This Middle Eastern Baked Salmon recipe is a flavor-bomb dish that combines the rich, buttery and flakey texture of salmon with the vibrant and aromatic spices commonly used in Middle Eastern cooking. This recipe features a blend of different spices, fresh herbs, and a touch of citrus, making it both healthy and delicious.
Salmon’s growing presence in Middle Eastern cuisine reflects the region’s evolving food culture, which is increasingly open to incorporating global ingredients while maintaining traditional flavor profiles. It’s not native to the Middle East like Sea Bass is, but it’s becoming increasingly popular. Fish dishes often feature traditional Arab everyday spices that give the fish an extra flavor kick.
If you want to try more fish dishes, try my fish tacos. I also always love pairing fish with salad and rice, and this spiced yellow rice and salata Arabiya are the perfect options.
The Best Middle Eastern Salmon Recipe
Ingredients To Make This Middle Eastern Salmon Recipe:
Salmon Filets: The main ingredient, usually fresh salmon filets (I used skin on) is preferred for rich flavor and firm texture.
Spices: Spices include cumin, coriander, paprika, onion powder, and aleppo pepper for some slight heat.
Garlic: Minced garlic adds depth to the dish.
Fresh Herbs: I chose to use parsley for my recipe, but you can definitely use cilantro and dill as they are commonly used to bring a fresh, vibrant taste to the as well.
Olive Oil: A good amount of olive oil helps keep the salmon moist and infuses it with flavor.
Citrus: Lemon juice and zest is added to the marinade to add brightness and balance the spices.
Serving Suggestions for Mediterranean Baked Salmon:
Here are some of my favorite ways to serve salmon. In Palestine and the Arab world in general, fish is almost always served with a tahini sauce commonly referred to as tarator. This sauce goes on shawerma, rice, and on everything.
Rice: Served alongside fluffy rice to soak up the delicious juices. Typically, I wouldn’t recommend making a rice with so many textures and toppings. I’d pair it with a spiced yellow rice.
Salad: I think salmon goes well with so many salads. You can pair it with my freekeh salad and serve it as, or pair it with my salata arabiya alongside rice.
Flatbread: Served with warm pita to scoop up some salmon and salad in one bite. Trust me.
Preparation Method:
Marinating: The beauty of this recipe is that it does not require any marinating time. You could marinate it if you’d like, maybe if you’d like to prep ahead. However, it is not necessary for the recipe.
Baking: The seasoned salmon is baked in the oven, usually at 400°F (200°C), until it’s cooked through and flaky, about 12-15 minutes depending on the thickness of the filets.
Toppings: You can garnish the salmon with more fresh lemon, Aleppo pepper, and parsley or toasted nuts.
The salmon comes together fairly quickly, all you need is to make sure your oven is preheated as you whip up the seasoning mixture.
To start, If you’re not using pre cut salmon filets, you’ll need to cut them into four equal sized pieces yourself.
To a bowl, add the minced garlic, parsley and lemon zest to a bowl.
Then, add the olive oil and lemon juice.
Now add in the cumin, coriander, salt, black pepper, Aleppo pepper and onion powder. Mix well. Here you can taste the mixture before adding it to the salmon and adjust to your liking.
Add the salmon filets to a lined oven dish, and pat them dry using a paper towel.
Now, evenly distribute the seasoning mixture over the salmon fillets, and use your hands to get it on all sides.
Finally, cover with aluminum foil and bake in a preheated oven until tender and flakey.
Thats it! You’re ready to enjoy a delicious weeknight dinner meal in under 30 minutes.
Other Delicious and Easy Recipes to Try:
Pumpkin Lentil Soup: A delicious Palestinian twist to an already flavorful classic lentil soup.
Sticky Date Toffee Pudding: A delicious date cake pudding drenched in warm toffee sauce.
Palestinian Taboon Bread: A traditional Palestinian bread made in in the oven, used for Musakhan or manakeesh.
Pakistani Beef Nihari: A delicious tender beef stew with beautiful flavors from Pakistan.
Yemeni Adeni Tea: The Yemeni take on a Karak/Masala Chai, and it’s absolutely delicious.
If you’ve tried this recipe, don’t forget to rate it and leave a comment below! I would love to hear about your experience. You can follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
Middle Eastern Salmon Recipe (Under 30mins!)
Ingredients
- 4 6oz Salmon fillets
- ¼ cup Extra virgin olive oil
- 1½ tablespoons Lemon zest
- 2 tablespoons Lemon juice
- 4 Garlic cloves minced
- ⅓ cup Chopped parsley
- ½ teaspoon Black pepper
- 1½ teaspoons Salt (table salt, so salt to taste)
- 1 teaspoon Coriander powder
- 1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper Or chili flakes, more or less to taste
- 1 teaspoon Paprika
- ½ teaspoon Onion powder
- ½ teaspoon Cumin
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 °F
- To start, If you’re not using pre cut salmon filets, you’ll need to cut them into four equal sized pieces yourself.
- To a bowl, add the minced garlic, parsley and lemon zest to a bowl.
- Then, add the olive oil and lemon juice.
- Now add in the cumin, coriander, salt, black pepper, Aleppo pepper and onion powder. Mix well. Here you can taste the mixture before adding it to the salmon and adjust to your liking.
- Add the salmon filets to a lined oven dish, and pat them dry using a paper towel.
- Now, evenly distribute the seasoning mixture over the salmon fillets, and use your hands to get it on all sides.
- Finally, cover with aluminum foil and bake in a preheated oven until tender and flakey, about 12-15 minutes depending on how thick it is.
- Serve with some tahini sauce, tahini salad or salata arabiya, spiced rice, and fresh lemon.
