Pan-Seared Salmon
Crisp salmon skin is not a knack, it is two rules: a dry fillet and a pan you leave alone. The fish goes in skin down and stays there until the pale line of cooked flesh has climbed two thirds of the way up the side. Then one flip, and you are done.
- Prep
- 10 min
- Cook
- 12 min
- Rest
- 15 min
- Total
- 37 min
- Servings
- 2
- Level
- Easy
- Per serving
- 430 kcal
Ingredients
Makes: 2 servings
Shopping list
The ingredients for the servings you chose — copy them or send them to a messenger. Tick what you already have at home: only the rest goes on the list.
Method
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Step 1: Salt ahead
Pat the fillets dry, salt the skin and leave them at room temperature for 15 minutes. The salt pulls out moisture you can then blot away, and the fish warms through evenly.
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Step 2: Dry again
Wipe the skin bone dry with kitchen paper just before cooking. Any water left on it turns searing into steaming and there goes the crackle.
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Step 3: Heat the pan
Add the oil and heat the pan over medium-high until the oil just shimmers. A cool pan glues the skin down for good.
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Step 4: Press it flat
Lay the fillets in skin down and press with a spatula for 20 seconds. Skin contracts in the heat, and without this the centre lifts clear of the pan.
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Step 5: Leave it for 6 minutes
Do not move the fish. Watch from the side: a matt pale line creeps upward. When it has reached two thirds of the thickness, it is time to turn.
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Step 6: Baste in butter
Flip, add the butter, garlic and thyme, and spoon the foaming butter over the fish for a minute or two.
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Step 7: Check doneness
50 to 52 °C at the centre gives a rosy, juicy middle; 58 °C is fully cooked through. Without a thermometer: the flesh should part into flakes under light pressure but not crumble.
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Step 8: Rest
Move it skin up to a warm plate for 3 minutes so the heat evens out. Serve with a lemon half charred in the same pan.
Tips & variations
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Tip
Take the salmon out of the fridge 20 minutes before cooking. A fridge-cold fillet overcooks on the outside long before the centre warms up.
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Tip
Never put a lid on the pan. The trapped steam settles on the skin and undoes everything you have just achieved.
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Variation
Swap the thyme for a rosemary sprig and a strip of lemon zest for a sharper, resinous aroma.
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Storage
One day in the fridge. Cold salmon is excellent in a salad; reheating it a second time leaves it dry and grainy.
Nutrition
| 1 serving | Whole dish 2 servings | |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 430 kcal | 860 kcal |
| Protein | 40 g | 80 g |
| Fat | 29 g | 58 g |
| Carbohydrates | 2 g | 4 g |
Approximate values calculated from standard ingredient data.
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