Easy Grilled Salmon Recipe

This grilled salmon recipe might seem like a delicacy, and indeed, when prepared properly, it's a delicate, delicious meal. But complicated? No. It's so easy to prepare this fish perfectly that you'll make it a menu regular at your house. "The only mistake you can probably make with this simple salmon recipe is overcooking the fish," says cook and food writer behind Eating Works, Maren Epstein. "Unlike with white fish like cod and catfish, it's easy to overcook salmon. And once you overcook it, there's no bringing it back. Make sure to check the inside of the filet often after ten minutes to ensure it's not cooking too much."

And while Epstein adds that "the prep for this recipe couldn't be any easier," she does have two quick tips. "If you want to make this meal super-fast, microwave the butter to melt it quickly. You can buy the salmon filets and have the fish monger pre-cut them for you to the exact size portion you would like to serve."

Aside from that, don't skip the brining step! It makes all the difference.

There is some flexibility here in terms of the garnishes you choose, but the core ingredients of this grilled salmon recipe are sacrosanct. That's because you really can't beat butter, lemon, garlic, and a bit of parsley as the grace note.

You'll also need a pound of salmon, filleted, about a quarter cup of salt, two cups of warm water, four garlic cloves, pressed, two tablespoons of melted butter, the juice of two lemons, with a few thin lemon slices removed prior to juicing, one teaspoon of dried parsley, and if you want to add something extra, you can also include fresh chopped mango and/or a mild salsa.

Yes, it might seem a bit ironic to put a fillet of a saltwater fish in salt water, but brining a prepped cut of salmon in salt water adds a perfect bit of flavor and ensures the cooked fillet will be juicy and tender for your grilled salmon recipe instead of dried-out and tough. Don't skip this step!

Pour the salt into a bowl filled with enough water to easily cover your fish, then stir until the salt dissolves. Now place your salmon fillet (or fillets) into the water and let it sit for ten minutes as you move on with the prep. This is also a good time to fire up the grill — you'll want it to hit a good 400 degrees Fahrenheit for ideal cooking.

This is arguably the easiest step of this whole grilled salmon recipe, but as it's where the flavor comes from, it's remarkably important. Make sure the butter is completely melted, whether you use a sauce pan or the microwave, then, using a small bowl, combine the melted butter, the juice of two lemons, garlic, and the dried parsley. 

Thoroughly whisk everything together, then set the sauce aside at easy reach. You'll want those flavors mingling together as you prep the rest of the recipe.

The next step in this grilled salmon recipe is removing the salmon fillets from the brine and placing them on pieces of aluminum foil large enough to fully enclose the fish. Now, drizzle half of the sauce you prepared over the fillets, then lay a few lemon slices down atop each and sprinkle on a bit more dried parsley.

Gently wrap the foil around the salmon so that it's completely closed, but don't crumple or fold the foil too much, as you'll want to be able to open it to check on the fish during the cooking process.

Place the wrapped salmon on the grill and plan to cook it for about 12 to 14 minutes, but check the fish after ten minutes. Make sure the salmon is done by slicing it with a butter knife. If it flakes and is opaque throughout, it's done. If it's still at all translucent and resists easy cutting, keep on cooking.

When it's finished, remove the cooked salmon from the grill, slice it into two pieces, and season with the leftover sauce and, if you wish, mango and salsa. (Definitely try mango with salmon at least once to see if you like it. As Maren Epstein says: "Mango and salmon together is a game changer.")