Skillet Salmon
A cast iron skillet is essential for perfectly cooked salmon fillets because they’re best cooked fast over high heat – especially skin-on fillets. The skin gets super crispy, plus the fish develops exceptional exterior color while the interior remains tender and moist. For skillet salmon, all you need are a couple of fillets, salt, pepper, and oil. It’s simple yet delicious and can certainly stand alone, but this salmon recipe is served with a pineapple sauce. It adds a sweet, bright, fruity, and complex layer of flavor with a spicy kick and juicy pineapple chunks to boot! Best of all, the sauce comes together in less than 5 minutes.
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Skillet Salmon with Sweet and Spicy Pineapple Sauce
Equipment
- A #9 or #10 cast iron skillet
Ingredients
Sauce
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons water
- ½ teaspoon vegetable oil
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¼ cup light brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons pineapple juice
- 1 ½ teaspoons soy sauce
- ¼ cup diced pineapple chunks
Salmon
- 2 6-ounce skin-on wild-caught salmon fillets
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Instructions
Sauce
- Stir the cornstarch and water together in a bowl. The slurry will thicken the sauce for the skillet salmon.
- Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the garlic once the oil is hot and sauté for 10 seconds or so.
- Toss in the red pepper flakes and stir for a few seconds.
- Add the brown sugar to the saucepan with the pineapple juice and soy sauce. Stir.
- Bring to a boil, then stir in the cornstarch slurry. Cook for another 30 seconds or until thickened.
- Remove from the heat, toss in the diced pineapple, and set aside. Keep warm.
Salmon
- Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat.
- Pour in the oil and heat until shimmering. Meanwhile, pat the salmon dry with paper towels, then season the fillets with salt and black pepper.
- Place into the skillet skin-side down—Cook for 4 minutes.
- Carefully flip and cook for another 4 minutes.
- Flip once more and cook until the salmon reaches the desired level of doneness.
- Plate the skillet salmon (skin-side up), top with sauce, and serve.