Your Christmas main dish for this year has just landed!! Have you ever seen a Baked Salmon look so festive?? And it’s so EASY! First published in December 2020, this Christmas recipe was an instant hit with readers. Featuring a honey butter-glazed side of salmon baked in foil, slathered with creamy dill sauce and finally topped with a Holiday “Tapenade”, this pays extremely high dividends for minimal effort.
For all my best Christmas recipes, browse the new Christmas recipe index!
Festive Baked Salmon!
Every year I try to come up with one great centrepiece Christmas main dish that is you can make-ahead and is super simple, but still has that extra wow factor that will make YOU the star at Christmas Dinner….
This is what I’ve come up with this year: A festive Baked Salmon!
It is:
Baked with a Honey Garlic Butter Glaze in foil;
Slathered with a Creamy Dill Sauce;
Topped with a Holiday “Tapenade” of dried cranberries, almonds and parsley; and
Finished with pomegranate for a shower of festive colour and a generous dousing of fresh lemon juice.
The flavour and textural combination is stellar! It’s mostly savoury with hints of sweet, and that creamy dill sauce is a natural pairing with salmon. Finally the Holiday Tapenade topping just sings of festivities!
Have I emphasised enough yet how easy this is to make?? Read on!
Overview: How to make Christmas Baked Salmon
Simmer 3-ingredient Honey Glaze for 2 minutes;
Pour over salmon then bake wrapped in foil (easy clean up!);
Spread cooked salmon with 4-ingredient Lemon Dill Sauce, 4-ingredient “Tapenade” (topping mix);
Sprinkle with pomegranate seeds, drizzle with lemon juice;
Serve warm or at room temperature. Now sit back and bask in praise!
What you need for this Festive Baked Salmon
Here’s what you need for this festive Baked Salmon.
1. Side of salmon
This is one side of a whole salmon. It should not be flavoured or pre-marinated in any way. If frozen, thaw thoroughly overnight in the fridge covered, and then pat dry very well (frozen fish gets watery);
Skin on – for easier handling. Once cooked, the skin will hold the salmon together. Without it, there’s a higher change the flesh flakes open when transferring to the tray. Interestingly, I have never seen a side of salmon sold without skin – this may well be the reason; and
Bones removed – Your fishmonger should have already done this, but just double check. Run your fingers across the surface, especially along the mid-line (where the spine was) where pin bone culprits sometimes hide. Check the belly section carefully too. If there are bones, use fish boning tweezers or just personal grooming tweezers to pull them out (pinch and yank with conviction!). Clean small pliers also work.
2. Honey Glaze for salmon
This is used to bake the salmon so it gets infused with incredible sweet-buttery-garlicky flavour while it bakes. Here’s what you need:
To make the Honey Glaze, all you do is plonk everything in a saucepan and simmer for a couple of minutes to thicken slightly and bring all the flavours together.
3. Baking the salmon
The salmon is baked in foil which is handy for minimal clean up, but actually the main reason is because it holds the glaze around the salmon better while it bakes!
Here’s how the salmon is cooked:
Line a tray with foil. (Recommended: A double layer of foil for leakage protection.) Then baking/parchment paper. Place the salmon on top.
Fold the foil sides up a bit to cup them a little so the glaze won’t spill onto the tray. Pour the glaze over (it’s fine that the glaze is still hot);
Top with another sheet of paper and then foil. Seal edges to form a parcel. No need to make it tightly sealed, just mostly sealed is fine;
Bake for 15 minutes covered;
Uncover, then switch oven to broiler/grill. Grill for 10 minutes to get some tasty caramelisation on the edges and a bit on the surface. IMPORTANT: Keep salmon on the middle shelf in the oven when broiling/grilling, don’t move it closer to the heat source – risk of paper burning!
It smells SO GOOD when it’s in the oven…. and here’s what the Baked Salmon looks like when it comes out!
Immediately transfer to serving platter using the paper overhang (otherwise the salmon will keep cooking on the tray), either lifting or sliding it off. And here’s how to remove the foil and paper from under the salmon – just tear and slide!
How to remove foil and paper from under the baked salmon
At this stage, the salmon needs to be left to cool for at least 10 minutes otherwise the Lemon Dill Sauce literally melts straight off. Also this salmon dish is intended to be eaten warm rather than hot, or even at room temperature. This is extra-handy because there’s no need to stress over exact cook times in order to serve it piping hot!
4. Lemon Dill Sauce for salmon
This sour cream-based sauce provides an element of creamy richness to the baked salmon as well as acting as the “glue” for the Holiday “Tapenade” we pile over the top. Not including dill was never an option – it is, after all, best friends with salmon!
Here’s what you need – just mix them together to make the sauce:
Note: we only use the zest in the sour cream sauce because we deliberately want to keep it very thick and “paste-like” so we can slather it on thickly. The rest is used to liberally douse the finished dish for some welcome tang. It’s an essential step!
4. Holiday “Tapenade“
This jumble of goodies (which I call a “Holiday Tapenade”) is a terrific combination for both flavours and textures with the Honey Glazed salmon and Creamy Dill Sauce. The sweet, slightly tart cranberries and the nutty almonds contrast beautifully with the cooling Creamy Dill Sauce and the rich, Honey Glazed flesh of the salmon.
Here’s what you need for the Holiday Tapenade:
Pomegranate – This is what we use to sprinkle across the finished dish for their jewel-like festive colour, and of course for great pops of tart juiciness!
Dried cranberries – In the spirit of holidays and also for the tart/sweet profile rather than just plain sweetness that other dried fruits have. Alternatives (in order of suggestion): Dried sour cherries, golden raisins, normal raisins or sultanas;
Orange juice – This is used to soak the cranberries in order to reconstitute them and plump them up. Otherwise, they’re rather shrivelled and chewy. Because this is, after all, for a special occasion why not one more step to make the cranberries extra special! As mentioned, it’s mainly for the cranberries, but the orange juice also adds a touch of extra sweetness and citrusy flavour – very on-theme for holidays! Substitute with any fruit juice you wish. Apple would especially be great – otherwise just use water with a dollop of honey or maple syrup;
Slivered almonds – Purchased already cut into slivers (else sliver blanched almonds yourself), this is a lovely shape that you can use as-is. We also give them a quick toasting to boost the nuttiness and bronze them. Alternatives: Almonds (preferably blanched), pistachios, hazelnuts, pecans, macadamias, walnuts;
Parsley for freshness and the green colour for Christmas!
Olive oil to add just a bit of richness and bring it all together.
Make ahead option: Make the Tapenade up to 2 days ahead but leave the almonds out until just before serving. Almonds can be toasted ahead, just store them in the pantry until required.
5. Assembling
And here’s how the Christmas Baked Salmon is assembled:
Smother the salmon generously with the Creamy Dill Sauce. Generous is the operative word here! It’s the main sauce for this dish, and it’s also the “glue” for the Tapenade;
Sprinkle the Tapenade across the surface. Really pile it on, use it all!;
Then sprinkle over the pomegranate next, and finally the lemon juice (the Tapenade will catch it); and
Voila! Presentation! Applause! Compliments! Bows!
How to serve this Christmas Baked Salmon
Present the salmon whole on a platter, like pictured above, so everyone can admire how pretty it looks.
Then you can either cut it into portions – literally just use a knife to cut it – or let everyone help themselves. I find it easiest to use a cake server for actually lifting slices to serve easily, so you might like to also provide something like this if you’re allowing guests to serve themselves.
I feel like this has been a really long post for something that I stated is a really easy recipe. And I still promise it is!
It’s just that a side of salmon is not cheap, and is the sort of thing we splurge on for special occasions. So I want to arm you with enough information and details to ensure you feel the confidence of knowing that you will nail this dish – even if you’re not that experienced in the kitchen.
Hand on heart, there is very little that can go wrong with this recipe. The only real pitfall will be if you overcook the salmon. However salmon is a forgiving meat because it’s an oily fish, so it’s really not the end of the world even if you do take it too far. But if you really want to be sure you’ve got it right, you can always use a meat thermometer (see recipe notes for internal temperatures).
I hope by now I’ve convinced you to put this on your Christmas menu as the (or a) centrepiece! It looks like Christmas, it tastes like Christmas and the fact that it’s so straightforward will remain our little secret….. 😉 – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
This recipe features in my debut cookbook Dinner. The book is mostly new recipes, but this is a reader favourite included by popular demand!
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Christmas Baked Salmon
Ingredients
Salmon:
- 1.2 – 1.5 kg / 2.4 – 3lb salmon side (skin on, bones removed, Note 1)
- 2 1/4 tsp salt , cooking/kosher (Note 2)
- 1 tsp black pepper
Honey Butter Glaze:
- 150g / 5oz butter , unsalted
- 1/2 cup honey
- 3 garlic cloves , finely minced (garlic press or knife)
Creamy Dill Sauce:
- 1 1/2 cups sour cream , full fat (low fat is too watery)
- 1/2 cup fresh dill , finely chopped (lightly packed cup)
- 1/2 eschallot (French onion) , finely grated
- 1 1/2 tbsp lemon zest
- 1/2 tsp salt , cooking/kosher (Note 2)
Holiday "Tapenade":
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1 cup orange juice
- 1 cup slivered almonds , toasted (Note 3)
- 1/3 cup parsley , roughly chopped
- 1/4 tsp each salt and pepper
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Finishing:
- 1 pomegranate , only the seeds
- 1/4 cup parsley , roughly chopped
- 3 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 lemons, extra , cut in 6 pieces each (for serving, don't skip this)
Instructions
Creamy Dill Sauce
- Mix ingredients in a bowl until smooth. Keep refrigerated until required.
Holiday Tapenade
- Plump cranberries: Heat orange juice in a saucepan over high heat until hot. Turn stove off, add cranberries, cover. Stand 15 minutes, then drain in a colander (discard liquid). Cool.
- Mix: Mix cranberries, toasted almonds (see Note 3), parsley, salt and olive oil in bowl. Use at room temp.
Cooking salmon
- Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F (all oven types).
- Prepare salmon: Place a large sheet of foil on a tray (double layer for safety is recommended), then top with baking/parchment paper. Place salmon on paper, then fold up the foil sides a bit to cup them so glaze won't run onto tray.
- Glaze: Place ingredients in a saucepan over medium high heat. Once it started foaming, turn down to medium, let it foam for 2 minutes then remove and pour straight over the salmon.
- Season: Sprinkle salmon with salt and pepper, putting most of the salt on the thicker part of the salmon.
- Wrap: Cover salmon with a smaller piece of paper, then foil. Fold and seal up sides to enclose salmon in a parcel – it doesn't need to be 100% tightly sealed.
- Bake 15 minutes. Remove salmon from oven.
- Uncover / fold excess paper – Remove paper and foil and paper cover. Fold/scrunch paper and foil sides down to expose salmon surface. Tucking paper down also ensures it won't catch fire when broiling.
- Grill/broil to brown: Switch oven to grill/broiler on high. Place salmon on middle shelf in the oven and broil 7 to 10 minutes until you get caramelisation mostly on the edges, a bit on top. Don't put it too close to the heat element otherwise paper might catch on fire! Check to ensure salmon is cooked – either pry open in middle to check or use a probe to check internal temperatures (Note 4).
- Transfer to plate: Use foil overhang to transfer salmon onto serving platter straight away (otherwise it keeps cooking). Slide the foil then paper out from under the salmon (see video at 1 min 24s or step photos in post), allowing juices to pool on platter (it's gold stuff!).
- Cool: Loosely cover with foil, then leave to cool for at least 15 minutes, up to 1 hour or longer (for room temp serving – Note 6 for serving notes).
Assembly and serving
- Dollop then thickly spread with Creamy Dill Sauce (~0.8cm / 1/3" thick layer).
- Pile over Holiday Tapenade, scatter generously with pomegranate seeds, and then remaining parsley. Squeeze over lemon juice.
- Serving: Serve with extra lemon wedges so people can add more to taste. Cut into pieces – I use a cake cutter for serving. Encourage people to slop up some of the honey-butter sauce that will be mixed with semi melted Creamy Dill Sauce – it's so good! This dish is best served slightly warm, not piping hot, also excellent at room temp.
Recipe Notes:
- Salmon – Trout is an ideal direct sub (though typically smaller, so scale recipe down or use multiple);
- Salmon fillets rather than whole side – bake in foil 10 minutes, then grill/broil 10 minutes). Would also be VERY pretty in individual portions so it looks like this.
- Smaller salmon side – eg the middle or just the tail end. For anything around 600g / 1.2lb and larger, follow recipe as written in terms of cook times but scale quantities down by clicking Servings and sliding down until you hit the target salmon weight.
- Butter – Best is ghee or clarified butter (store bought or homemade) for dairy free alternatives, followed by margarine.
- Honey – Maple syrup, but simmer for an extra 1 minute to reduce a bit further
- Sour Cream – The only suitable sub is spreadable (tub) cream cheese but that’s a bit thick so would need to be thinned with a touch of olive oil to make it in a soft spreadable paste as pictured in the video. If you use block cream cheese, you’d need even more oil for thinning. Yogurt is too watery.
- Dill – Classic herb for salmon, but can sub with chives or finely chopped green onions.
- Almonds (all should be roasted, unsalted) – Whole (preferably blanched) almonds roughly chopped yourself, pistachios, walnuts, pecans, hazelnuts, macadamias.
- Nut allergy subs – Pepitas or sunflower seeds
- Dried cranberries – Craisins, dried sour cherries (roughly chopped), golden raisins*, normal raisins* or sultanas*, any other dried fruit like apricots* chopped (items marked with * add 2 tbsp lemon juice into hot water for plumping, will add touch of tartness like cranberries have)
- Orange juice – Apple juice, any other non-thick fruit juice, water + 2 tbsp honey
- Parsley – Chives or green onions
- Pomegranate – These add colour and juicy little pops to the dish. No fruit provides anything quite similar in terms of colour but for flavour, best is to use red (seedless) grapes. Cut into 1/6 or 1/8, about 3/4 cup. Cherries also work!
- Dairy free version – give it a Middle Eastern spin by using hummus instead of sour cream (just be sure it’s a nice thick consistency you can slather on), and instead of parsley use fresh coriander/cilantro instead (roughly chopped) and increase to 1/2 cup. It’s really, really good, I made it with fillets. It’s a Christmasy version of Salmon Tarator, a traditional Middle Eastern dish from which this recipe was inspired.
- Tapenade – 24 hrs in advance (fridge) but keep toasted almonds in pantry and stir in before serving (few hours ahead is fine), ensure it is at room temp when using.
- Creamy Dill Sauce and Honey Glaze – 24 hours ahead, fridge (glaze will need to be reheated to make pourable).
- Pomegranates – bash out the seeds the day before! See in post for how;
- Salmon – better baked fresh on the day but it is still stellar cooked the day before (based on all leftovers I have been inhaling!). But honestly, reheating cooked salmon is just as much effort as baking fresh, in my opinion!
Nutrition Information:
First published in December 2020. Brought back to the front of the website in December 2021, just to remind you that it’s here, the perfect centrepiece for your Christmas!
Life of Dozer
He can tell just by looking at it that the Christmas Baked Salmon is super duper delish!!! (Funnily enough, he seems to determine that about everything he looks at…🤔🤔🤔)
Carol B says
I’m not a cook so I enjoyed the details and video accompanying this recipe. The prep occupied my whole day but I loved every minute of it. I felt like a master chef! I don’t eat dairy so substituted butter with non-dairy butter and sour cream with Tofutti Sour Cream. There’s so much going on with this recipe, nobody noticed and it was a BIG hit. I will definitely be making this dish again…a little lighter on the toppings (mine was heavier than the photo). Also, you rally don’t need any other dishes with this; it’s a meal in itself. Thanks Nagi for the amazing detail!
Tony Wright says
Superb dish. There was a bit of work doing the prep but it was still easy. The results were outstanding and much appreciated. It’s not often that I get to make something that looks as good as the photos in the recipe. Thank you! I hope you had the best Christmas possible with all the COVID issues in Avalon and surrounds. All the best for 2021!
Polly says
Fabulous, eaten and loved as both salmon and ocean trout. A resounding yes from 2 different family Christmas meals. An absolute winner, looks festive, tastes divine plus easy, quick cook.
Joanna A says
This was an absolutely amazing main dish for Christmas and it looked as fabulous as it tasted. I am glad you gave so many clear instructions as I had some grief trying to tear the baking paper from under the salmon and I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t made such a useful video with this recipe. The only change I made was to use fresh parsley instead of dill in the sour cream topping and I added a tablespoon of dry dill and chives into it. The recipe needed planning to get everything ready but it was actually cooked incredibly quickly and it was really convenient that it didn’t need to be served hot. I actually took it to a park on a platter for our Christmas picnic and my husband said that the side dishes were a waste of time since the salmon was so good nothing else was necessary.
Mari says
Can I give this 10 stars? This was dead easy to make, looked stunning and tasted fantastic.. just exactly perfect for Xmas lunch. We had it with your Crispy Smashed Potatoes, Green Bean Salad and Apple & Candied Walnut Salad.. all very easy and very delicious. Thanks again, Nagi. Hope you have a lovely Christmas
Nicole Luong says
We’ve just had this on Christmas Eve. Absolutely delicious. A keeper! Merry Christmas Nagi xx
Ackeela M says
Can’t wait to try this recipe tomorrow for Christmas dinner! I don’t have a grill but how high and long in the oven on broil should I leave in a 3lb salmon for browning?
Thank you!
Christine says
I made this last night for Xmas dinner and it was Fantastic! My step mom has a beloved salmon recipe she always makes so I figured this wouldn’t hold a candle to it, but everyone loved the salmon. It’s delicious and tender as cooked without all the festive toppings… But dang it’s even better with the additional flavors and textures added by the holiday tampenade. THANK YOU for this delicious recipe and very clear- easy to follow directions!!
Susanna Tam says
Hi Nagi,
What type of salmon is best for this dish? Farm raised or wild caught? Pacific or Atlantic? I made this and while everything tasted delicious…the fish flesh itself was a bit bland. I used farmed Atlantic salmon. It came with no skin on. Any ideas why the salmon itself was a little bland?
Lynn K says
Susanna…. We used Wild Salmon filet….with skin on back. We find nothing beats wild salmon. Flavor city! We tried this recipe last night for Christmas Eve and LOOOOVVVEDDD it! Highly recommend.
Maria P says
I cooked this for our Christmas get together and my friends love it…they did not only second or third servings…some even took it home 😊 Thank very much for this recipe. It is really easy to do, it’s very appealing and the very yummy 😋
I love Christmas but preparing the meals has always been so stressful to me because I really don’t know how to cook great dishes. This recipe has built my confidence and I must say that it felt great to see our guests enjoying it and even asking the recipe for it. Thank you again from Arizona! 😊😊
Luisa says
Hello, I am thinking to cook this salmon but don’t have room in the oven. Would be ok to do it in a BBQ? Any tips
Nagi says
Hmm I worry about that honey butter sauce on the BBQ. What I would do is to cook the salmon on the barbie with just salt and pepper (oil the bbq and the salmon). Once cooked, brush with honey & garlic (mix it) and just briefly cook on low heat to caramelise the surface. Forget butter – it will burn on the bbq. You get extra flavour from the BBQ anyway so you won’t miss it! You could then pour melted butter/honey/garlic mixture on it if you want to soak it while it cools but it’s probably not necessary. N x
Luisa says
Thank you so much!!
Fran says
Hi Nagi, so excited to make this for Christmas Eve dinner… but quick question: flat or curly parsley?!?
Nagi says
Flat! But you could use Curley if you like the retro look 🙂 N x
Intan Nurjihan Yusuf says
Can’t wait to tryout this Christmas. What sides goes with this dish?
Nagi says
Hi Intan, if you head to my Christmas post – you’ll see a stack of sides perfect for Christmas 🙂 N x
Dionne M says
Can’t wait to try this recipe out on Christmas, this looks so delicious! 😋
Therese N says
Hi Nagi I accidentally bought Salmon with skin on one side, would this still be ok?
Or will it alter the cooking time?
I love your recipes by the way 🙂
Nagi says
Hi Therese, yes this recipe used skin on salmon – see the pictures and video 🙂 N x
Therese says
Fantastic!
Thanks Nagi 🙂
Have a great Christmas, stay safe and will let you know how the Salmon goes!
Sarah says
Absolutely DELICIOUS. Such a show stopper and everyone loved it
Pat says
Hi, this looks great but I am wondering if anyone has any suggestions of how to adapt for just 3 people? Certainly don’t need 1.2 -1.5kg of salmon and I don’t want to over cook anything.
Nagi says
Hi Pat! See Note 5 for smaller salmon fillets – either a smaller single piece, or fillets 🙂 N x
Catherine says
So excited to make this for Christmas. What sides do you recommend?
Nagi says
Hi Catherine – see my Christmas post for all my fabulous sides 🙂 N x
Vicki says
I am looking at this beautiful salmon for Christmas. What menu suggestions do you have?
Nagi says
Hi Vicki – I have a Christmas post that you can look through – it has a stack of Christmas menu suggestions! 🙂 N x
Alistair says
I made this today for our families early Christmas celebration, and it was amazing! A showstopper! Such a great recipe, thank you Nagi
Michelle says
Hi Nagi, this recipe looks gorgeous, I will be making it Christmas day, If I have a 2kg side of salmon do I need to cook it longer?
Nagi says
Hi Michelle, I’d just add another 5 minutes onto the bake time 🙂 Enjoy! N x