always think of cleaning when lemons comes to mind). Boy was I missing out. These flavors came together so well. My salmon is always dry and rubbery. This is awesome. Your instruction were fool proof. Thanks a million. Keep up the awesome work. Btw I tagged u on ig and fb.