Salmon Teriyaki is one of my favorite Japanese-style dishes and even competes with my favorite authentic Japanese dish, Unagi Don (grilled eel over rice). The caramelized teriyaki sauce combined with the tender, fatty salmon is a killer combination, and it’s easy to make at home.
If you have ever ordered a similar salmon teriyaki dish in a Japanese restaurant and enjoyed it, then I assure you this recipe will definitely make it into your weekly rotation, and at a fraction of the cost. Use our recipe for Garlicky Broccoli as a side dish, and you’ll have all that you need for a quick and satisfying dinner.
One word about salmon––aside from the obvious advice of getting fresh filets––is that you actually want to get some pieces that have some good fat in them, which makes them extra tasty. Look for filet cuts that have large white lines of fat near the belly portion of the filet and try to avoid getting the tail piece. I’m sure the fish monger will comply with your request if you ask him or her nicely.
You may also see salmon belly pieces for sale in Asian markets or grocery stores for very reasonable prices. We buy them every so often, since they are so tasty. I pan-fry them on both sides and skip the oven step, since they cook so quickly. When brushed with the teriyaki sauce, they are rich and delicious. Whether you decide to use salmon belly or filets, give this salmon teriyaki bowl a try!
You’ll need:
For the teriyaki sauce:
- 1 slice fresh ginger, smashed with a cleaver
- 1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce
- ¼ cup mirin
- ¼ cup sake or rice wine
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch, mixed into a slurry with 1 teaspoon water
For the salmon
- 4 salmon filets, with skin (4 to 6 ounces each)
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- Fresh ground black pepper to taste
- Pinch of garlic powder
- Wasabi (optional)
- 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
- 6 cups of cooked Japanese short grain rice
- Toasted sesame seeds
- Roasted seaweed sheets
Start by combining the ingredients for the teriyaki sauce (except the cornstarch slurry) in a small saucepan and set aside.
Next, prepare your salmon. Sometimes, salmon fillets will have scales still on them. I like to use a serrated knife to carefully scrape them off. Then rinse and pat the salmon dry with a paper towel.
Rub the salmon with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. If using wasabi, you can take a small dab of wasabi and rub it onto each piece of salmon now (you can also just serve it on the side later).
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Take the saucepan you prepared earlier and bring the sauce mixture to a simmer. Stir in the cornstarch slurry, and continue to simmer for 5 minutes, or until the sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon. Turn off the heat.
Add a tablespoon of oil to a cast iron skillet or other thick, oven-proof pan, and place over medium heat. Place the salmon in the pan skin-side down…
And brush with a small amount of teriyaki sauce. Be careful not to let the sauce drip down the sides to the pan; if it does get to the pan, it will burn and become bitter. Sear the salmon for 3 minutes.
Brush a bit more teriyaki sauce onto the salmon, again being careful to use just enough so that it doesn’t drip down to the pan, and transfer to the preheated oven. After 3 minutes, brush more sauce on the salmon and then again after another 3 minutes.
If you’re new to cooking salmon, you should check for to see the progress of the salmon each time you brush. Use a knife to poke the thickest part of the salmon and spread the meat to take a peek inside. Take the salmon out of the oven early if necessary because there is a world of difference between perfectly cooked and overdone salmon teriyaki!
After a final 2 minutes of baking, remove the salmon from the oven. (The salmon will have been roasting for a total of 8 minutes). Note: If you like your salmon medium rare, you can reduce the cooking time by 2 or 3 minutes.
Serve the salmon over rice and drizzle with more teriyaki sauce. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds and roasted seaweed.
Enjoy your salmon teriyaki immediately with more teriyaki sauce and wasabi on the side!
Yes, you could be eating this salmon teriyaki bowl in 30 minutes!
- For the teriyaki sauce:
- 1 slice fresh ginger, smashed with a cleaver
- ⅓ cup low sodium soy sauce
- ¼ cup mirin
- ¼ cup sake or rice wine
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch, mixed into a slurry with 1 teaspoon water
- For the salmon
- 4 salmon filets, with skin (4 to 6 ounces each)
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- Fresh ground black pepper to taste
- Pinch of garlic powder
- Wasabi (optional)
- 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
- 6 cups of cooked Japanese short grain rice
- Toasted sesame seeds
- Roasted seaweed sheets
- Start by combining the ingredients for the teriyaki sauce (except the cornstarch slurry) in a small saucepan and set aside. Next, prepare your salmon. Sometimes, salmon fillets will have scales still on them. I like to use a serrated knife to carefully scrape them off. Then rinse and pat the salmon dry with a paper towel.
- Rub the salmon with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. If using wasabi, you can take a small dab of wasabi and rub it onto each piece of salmon now (you can also just serve it on the side later).
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Take the saucepan you prepared earlier and bring the sauce mixture to a simmer. Stir in the cornstarch slurry, and continue to simmer for 5 minutes, or until the sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon. Turn off the heat.
- Add a tablespoon of oil to a cast iron skillet or other thick, oven-proof pan, and place over medium heat. Place the salmon in the pan skin-side down, and brush with a small amount of teriyaki sauce. Be careful not to let the sauce drip down the sides to the pan; if it does get to the pan, it will burn and become bitter. Sear the salmon for 3 minutes.
- Brush a bit more teriyaki sauce onto the salmon, again being careful to use just enough so that it doesn’t drip down to the pan, and transfer to the preheated oven. After 3 minutes, brush more sauce on the salmon and then again after another 3 minutes.Use a knife to poke the thickest part of the salmon and spread the meat to take a peek inside. Take the salmon out of the oven early if necessary because there is a world of difference between perfectly cooked and overdone salmon!
- After a final 2 minutes of baking, remove the salmon from the oven. (The salmon will have been roasting for a total of 8 minutes). Note: If you like your salmon medium rare, you can reduce the cooking time by 2 or 3 minutes.
- Serve the salmon over rice and drizzle with more teriyaki sauce. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds and roasted seaweed. Enjoy immediately with more teriyaki sauce and wasabi on the side!
Agnes Ma says
Hi, Bill, I need to ask you this way to make myself clear:
Does roasting 8 minutes in the oven including searing 3 minutes in the pan?
Bill says
Hi Agnes, so 3 minutes in the pan, skin side down, and either 6 or 8 minutes in the oven yields a total cooking time of 9 minutes for medium rare or 11 minutes cooked through perfectly. That said, do check the salmon after the first and second 3 mins in the oven so you don’t overcook it!
Agnes Ma says
tks a million. I got it.
Agnes Ma says
Hi, Bill; According to my understanding to your instruction:
1. Brush with the sauce & roast 3 minutes on the stop top first,
2. Brush with sauce & then transfer the fish to the oven. roasting 3 minutes.
a. Repeat step 2 one more time.
3. Checking the progress, if medium rare is desired, then skip the last 2 minutes otherwise roast 2 more minutes. (That means roast in the oven either 6 minutes or 8 minutes)
Am I correct? I am little confused.
Bill says
Hi Agnes, that is correct!
Theresa says
Hi, I have a question before making this recipe. When I went to a Japanese restaurant (Shogun) and had their fish, somehow they are able to take out all of the fishy taste. Salmon is a very fishy flavor so I was wondering do you know how they take all the fishy taste out like they do and make it a neutral flavor that everyone can enjoy. Thank you for your advice.
Theresa says
P.S. They did it to all fish types at the restaurant. So all fish was neutral flavor so anything type can be eaten by a non fish lover.
Sarah says
Hi Theresa, the non-fishiness of the fish at that restaurant was not due to anything they “did” to remove the fishy taste. It’s simply that the fish they used was fresh! Generally, if fish has a “fishy” taste, it means it’s not fresh. Hope that helps!
Theresa says
Thank you love, I live in Illinois, US so I’m not sure how fresh we get fish here not being near the waters but I heard the freshest is non fishy too, thank you :)
Sarah says
You’re welcome! We usually buy our salmon from Costco, and find that it’s pretty fresh. :)
Mimi says
Hi! I’d love to make this for dinner this week but the salmon I have is skinless. Should I change the cooking technique because of this, or would it be fine to pan-sear the salmon without skin?
Thanks!
Bill says
Hi Mimi, you can use the same method but without the skin, turn the temperature down a bit lower after the initial sear since you don’t have the skin protecting the tender portion of the salmon. Happy cooking!
Verna says
Tried this recipe tonight and the family loved it. Hubby was skeptical about the teriyaki flavoured salmon but he had no choice as that was what I was making for dinner! After tasting it, he apologized and said it was very good!
Thanks again for another great recipe!
Bill says
Hi Verna, glad to hear it was a family pleaser! Happy cooking!
Annie says
Thanks so much for this recipe. It was perfect and so tasty when I made it for dinner and my husband raved about it during the whole meal! Thanks for helping me gain wife points :) I didn’t change a single thing!
Sarah says
You’re welcome, Annie!!
Taylor says
Oh my GOSH. THANK YOU!! I have never had salmon teriyaki so incredibly delicious as this! The only thing I did different was brine the salmon for 30 minutes beforehand (which I highly recommend to anyone else) and I left out the salt in your recipe. I also added an extra tbsp of honey at the end to make the sauce a bit sweeter. It came out so juicy, so perfectly cooked, and so much flavor.
Wow, just wow.
Bill says
Hi Taylor, interesting method to brine the salmon and it sounds like you were spot on for cooking the salmon just right which is the most difficult part of any salmon recipe. Salmon is so glorious when you cook it just right like you did!