Oven Baked Blackened Salmon Recipe

Baked blackened salmon with lemon and persillade sauce.

Oven Baked Blackened Salmon Recipe

Blackened baked whole salmon is an easy and impressive recipe! Coated in cajun blackened seasonings, and baked to perfection, this baked blackened salmon is moist, flaky, and a little bit spicy.

Course Main Course

Cuisine American, Cajun

Keyword baked salmon, blackened, blackened fish, blackened salmon, salmon

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 15

Total Time 25

Servings servings

Calories 164kcal

Author Lauren LeBlanc

Equipment

Ingredients

2-3 pounds whole salmon filet skin on
3 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
Lemon optional
Parsley optional

Blackening seasoning

1 ½ teaspoons smoked paprika
1 ½ teaspoons regular paprika
1 ½ teaspoons salt
¾ teaspoons onion powder
¾ teaspoons garlic powder
¾ teaspoons cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
½ teaspoons dried oregano
½ teaspoons dried thyme
½ teaspoon sugar

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

PREP: Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C) and place rack at the center. Check fish for any pin bones by running your finger along the fillet. Remove any bones with a fish tweezer. Pat the fish dry with a paper towel. Cover a large baking sheet with parchment paper and place salmon fillet in the center, skin side down.
MIX: Melt butter by microwaving for 20 second increments, stirring in between until melted. Combine all blackening seasoning ingredients in a small bowl with melted butter and mix well.
SEASON: Brush the melted butter and seasoning mixture over the flesh side of the salmon evenly.
BAKE: Bake salmon for 15-20 minutes until the center reaches about 125°F (51°C) with an instant read thermometer. If salmon isn’t blackened, set it under the broiler for 1-2 minutes until darkened.
SERVE: Cut into individual portions and serve warm. Top with lemon and parsley, or try this herbaceous Persillade Sauce.

Notes

The FDA recommends to cook salmon to an internal temperature of 145°F (63°C). If you are using high quality sushi grade salmon, you can cook it to a lower temperature.
A whole salmon fillet is pretty large, and will be enough for about 8-12 servings of salmon. If you would like to make less servings, cut your whole salmon fillet in half. Vacuum seal the other half and freeze for later.
If your salmon is very cold, the butter mixture may harden before you have a chance to spread it. If this happens, microwave the butter mixture for a few more seconds. This isn’t a huge deal, as It will melt in the oven anyway.
Cooking times will depend on how thick your salmon is. Start checking the temperature at 10 minutes. To make this recipe less spicy, use less cayenne pepper.
You can use this blackening seasoning on all kinds of proteins! It is great with chicken, shrimp, pork, and other fish.
You will need a very large baking sheet, big enough to fit the whole salmon fillet. If your fillet is too large, you can cut it in half, and put it on 2 baking sheets if needed.
Leftovers: Store leftover baked blackened salmon in the refrigerator in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
I don’t recommend freezing this recipe once it has been cooked.
Reheat salmon in the oven at 350°F (175°C) until warmed through. You can add some butter or olive oil on top to keep it moist. If your salmon is on the drier side, you can cover it with foil.
Make ahead: You can prepare the blackening seasoning well in advance and store in an airtight container in a dry place. It is best to make the rest of the recipe just before cooking.

Nutrition