Salmon on Cast Iron
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Cooking salmon on a cast iron skillet gives you that epic golden crust while keeping everything tender and flaky inside. With just a few simple tips, you’ll have crispy skin salmon better than any overpriced restaurant. And bonus: it’s ready in like 10 minutes flat.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 600 g (1 ½ lb) salmon skin-on , approx. 4 fillets, see note 1
- 2 tablespoon salt
- 2 tablespoon neutral oil, e.g. vegetable, canola, see note 2
Instructions
Prepare
- 30 minutes before cooking - Take the 600 g (1 ½ lb) salmon skin-on out of the fridge. I like to put it skin side down on a paper towel so it starts to dry the skin out.
- 10 minutes before cooking - Heat your cast iron pan over medium-high.
- Pat the skin side of the salmon completely dry with paper towels.
- Rub the skin with 2 tbsp salt. Add 2 tbsp neutral oil to the pan and check to see if it's hot enough by flicking water on it (if it evaporates and sizzles, it's ready)
Cook
- Place the salmon fillet skin side down in the hot pan. Once it's on, don't move it. The cast iron will "hold" onto the skin while it begins to cook so you'll end up ripping it. In a couple of minutes, you'll be able to move it.
- Cook until you see the color change up the side of the salmon (it'll start turning lighter in colour). This will take about 5 minutes (depending on thickness).
- Flip the fillets so they're flesh side down for 2 minutes. If you have quite thick pieces, I also like to sear the sides for approx. 1 minute. Turn stove off.
- Flip the salmon back to skin side down, place a lid on (this will help continue to cook the inside without drying it out) and let it cook for another 1-2 minutes.
- Serve immediately
Video
Notes
Note 1 - Salmon
When you're picking out salmon for this, you want fresh salmon fillets with the skin on — that’s how you’ll get that crispy skin.
Make sure the salmon looks glossy, smells fresh (not fishy!), and has the pin bones removed. Always double-check though — sometimes a rogue pin bone sneaks in and nobody wants to wrestle with that mid-bite.
You can use frozen salmon, but I find it just doesn't quite hit the spot. Although, if you do use frozen, make sure to thaw in the fridge overnight and follow all of my tips to get the perfect result.
Note 2 - Oil
A neutral, high heat oil is best (e.g. vegetable or canola). I have used extra virgin olive oil before (but it doesn't have quite as high heat point). It still works well, but it causes a lot more kitchen smoke.
Serve with
Serve with a variety of salads like BBQ Mediterranean Vegetable Salad, Air Fryer Potato Salad or Roasted Cauliflower, Pumpkin and Chickpea Salad.
You can also serve with vegetables of your choice and some grains like potatoes, pasta, Rice or Focaccia
Storing
Store cooked salmon in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Reheating
To bring back the crispy skin, reheat salmon skin side down with the lid on for approx. 5 minutes — this also helps cut down on any fishy smell.
You can also reheat in the microwave for approx. 2 minutes. But, the skin won't be as crispy.
Nutrition
Serving: 1filletCalories: 213kcalProtein: 30gFat: 10gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4gMonounsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 83mgSodium: 66mgPotassium: 735mgVitamin A: 60IUCalcium: 18mgIron: 1mg
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