Honey Glazed Salmon

This lime, mustard and honey glazed salmon recipe proves the point that sometimes the simplest recipes are the best.

I love serving salmon for dinner for so many reasons. It’s delicious first of all! And very healthy.

Salmon is also very quick and easy to cook, which makes it a great choice for weeknight dinners or just about any time really.

And salmon is a great protein to serve when you have company for dinner. Most people love it (you may want to make sure first), it’s simple and so tasty.

That said, I get tired of my usual ways to cook salmon and I’m always looking for fresh ideas.

I love this salmon made with a honey glaze. It’s simple and just SO good! (More about that marinade in a second).

But first the fish. Do you prefer to use salmon fillets or salmon steaks? They are interchangeable in most recipes and they are in this one.

You can use either salmon steaks or salmon fillets here. I prefer salmon fillets because the bones have been removed and I don’t want to fuss with bones.

Some people prefer salmon steaks to the pre-boned fillets. Salmon steaks are great too and look lovely on the plate.

So feel free to use whatever salmon you prefer or have on hand, either steaks or fillets for this recipe.

Now on to that marinade…

Grilled Salmon Marinade

This wonderful grilled salmon marinade shows that simple really can be better.

There are just 3 simple ingredients in this salmon marinade and all are probably things you have on hand all the time.

The first is mustard. I used whole grain mustard in this marinade recipe because I love the flavor, but you can use whatever mustard you prefer. Even standard mustard in the yellow bottle will work just fine if that’s what you have.

The marinade is sweetened with a bit of honey – hence the name honey glazed salmon of course. Honey and mustard are delicious together and are a popular flavor combo. They both work really well with salmon.

To add a bit of zip to the marinade I add the zest and juice of 2 limes. The lime juice really adds a fresh, vibrant flavor to the marinade.

You can use lemon juice and zest too if you prefer or if that is what you have on hand. Either will work wonderfully.

To those of you who may be new to zesting, that just means taking the colored part of the peel off the lime or lemon. The white part of the peel (the pith) is bitter and won’t add good flavor to your dish. So any time you have to zest a citrus fruit, just cut off the colored part. Here is what my zest looks like.

And here is the salmon marinating in that wonderful mixture.

How To Grill Salmon

Once you learn the simple tips for how to grill salmon perfectly you’ll be doing it all the time.

There are just a couple of tips that will really make a difference in your grilling.

1. First of all, always preheat the grill. When you add food to a cold bbq or grill, you are forced to cook it longer. Sometimes that results in the food drying out, something we really don’t want to happen to salmon.

There is also less sticking of the food to the grill if the grill is pre-heated. Sticking salmon is not pretty.

Searing salmon, or any other food you are cooking on a bbq, on a hot grill helps the food to release from the grill more easily. So when you are ready to turn the salmon over, the chances are much more likely that your fish will release from the grill and turn over beautifully.

2. Don’t keep flipping the fish over. Let the salmon cook on the grill for at least 5 minutes before you flip it to the other side.

If you flip it over too soon, it will most likely stick to the grill. Plus it doesn’t cook as nicely or as evenly if you keep flipping it. So let the grill do it’s job.

3. Grill the salmon at a medium-high heat, somewhere between 375ºF to 400ºF.

4. Let it rest before serving. Letting the salmon sit for a few minutes before digging into it. No need to rest it for long, just 2 or 3 minutes, to let the juices settle back into the fish before it is eaten.

That’s it. You are ready to grill amazing honey glazed salmon, or any other fish for that matter.

Don’t want to use a grill or barbecue to cook your salmon?

I often get asked: Can you bake this salmon in the oven if you don’t have a grill or bbq? Of course. It would be delicious. I would bake it in a preheated oven at 350ºF. The time it takes depends on the thickness of your salmon. Baste it often with the sauce and check for doneness after 20 minutes. Continue cooking the salmon until it is fully cooked.

Serving Your Honey Glazed Salmon

I love this salmon served with rice. I have two rice recipes on the site that I think would work well with this salmon recipe. A coconut flavored rice with ginger and cauliflower, or what I refer to as “green rice”, studded with chopped green onions and bell peppers. Get that recipe here.

How about a side of fresh asparagus to go with this salmon? My steamed asparagus with a simple ginger sauce would be great.

If you are not as fond of ginger, another great asparagus side dish is asparagus in orange butter sauce.

Both of these recipes are delicious and would complement the salmon really nicely.

By the way, I have marked this recipe as diabetic friendly because it has a small amount of honey for the number of servings and the carb count is not high. That said, obviously decide for yourself whether this recipe will work for you.

Now on to making our honey glazed salmon…

This cedar plank salmon recipe is perfect for the grill too.

Browse all of our easy salmon recipes here.

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