Hello and happy summer to you, me, and this amazing salmon with basil sauce!
That bright green basil sauce is the green sauce of summer 2023 for me – pour it over spice-loaded, caramelized salmon and throw a little tomato salad on the side and you have a very happy dinner.
We’ve been eating this ON REPEAT in our house lately!
In This Post
How To Make This Salmon with Basil Sauce (with Pictures)
Step 1: Make the Basil Sauce
Just blitz, blend, do your thing. I use this mini chopper for nearly all my sauces these days!
Looks like this when you’re done:
Step 2: Rub The Salmon with Spices
It’s a little bit satisfying, I’m not going to lie.
Step 3: Bake The Salmon
Ten minutes before it’s time to eat, we pop this guy in the oven. I usually either use a meat thermometer, to check the temp (140 is a great benchmark) or I just sacrifice one end of one piece to check for doneness.
Step 4: Assemble and Serve
Everybody builds their own plate! We layer in rice and a simple tomato salad.
Only requirement: make sure everyone gets lots of basil sauce.
Note From Lindsay
I have a real emotional attachment to this basil sauce (or some version of it) because it originated at a family cabin in Wisconsin. There was a huge basil plant on the dock, and we harvested it liberally, and for weeks we ate ev-er-y-thing smothered in basil sauce.
Last week, when I breathed in my first bunch of fresh summer basil, it took me right back. Lightbulb. Craving. Basil sauce time.
One of my all-time favorite things in life is when I find a recipe that makes everyone in my family happy. And this meal has something for all of us: lots of protein to make Bjork happy, lots of big flavor to make ME happy, and enough elements that no matter what the mood is in the kid department, they can find something they will like.
Against all odds, my preschooler regularly asks for seconds and thirds on salmon whenever we make this, and my toddler literally cleans out the sauce blender with a spatula. And I’m not saying that’s going to happen for everyone. But I’m saying it does sometimes happen for us, and I am always shocked, and I always play it cool, but it’s making me super-extra love this recipe right now.
In short: whole family endorsement here.
May your summer be full of many batches of basil sauce!
Related: If you love salmon, please don’t sleep on these two salmon recipes: Coconut Curry Salmon and BBQ Salmon with Mango Salsa! Oooeee! Both recipes that we make on repeat in our house.
Note: The photos on this recipe do not contain corn because I shot them before I discovered how great corn is in this recipe! You’ll see corn in the recipe card, but not in the photos. Follow the recipe card!
Salmon with Basil Sauce and Tomato Salad
Total Time: 40 minutes
Yield: 2–4 servings (I find this amount works just right for me, my husband, and our 4 year old)) 1x
Description
Summery salmon with a beautiful, big-flavored basil sauce and a simple little tomato salad.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
Spice-Rubbed Salmon:
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 lb. salmon filet, cut into 2–3 pieces
Basil Sauce:
- 1/2 cup packed fresh basil
- 1 small bunch of fresh chives
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano, optional
- 3/4 cup mayo
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1–2 tablespoons water or lemon juice (to make the sauce thin and smooth)
- small pinch of salt, to taste
Tomato Salad:
- 1 1/2 cup halved cherry tomatoes
- 2 ear sweet corn, cut off the cob
- 1–2 cups fresh spinach or spring greens
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoons minced chives or parsley
- salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste
- 2 cups cooked rice or grains for serving (I use precooked to make it easy)
Instructions
- Prep: Prep the tomato salad.
- Make the basil sauce: Blend the basil sauce ingredients until mostly smooth.
- Prep the salmon: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Mix the spices in a small bowl and stir in the olive oil. Coat the salmon with the spice paste.
- Bake the salmon: Bake on a parchment-lined baking sheet for 9-12 minutes, or until 135 degrees in the thickest part. (It’s all personal preference, but this is the doneness that we like best – it’s a medium-well done salmon.)
- Assemble the meal: Plate the salmon over the rice, serve with salad, and spoon the sauce over the top. Season with salt and pepp. Mwah!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: salmon recipe, basil sauce, salmon with sauce
Frequently Asked Questions For Summer Salmon With Basil Sauce
Personally, I love the basil here and I think it’s kind of the star! But if you wanted to try something else, I would try swapping in some fresh dill or fresh cilantro to make something that more closely resembles an herbed ranch dressing!
I’ve kept it as long as 5 days in the fridge.
This would be great with chicken or shrimp!
Chicken: Coat chicken breasts or thighs with the spice rub and pan-fry them for 4-5 minutes per side until cooked through. (I’ve done this, and it’s great.)
Shrimp: Coat them in the spice rub and sauté for 4-5 minutes total until cooked through. (I haven’t done this, but it should work great.)
Yes, I think you could also do something similar with tofu – here’s a recipe that has a similar build using tofu as the protein! I think this would also be great with roasted sweet potato or cauliflower in place of the salmon.
This recipe is naturally gluten-free and dairy-free! Just be sure whatever “grain” you’re using to build the bowls is gluten-free, like rice or quinoa.
First of all, YUM. Secondly, yes, but you’ll just want to adjust two things: 1) the spices on top, and 2) the timing. As written, the oven easily creates a crusted golden exterior with the spice rub on the salmon, but on a grill, if you flip the salmon face-down, the spice rub will stick and burn to the grates. I would just follow a grilled salmon guide like this if that’s what you want to do!
