This citrus salmon recipe is one of my favorite recipes of all time. It pairs perfectly slow-roasted salmon with an easy, no-cook citrusy marinade that is equal parts sweet, sour, and packed with umami.
It uses a “reverse marinade” method where you cook the salmon first, and then add it to the citrusy broth after. Then just scoop and serve or eat straight from the bowl. It’s amazing with rice, quinoa, noodles, any grain or starch. And it can be adapted just for one or to feed a crowd.
All this recipe requires you to do is roast a salmon fillet and whip together a sauce. It couldn’t be easier and I’m so excited to finally share it with you!
Table of contents
What kind of salmon do you need for this recipe
What I love about this citrus salmon is its versatility. You can do this with fresh salmon, or you can add salmon leftovers you already have right into the broth – and then boom, old salmon turns into an all new dinner. Because I’m all about repurposing here 😉
For this recipe, I recommend using a full salmon fillet, about a pound, that is fresh and ready to use. I like to get my salmon from sustainable fish farmers, but it is up to you where you source it!
If you prefer to use frozen for this recipe, I recommend thawing the salmon in the fridge at least 6 hours before cooking.
The salmon can be skin-on or skin-off, just note that we are flaking the salmon from the skin, so you won’t be consuming any skin in this recipe.
If your salmon is pre-cooked, great! Then you can just skip to the citrus reverse-marinade and get ready to serve.
What does it mean to reverse-marinade?
This might….might be something I just made up. But even if it’s already around, it is now one of my new FAVORITE ways to make salmon.
For so long I’ve made sauces, broths, sauce-broth hybrids that are SO good, and I have no idea how to use them. I knew this salty, spicy, citrusy sauce needed something, but I didn’t know how to use it. Just marinating a salmon in it and then removing it felt wrong, so I decided to let the broth fully shine with the reverse-marinade.
A reverse marinade is where you cook the fish naked, then add it to the “marinade” at the end to serve. You serve it with the sauce, even though the sauce is not cooked. The sauce doesn’t overwhelm the the salmon, but it is perfectly portioned to fit right in with every scoop.
I love serving it with a salad or starch to really soak up all the reverse-marinade goodness.
How to make this citrus salmon
This recipe is very simple, and it really comes down to how you plate it. here’s a full step-by-step breakdown!
- Preheat the oven to 325F.
- Place the entire salmon fillet on a lined baking sheet. Coat generously with salt and pepper.
- Roast the salmon at 325F for 15-16 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 135F.
- While the salmon is roasting, prepare the citrus sauce.
- Cut the oranges in half and reserve 1 half for later. Add the orange juice to a large bowl, along with the juice from the lime, the finely grated garlic and ginger, the soy sauce, fish sauce, sriracha and sesame oil. Whisk to combine.
- Let the sauce sit to develop in flavor.
- Slice the remaining half of the orange into thin slices. Layer four orange slices in the bowl holding the citrus marinade.
- Remove the salmon from the oven. Use a fork to flake the salmon away from the skin in big chunks.
- Evenly layer the salmon pieces on top of the orange slices in the citrus broth. Essentially you are easing the salmon into the broth, coating it but also letting it rest on top.
- Top the salmon with scallions, sesame seeds and any remaining orange slices as a garnish. Serve immediately!
Looking for other salmon recipes
I love love love using salmon, so here are a few of my favorite posts from the blog:
Greek Yogurt Marinated Salmon
Baked Salmon Salad with Avocado
Easy BBQ Salmon Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
And that is the entire citrus salmon recipe!
If you make it, please tag me on Pinterest or Instagram so I can see! It’s my favorite thing to scroll through stories and see what you all are making.
And of course feel free to leave any questions, comments or reviews! This is the best place to reach me, and I’d love to hear from you <3
Ingredients
- 1 lb fresh salmon
- Salt & pepper to taste
- 2 small oranges
- 1 small lime
- 3 cloves garlic, grated
- 1' knob fresh ginger, grated
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tsp fish sauce
- 1-2 tsp sriracha
- 1 tsp sesame oil
Optional toppings
- 3 stalks scallions
- 1 tsp white sesame seeds
- 1 tsp black sesame seeds
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325F.
- Place the entire salmon fillet on a lined baking sheet. Coat generously with salt and pepper.
- Roast the salmon at 325F for 15-16 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 135F.
- While the salmon is roasting, prepare the citrus sauce.
- Cut the oranges in half and reserve 1 half for later. Add the orange juice to a large bowl, along with the juice from the lime, the finely grated garlic and ginger, the soy sauce, fish sauce, sriracha and sesame oil. Whisk to combine.
- Let the sauce sit to develop in flavor.
- Slice the remaining half of the orange into thin slices. Layer four orange slices in the bowl holding the citrus marinade.
- Remove the salmon from the oven. Use a fork to flake the salmon away from the skin in big chunks.
- Evenly layer the salmon pieces on top of the orange slices in the citrus broth. Essentially you are easing the salmon into the broth, coating it but also letting it rest on top.
- Top the salmon with scallions, sesame seeds and any remaining orange slices as a garnish. Serve immediately!
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