This grilled salmon is coated in a flavorful marinade then grilled until golden brown. A super easy dinner option that will earn you rave reviews! This salmon can also be baked, broiled or pan seared.
My grill is one of my favorite cooking devices, I regularly make grilled chicken tenders, steak kabobs and this sweet and savory grilled salmon.
There are so many different ways to prepare salmon – it can be baked, broiled, pan seared, steamed, you name it. In my opinion, the best recipe for this fish is grilled salmon, especially when there’s a flavorful marinade involved!
Salmon Ingredients
This recipe calls for salmon fillets, as well as marinade ingredients including olive oil, soy sauce, brown sugar, lemon zest and herbs.
How do you make grilled salmon?
This recipe starts with a simple marinade that includes olive oil, garlic, soy sauce, brown sugar, Dijon mustard, herbs and spices. Whisk all the ingredients together, then add the salmon to the bowl. The salmon should marinate for at least 1 hour, or up to 8 hours. The salmon can then be removed from the marinade and placed on the grill. Grill your fish until it’s done, then serve with lemon wedges and enjoy.
Tips for grilled salmon
- This marinade can be made up to 3 days before you plan to use it. Simply store the marinade in the fridge until you’re ready to add your salmon.
- You can use the marinade to flavor small salmon fillets, or try marinating a larger side of salmon. If you’re planning to cook a large piece of salmon, I’d recommend cooking it in foil since it will be difficult to flip on the grill.
- I typically grill my salmon outdoors when the weather is nice, and indoors on a non stick grill pan on cold days. Either way will work just fine!
Recipe FAQs
Salmon is cooked through when the flesh is opaque and flakes easily from the fillet. If you’re not sure that the salmon is done, you can use a thermometer to measure the internal temperature. If the temperature of the salmon is at least 145 degrees F, then the salmon is ready to eat. You want to be sure not to overcook your salmon as it can get tough and dry.
Salmon is a great choice for a healthy diet. It’s high in protein and low in carbohydrates. Salmon is full of vitamins and minerals including Vitamin B12, potassium and selenium. Salmon is also a great source of omega-3 fatty acids which have numerous health benefits.
If you’re using an outdoor grill, you’ll want to take care to make sure that your salmon does not stick to the grates.
1) Make sure your grill grates are super clean. If there are bits of old food left on the grilling surface, the salmon will be more likely to stick.
2) Coat your grill grates with vegetable oil before you place the salmon on the grill. You should also add a little extra oil to the surface of your salmon for added insurance that it will not stick.
3) Make sure your grill is pre-heated before you add the salmon.
Flavor Variations
This recipe is great as-is, but you can add other flavors to customize the dish to your tastes.
- Herbs: Try swapping out the parsley and thyme for other herbs such as basil, chives or dill.
- Spicy: If you like a little kick to your salmon, feel free to add your favorite hot sauce or red chili flakes to the marinade.
- Garlic Lover’s: Increase the amount of garlic in the recipe to 1 tablespoon.
- Protein: This marinade will also work with other types of seafood including shrimp, halibut and swordfish.
This grilled salmon is perfect for a quick weeknight dinner, yet elegant enough to serve to company. It’s one of my all time favorite ways to enjoy salmon!
More great salmon recipes
- Salmon Foil Packets
- Greek Salmon Salad
- Salmon with Avocado Salsa
- Salmon Teriyaki
- Honey Garlic Salmon
Grilled Salmon
Ingredients
- 6 salmon fillets 4-6 ounces each
- 5 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon parsley leaves chopped
- 2 teaspoons thyme leaves chopped
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
Instructions
- Place the olive oil, brown sugar, soy sauce, lemon zest, Dijon mustard, parsley, thyme, salt and pepper in a bowl. Whisk to combine.
- Reserve 1 tablespoon of the marinade in the refrigerator for later use. Add the garlic to the bowl.
- Add the salmon to the bowl of marinade. Spoon the marinade over the salmon and cover the bowl.
- Marinate in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour, or up to 8 hours.
- Remove the salmon from the marinade and scrape off any excess bits of herbs or garlic (otherwise they could burn on the grill!).
- Preheat an outdoor grill or indoor grill pan over medium high heat. If you’re using an outdoor grill, be sure to thoroughly coat your grill grates with vegetable oil.
- Add the salmon fillets and cook for 5-6 minutes on each side or until salmon is opaque throughout.
- Brush the reserved marinade over the salmon fillets, then serve.
Notes
- This marinade can be made up to 3 days before you plan to use it. Simply store the marinade in the fridge until you’re ready to add your salmon.
- You can use the marinade to flavor small salmon fillets, or try marinating a larger side of salmon. If you’re planning to cook a large piece of salmon, I’d recommend cooking it in foil since it will be difficult to flip on the grill.
Very good recipe. Made is 3 times and has been great each time.p
Made this tonight. It came out very good! Brushing the set aside marinade with a squeeze of lemon really made the flavors pop. Can’t wait to make it again.
Outstanding. Simply outstanding. Cooked this on a gas grill (Weber using spray oil), never had salmon that was so good! Thanks Dinner at the Zoo!!
What outdoor grill do you use for all your great recipes? I need to purchase a new grill…..Thank you for your time,Karen
I recommend Weber grills!
This was one of the easiest and tastiest dishes I have made. My entire family just loved it. I will for sure be making this again and again.
Oh, my gosh. Your page setup is beautiful. I look at a lot of recipe blogs, and they usually include wayyyyy too much chatter that has nothing to do with the recipe. I am sick to death of blogs that make me scroll, and scroll, and scroll, and SCROLL past unrelated chatter and pointless photos to get to the recipe. Not only do you avoid that on your page, but you actually have USEFUL photos. I can see all of the ingredients in a single photo (which handily gives me a rough idea of the amounts in relation to one another). And that little four-photo image that basically SHOWS me what to do in the recipe? GENIUS! Best layout I have ever seen on ANY cooking blog. Thanks so much for considering your layout so thoughtfully. It’s beautiful.
What really impressed me was how juicy this salmon is ~ great recipe, it’s going on our regular dinner rotation!
My favourite part of this salmon was the marinade, it was perfectly balanced! Definitely making this all summer.
This grilled salmon was the perfect dinner for my family! The marinade was so flavorful and easy to make too!
This herb and garlic is a winning combination with salmon!
I love that I can marinate the fish in this delicious marinade for a few days. Let it soak in all the flavor. Makes a beautiful piece of fish.
The BEST recipe I used fresh Salmon we bought at Joe Patty’s in Pensecola. I marinated overnight! Absolutely better than a restaurant and I did use a Cedar Plank fir grilling!
First I’d like to say that I’m a huge fan of Dinner at the Zoo recipes. I’m a mom of 2 who has a similar cooking style and enjoys trying new recipes from this site. The salmon was very flavorful. Love the choice of ingredients. Definitely a keeper. However the ratio of oil to flavorings was a bit much. I increased all of the other ingredients . It was amazing…and no issues with it sticking to the grill
The flavor on this salmon was fantastic!
I love this recipe. Took salmon to work and my employees begged me for piece. I gave one of them a small bite. Now the company want me to make a big tray of it…. lol it was that good. Thanks
My very first time grilling Salmon and let me tell you, my wife was blown away! Thanks, this was an absolute keeper recipe!
Did you grill it on tin foil on the grill as suggested or in a grill pan?
This is a keeper for sure! Perfect blend of flavors
This was fantastic! Whole family enjoyed and went back for more and we are not fish people at all. More of a steak and chicken family. Thanks for the recipe!
Fantastic flavor — I used this marinade on a 1.2 pound filet of wild Sockeye salmon from Alaska, marinated it for about 1 1/2 hours, then grilled it without flipping it. I also used a tsp of dried thyme instead of 2 tsp of fresh (because I did not have any) and it turned out really well. I will definitely be making this frequently!
This is the best salmon marinade recipe I have tried. The flavors really mixed well and complimented my salmon fillets. Thanks for sharing this recipe! The only thing I did different was eliminated the 3/4 teaspoon salt (trying to lower my sodium intake). It was still delicious! Definitely a keeper!