Teriyaki Salmon is such a delicious and healthy dinner. You are going to love this simple recipe!
I’m so excited to share this recipe with you! It’s my new very favorite dinner. Salmon makes for such a healthy dinner. It has healthy fats, is high in protein, and contains a lot of nutrients. When you pair it with my delicious teriyaki sauce as both a marinade and a topping, you have an absolute winner.
How to Make Teriyaki Salmon
Here is a brief overview of how this salmon teriyaki recipe comes together. Be sure to scroll down to the recipe card at the bottom of the post for the full recipe including all ingredients and their measurements.
- Make the Teriyaki sauce. Whisk together the water, soy sauce, vinegar, brown sugar, honey, ginger, and garlic. Please note you will be using half of it to marinate the salmon, and half as a sauce at the end.
- Marinate the salmon. Place the salmon in a reusable container or a ziplock bag and add half of the sauce to the bag. Toss to coat the salmon and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Cook the salmon. Remove the salmon pieces from the marinade and place them on the prepared baking sheet. Discard the marinade. Bake the salmon for 12 to 15 minutes or until the salmon registers 145 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Make the sauce. While the salmon is cooking, combine the remaining teriyaki sauce with the cornstarch in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer for five minutes. Serve with the cooked salmon. Enjoy!
Homemade Teriyaki Sauce
A homemade teriyaki sauce acts as both a marinade and a sauce in this easy teriyaki salmon recipe. While you can buy teriyaki sauce at your grocery store, I have a great recipe to make it from scratch! I love making sauces at home because I can control exactly what is in them, including ensuring the flavor of the sauce is exactly what I like, especially the sweetness and spice.
With my recipe you can avoid any extra preservatives or additives of store-bought sauces. Additionally, I have instructions for how to make it gluten-free, sugar free, and/or reduced sodium. Read more about this by clicking the link in the box below.
Teriyaki Sauce
Cooking With Ginger
When making teriyaki sauce, you have two great options for adding ginger: buying a piece of fresh ginger root or a tube of grated ginger. Fresh ginger tends to be cheaper and must be peeled and grated before adding it to a recipe. You can store it in your freezer and grate it while it’s frozen, making a single piece of ginger last longer since you only need a small amount in this teriyaki sauce.
A tube of grated ginger is a convenient way to keep ginger on hand in your refrigerator and measure out how much you need, but is often more expensive than fresh ginger. This is the route I usually go for convenience.
Buying Salmon
If you are buying your salmon fresh for this recipe, make sure to purchase from a reputable store or market that you trust and that sells a lot of fish so you know it is fresh. The salmon should look shiny and moist.
If you buy frozen salmon, thaw it in the refrigerator overnight before cooking it. If it has been frozen, I recommend you ensure it is cooked to 140 degrees Fahrenheit. Salmon that has been frozen will taste best and have its best texture when cooked beyond medium rare.
Cooking Salmon
The best way to know when your teriyaki salmon is done baking is to use an instant-read thermometer. The USDA recommends a minimum internal temperature of 145 degrees Fahrenheit. For rare salmon cook to 110 degrees Fahrenheit. For medium cook to 120 degrees Fahrehheit. As soon as the inside of the salmon reaches the desired temperature, remove it from the oven.
Leave in Instant Read Thermometer
Teriyaki Salmon Tips and Tricks
- Swap the rice wine vinegar. We love the tang that the rice wine vinegar brings to this recipe (its amazing in my Bang Bang Shrimp). That being said, if it is not something you keep on hand, you can skip it or replace it with 1/2 teaspoon of white vinegar.
- Using ground ginger and garlic: As you can see from the photos, the garlic and ginger are visible in the final sauce. If you would like a sauce that is uniform in color and texture you can replace the fresh ginger and garlic with one teaspoon each of ground garlic and ground ginger.
- Make a teriyaki salmon bowl by serving the cooked salmon and teriyaki sauce over a bowl of white rice or cauliflower rice with cooked broccoli. These salmon teriyaki bowls are great to make ahead and take for lunches!
Storing and Reheating Leftovers
Store any leftover teriyaki glazed salmon in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. You can eat leftover teriyaki salmon cold, or reheat only the portion you plan to eat in the oven or air fryer until heated through. Always use your best discretion when reheating and eating leftovers.
What to Serve With Teriyaki Salmon
If you make this baked teriyaki salmon recipe or any of my other recipes, I’d love to hear what you think! I’d be so grateful if you came back and left a comment.
Teriyaki Salmon
Ingredients
Salmon
- 1 pound salmon cut into four equal pieces (453.6 grams)
Teriyaki Sauce
- 2 cups water (236.6 ml)
- 2/3 cup soy sauce please see my section in the post on how to replace soy sauce to make gluten free teriyaki sauce (78.9 ml)
- 2 teaspoons rice wine vinegar optional, see note 1
- 1/3 cup brown sugar (71 grams)
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 1/2 tablespoons freshly grated ginger
- 6 cloves garlic minced, see note 2
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- sesame seeds
- green onions thinly sliced
Instructions
- In a bowl whisk together the water, soy sauce, vinegar, brown sugar, honey, ginger, and garlic. Please note that we won't be using the cornstarch for a few steps.2 cups water, 2/3 cup soy sauce, 2 teaspoons rice wine vinegar, 1/3 cup brown sugar, 2 tablespoons honey, 1 1/2 tablespoons freshly grated ginger, 6 cloves garlic
- Place the salmon fillets in a reusable container or a ziplock bag. Add half of the sauce to the bag. Reserve the remaining sauce. Toss to combine. Place the bag in the refrigerator for the salmon to marinate for 30 minutes.1 pound salmon
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Remove the salmon pieces from the marinade. Place on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until the salmon registers 145 degrees Fahrenheit. (The USDA recommends a minimum internal temperature of 145 degrees. For rare salmon cook to 110 degrees. For medium cook to 120 degrees.)
- While the salmon is cooking, combine the remaining sauce with the cornstarch in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer for 5 minutes. Serve with the cooked salmon and top the salmon with sesame seeds and sliced green onions. Enjoy!1 tablespoon corn starch
Notes
- We love the tang that the rice wine vinegar brings to this recipe. That being said, if it is not something you keep on hand, you can skip it or replace it with 1/2 a teaspoon white vinegar. Though it is also great in my Bang Bang Shrimp.
- As you can see from the photos, the garlic and ginger are visible in the final sauce. If you would like a sauce that is uniform in color and texture you can replace the fresh ginger and garlic with 1 teaspoon EACH of ground garlic and ground ginger.
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