What if I told you that you could have juicy amazing tasting, savory and sweet, baked salmon in three quick and easy instructions. This baked salmon with brown sugar and mustard glaze is sooo easy, and sooo good. This is the equivalent of making spaghetti from a jar except that you are baking salmon. It has a taste that is similar to teriyaki, yet different enough that you could have teriyaki salmon one night and then this the next night and be good with that. I actually buy steelhead as it can be found at most Grocery stores and Costco (sometimes), and it just tastes better most of the times (unless you are buying king salmon). Steelhead is oilier, milder, and just lends itself to baking with a marinade in my opinion.
Tips for cooking the Baked Salmon with Brown Sugar and Mustard Glaze
- What type of salmon – My general rule when baking salmon is I want to get as oily as a salmon as I can. That usually puts King salmon at the top (but it is really expensive), and Atlantic salmon at the bottom. Though through much trial and error I have found that a fish called Steelhead is really the best bang for the buck. It is orange in color, oily, super flavorful, and costs just a little bit more than Atlantic salmon. If you haven’t cooked Steelhead in a salmon dish I would definitely recommend you try it.
- Cover Salmon with Foil during cooking – You want to make sure to cover the whole salmon when cooking. This makes it so you salmon doesn’t dry out.
- Broil salmon at the end of cooking – If you want that crispy top salmon then you want to broil the salmon for the last 5 minutes
- Overcooking salmon – Salmon is super easy to overcook in the oven. When you are first starting off cooking I recommend buying the oiliest salmon you can get, as oilier salmon is more forgiving of being overcooked.
What to eat with baked salmon
- Garlic sesame spinach – A quick vegetable dish that you can prepare on the stove while the salmon is cooking in the oven works great. This quick and easy Garlic sesame spinach is what I cook up most of the time.
- Rice or Pilaf – I have to have grain or rice when eating salmon. Rice, pilaf, couscous, are all great options to go with brown sugar baked salmon.
- Baked Asparagus – If you have two racks in your oven then you can do a baked asparagus at the same time. They are both baked at 425 so you really just have to watch when you put in your asparagus and when you take it out. It can affect cook times a bit, but just peel off a flake of salmon to make sure it is done. Allrecipes has a good baked asparagus recipe that is quick and easy to make.
If you feel like eating salmon but want a more Asian taste then my favorites are a Teriyaki salmon you cook on the stovetop, and a raw spicy salmon poke bowl you make with a spicy homemade sriracha sauce. Both are great options for a weeknight dinner, and don’t require marinating the salmon before you cook it in the oven.
Baked Salmon with Brown Sugar and Mustard Glaze
Equipment
- Baking pan
Ingredients
- 2 lb Salmon or Steelhead fillet
- 2 tbsp Brown sugar
- 2 tsp Honey
- 4 tsp Butter
- 4 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 2 tbsp Soy sauce
- 2 tbsp Olive oil
- 2 tsp Ginger Grated
Instructions
- In a small pot over medium heat, melt the butter, honey and brown sugar. Remove from heat and stir in the mustard, soy sauce, olive oil and ginger and mix well and let it cool.
- Place salmon fillet on a large baking pan covered with foil. Grease the foil or use PAM spray.
- Pour the mustard mixture over the entire surface of salmon. It is okay if the sauce spills off the salmon on the sides.
- Marinate salmon with this sauce for 1 hour.
- Bake salmon at 425 degrees for about 30 minutes or until just cooked.
- Then change the setting to broil and keep cooking for 5 minutes while monitoring it. You get the crispy top of the salmon by broiling.
- Have with rice or pilaf.
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