Make a quick and delicious dinner with these Spicy Salmon fillets! Nutrient packed salmon are seasoned, pan seared, and cooked in a sweet, spicy honey garlic glaze for an unforgettable dinner you can make any night of the week.
This sweet and Spicy Salmon recipe with a honey garlic glaze packs all the flavor you want in a healthy recipe! This pan seared salmon cooks quickly with a spicy honey garlic cause perfect for a fast weeknight meal that can be served with a number of different sides.
If you’re looking other delicious and easy salmon recipes, why not also try my Citrus Salmon Skewers or my Spicy Salmon Salad Recipe!
Why you’ll love this Spicy Salmon recipe
- An easy and quick salmon recipe. This Spicy Salmon takes about 20 minutes to make and uses one pan to cook everything up. Nothing beats that!
- Great for meal prep. Quickly make lunches for the week ahead. Pack them with a side of rice and veggies for a complete meal perfect for keeping you full and focused at work.
- Packed with flavor. The salmon is seasoned with paprika, garlic and onion powder, then smothered in a deliciously sweet, savory and spicy sauce – so good!
Ingredients you’ll need
- Salmon Fillets– Four fresh 8 oz. pieces of salmon are the base of this recipe.
- Seasoning– Smoked paprika, garlic powder, ground black pepper, and cayenne pepper season the salmon fillets.
- Sauce– A spicy honey glaze with honey, garlic, water soy sauce, lemon juice, onion powder, ginger powder, chili flakes, and olive oil finish these salmon fillets off.
How to make this Spicy Salmon recipe
- Season – Coat the sliced salmon/salmon fillets in the dry rub ingredients, on both sides.
- Cook the salmon – In a 12 inch skillet, sear the salmon for 5 mins then flip and sear the other side.
- Add the sauce – Pour in the sauce mix to the skillet and cook for 2-3 mins.
- Remove, garnish, serve and enjoy!
Recipe notes and tips
- Ideally go for wild salmon, for flavor and sustainability. Wild salmon looks orange in color whereas farmed salmon is pale orange in color.
- Make sure to pat the fillets dry with a paper towel, to remove excess water. This promotes an even cook and stops splattering from the oil.
- You can remove the skin if you want to keep it on the healthier side.
- When searing the salmon, don’t move it around until you’re ready to flip it. If you move it too soon it’s likely to stick and tear.
- Garnish with sesame seeds, chopped green onions, and lemon wedges.
- Feel free to enhance the flavor of salmon by topping with fresh herbs such as parsley, basil, or cilantro.
- Add some breadcrumb topping for your salmon to give it a different texture.
- You can also bake the Spicy Salmon in the oven at 400°F for 8-10 minutes, uncovered.
FAQ’s
Is salmon good for you?
Salmon is a nutrient dense food. Loaded with antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals this fish offers many nutritional benefits to your diet. Salmon contains B vitamins, is high in Omega-3 fatty acids, and is also considered low calorie with low saturated fat.
What goes well with this Spicy Salmon?
Many different sides pair well with these salmon fillets. Some of my favorite veggies to serve salmon with are asparagus, broccoli, or a fresh side salad. You can also serve salmon with roasted Brussel sprouts or oven roasted carrots.
Salmon also compliments grains such as rice, quinoa, and farro. If you are looking to make your recipe Whole 30 or low carb try using a cauliflower rice instead. For a more carb heavy side, serve the salmon with a pasta such as a lemon garlic pasta.
How do I know when my salmon is done?
There are a few ways to know your salmon is cooked through. The USDA recommends an internal temperature of 145°F. Use a meat thermometer to check your salmon during cooking to see if the thickest part has reached this temperature. Another way to tell if the salmon is fully cooked is by testing how well the salmon will ‘give’. This means when you put a fork to it, will the salmon flake off? If it flakes off it’s ready.
Which sides go well with this salmon recipe?
These Spicy Salmon fillets go great with a variety of sides, for a delicious and balanced meal. here’s some ideas:
- Smashed Sweet Potatoes with Herbs and Garlic
- Avocado Corn Salad
- Oven Roasted Parmesan Herbed Potatoes
- Avocado Mango Salad
- Caribbean Jerk Fish Bowl
Other spicy recipes you might like
- Spicy Baked Zucchini Fries
- Lebanese Spicy Potatoes (Batata Harra)
- Spicy Chicken Chipotle Pasta
- Spicy Teriyaki Chicken with Broccoli
I hope you enjoy all the recipes I share with you, including this delicious Spicy Salmon recipe. I hope you try it, enjoy it, rate it and share it with your friends and family!
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Spicy Honey Garlic Salmon
Ingredients
- 4 8 oz salmon fillets center cuts
- 2 tsp. olive oil
- 1 tsps. smoked paprika or normal paprika
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- ¾ tsp. fresh ground black pepper more or less to taste
- ½ tsp. cayenne pepper more or less to taste
The Sauce
- ¼ cup honey
- 4 cloves garlic minced or chopped
- 1 tbsp. lemon juice
- ½ tsp. onion powder
- 2 tbsps. water
- ⅓ cup soy sauce Low-sodium
- ½ tsp. chili flakes more or less to taste
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- 1½ tsp. corn starch
- ½ tsp. ginger powder optional
Garnishes
- Green Onion optional
- Toasted Sesame Seeds optional
- Lemon wedges optional
Instructions
- Remove the skin from the salmon. Slice them into 8 oz pieces and pat them dry.
- In a small bowl stir together paprika, garlic powder, fresh ground pepper, and cayenne pepper. Season both sides of the salmon with this seasoning.
- In a small bowl or cup, mix together the sauce ingredients: honey, garlic, water, lemon juice, soy sauce, onion powder, cornstarch and ginger powder, chili flakes, and 1 tbsp. of olive oil to make the sauce. Set aside for cooking.
- Bring a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add 2 Tbsps. of olive oil. Place the salmon in the pan and sear for 5 minutes without moving. Flip and cook on the other side for 5 minutes.
- Pour the sauce into the pan and let the sauce and salmon cook together 2-3 minutes, or until the sauce thickens up. Scoop up some of the sauce and glaze the salmon as it cooks.
- Remove from heat and garnish with sesame seeds, chopped green onion, and lemon wedges before serving.
Video
Notes
- You can also bake the Spicy Salmon in the oven at 400°F for 8-10 minutes, uncovered.
- Ideally go for wild salmon, for flavor and sustainability. Wild salmon looks orange in color whereas farmed salmon is pale orange in color.
- Make sure to pat the fillets dry with a paper towel, to remove excess water. This promotes an even cook and stops splattering from the oil.
- You can remove the skin if you want to keep it on the healthier side.
- When searing the salmon, don’t move it around until you’re ready to flip it. If you move it too soon it’s likely to stick and tear.
- Garnish with sesame seeds, chopped green onions, and lemon wedges.
- Feel free to enhance the flavor of salmon by topping with fresh herbs such as parsley, basil, or cilantro.
- Add some breadcrumb topping for your salmon to give it a different texture.
This recipe was AMAZING!!! This will be one of my go-to salmon recipes. The rub is delicious and flavorful. It would be excellent on other meats too. My picky family even enjoyed this dish. I did cut the cayenne pepper in the rub down to 1/8 tsp, and the chili flakes in the sauce down to 1/8 tsp. That was plenty of heat for us, and still delicious.
Hi Heather!
Thank you so much for the rating and review. I am glad you enjoyed it with your family and were able to customize it to your liking.
TASTY!
I really love this recipe! it’s so easy. I save the seasoning and sauce so I can make 1 salmon at a time throughout the week, so it’s fresh every time. Gotta say though, I love a good peppa sauce with my food, but 1 tsp of chilli flakes has my mouth on fire! recommend bringing it down to half a tsp or less.
Hi Shard!
Sorry it was too spicy for ya! Feel free to always adjust the chili flakes or any other spices you feel might be too much in the recipe. I am a heavy spice eater haha!
It’s super yummy but the saltiness is a bit over the top for me! Any suggestions on how to make it work while using less soy sauce?
Hi Claire,
Did you use low-sodium soy sauce? You can use 1/4 cup instead, and add 1/4 cup vegetable broth, add 1 tbsp. more honey or brown sugar, a 1/2 tsp. more of the corn flour if you want a thicker sauce.
I made this tonight and absolutely loved it! Just what I was looking for! Spicy, sweet. Perfect. I was testing the recipe to see if this would be something I would want to make for friends and family. It definitely will be. I know they will be impressed, as I was.
Hi Sheri,
Thank you so much for the review. I appreciate your time to do that. I am glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Delicious! New family favourite!
Hi Joselean,
Thanks so much for leaving a review. I am happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe.
If baked, should the sauce be added ahead of baking?
Yes before baking
We’re making this for dinner tonight and I’m sure it’ll be amazing, I just wanted to point out that in the instructions for the mixing of the sauce ingredients it’s missing the onion powder, cornstarch and ginger powder. They’re listed in the ingredients but not the instructions.
Thought you might want to add that just to eliminate any possible confusion. 🙂
Thanks so much Kay! You are right, some people might get confused. I have adjust it.
Omg, we LOVED this salmon. So freaking deliscious! Sorry no pics. Huge hit, will absolutely make again! ❤️
Thanks so much for the review Kellie! Happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe.
I substituted Sriracha for cayenne pepper turned out excellent.
Hi Steve!
Glad you enjoyed the recipe. I love cayenne pepper! Thanks for the review.
Omg… This recipe is SO GOOD! I’ve never left a review on anyone’s recipe in all the years I’ve been trying different recipes. But this sauce gets my 5 stars! You’ll notice there is no salt mentioned anywhere in this recipe there’s a reason for that! You won’t need it at all. I’m a pescetarian but my family isn’t. With that said this sauce will not stop on the salmon, my family would love it on something like chicken wings!! Yum, yum, yum!
Hi Andrea,
So glad to hear you enjoyed the recipe and very much appreciate your review. Thanks so much.