How To Cook The Perfect Salmon Steak

I absolutely love salmon. It’s a great source of protein and healthy fat, and it tastes delicious. It’s also super easy to cook when you know how to do it.

I always try to get my personal training clients to include salmon in their diets, no matter if they are trying to lose weight or gain muscle. It’s great for both.

Often, the response I get is that people like salmon, but they don’t know how to cook it correctly, so I wanted to share my favorite way to cook a salmon steak that is easy enough that anybody can do it and will give a great result every time.

Choose the right kind fish. There are a lot of different kinds of salmon, and they vary a lot in flavor. The Atlantic salmon is the most common type and has the mildest fish flavor (and it’s the least expensive), so I usually go for that. I also prefer to get a good, thick steak from the middle of the fish. It’s much easier to cook evenly than a tailpiece.
Remove any scales or bones. There shouldn’t be any bones in a salmon steak, but take a look to be sure, and remove any scales that may have gotten loose when the steak was cut.
Season the fish. Salmon gets a lot more interesting if you add spices. I like to use a lot of freshly ground pepper, but you can add your favorite spices. A bit of flaky sea-salt is also a must in my opinion.
Cook the fish. Place the fish on an oven tray or a piece of aluminum foil and put it in the oven. A half-pound steak like the one I cooked needs about 15 min. in the oven at 400 F (200 C). Make a small cut in the center of the steak to test if it’s done before taking it out of the oven.
Remove the skin and fat. Turn the salmon steak on its side and remove the skin and brown fat with a knife. It should come off very easily.

That’s it! It’s really one of the easiest proteins to cook. You don’t have to turn it over like a steak and it won’t get as dry as chicken breast if you overcook it a bit. Just put it in the oven, set your timer, and do something else until it’s ready.

You can serve the salmon with quinoa and veggies as I have done here, or you can use it as part of another dish like this Salmon & Shrimp Pasta.

If you don’t feel like fish today after all, you can also learn how to Cook The Perfect Chicken Breast instead.