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TL;DR (Quick-Answer Box)
- What it is: Tender salmon fillets pressure-cooked in a rich Vietnamese caramel sauce with brown sugar, fish sauce, ginger, lime, and soy sauce. A stunning main dish.
- Why you’ll love it: Unbelievably fast, delivering rich, savory-sweet Asian flavor with a sticky glaze in just 15 minutes. It’s an effortless weeknight pressure cooker wonder.
- How to make it: Whisk and simmer sauce ingredients in the pressure cooker. Add the salmon and cook on low pressure for 1 minute. Remove fish, then use the sauté function to reduce the sauce until syrupy.
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Dinner in just 10 minutes? You betcha. For this spectacular yet almost effortless meal, salmon is pressure-cooked in a sweet and tangy Vietnamese-inspired caramel sauce.
Featured Review
OMG!!! This was so easy. We had a bunch of fresh halibut, it worked perfectly. Darn fish sauce is so pee-you stinky, then in a hot minute transforms into this luscious umami sauce. I will have to admit I was super skeptical, but then viola, we had a 5-star fish dish, that frankly my sautéed haricot verts were embarrassed! I gotta go shout from the roof top how absolutely YUMILICIOUS this fish is!! Do it! make it, you won’t regret it one bit!!! TY!
BBQgoddess
Recipe Testers’ Reviews
Did you know only 68% of the recipes we test make it onto the site? This recipe survived our rigorous blind testing process by multiple home cooks. It earned the Leite’s Culinaria stamp of approval—and the testers’ reviews below prove it.
I’ve tried to like my Instant Pot. I’ve tried soups and stews. Rice and beans. Meats. I’ve read tons of recipes. Blog posts. Magazine articles. There is an Instant Pot love fest happening around me but I’ve always been left scratching my head wondering why. Until now.
With my mind suitably blown by this Vietnamese caramel salmon, I’m finally feeling the love. The salmon was moist and beautifully flavored with the tangy caramel sauce and made a lovely meal served with steamed rice and a salad. Aside from a bit of measuring and a few stirs, there was no work involved as the Instant Pot did the rest.
My only issue was that when the Instant Pot reached pressure, it overheated and I had to turn it off. Despite this, the salmon was still perfectly cooked. Next time, I’ll double the sauce ingredients to hopefully prevent this from happening. Added bonus? More syrupy caramel to add to my steamed rice.
This Vietnamese caramel salmon is the perfect weeknight dinner–quick, easy and I had all the ingredients in my pantry. I served it with rice and an Asian cucumber salad. This received rave reviews and requests for this dish to be in our regular rotation of dinner ideas.
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If you make this recipe, or any dish on LC, consider leaving a review, a star rating, and your best photo in the comments below. I love hearing from you.–David
Pressure Cooker Vietnamese Caramel Salmon
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil, melted, or 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
- 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce or low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon grated peeled fresh ginger
- finely grated zest of 1 lime (about 2 teaspoons)
- juice of 1/2 lime (about 1 tablespoon)
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 4 (6-to 8-ounce) salmon fillets, preferably center-cut pieces
- sliced scallions, (white and light green parts), for garnish
- fresh cilantro leaves, for garnish
Instructions
- In your pressure cooker or Instant Pot, whisk together the 1 tablespoon coconut oil, 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar, 3 tablespoons Asian fish sauce, 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce or low-sodium soy sauce, 1 teaspoon grated peeled fresh ginger, finely grated zest of 1 lime (about 2 teaspoons), juice of 1/2 lime (about 1 tablespoon), and 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Use the sauté function to bring to a simmer and then turn off the heat.
- Place the 4 (6-to 8-ounce) salmon fillets in the pressure cooker, skin-side up (if there is skin still attached, that is). Spoon the sauce over the fish, cover, and cook on low pressure for 1 minute. Let the pressure release naturally for 5 minutes; then release the remaining pressure manually. Check the fish for doneness by cutting into a fillet. If you prefer your salmon more well-done, cook it for another minute or so using the sauté function.
- Carefully lift the salmon fillets onto a serving platter, flipping them over so the browned caramelized side is facing up. (The fillets may fall apart a little as you lift them out. That’s okay. They’ll still taste ridiculously lovely.)
- Use the sauté function to reduce the sauce until it’s thick and syrupy, about 3 minutes. Spoon the sauce over the salmon and garnish it with the sliced scallions and fresh cilantro leaves.
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Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Yahoo! Outstanding! I made a half batch of sauce with 3/4 pound Coho salmon filet. Perfect and so very tasty 😉 Thank you!
You’re so very welcome, Colleen! So pleased to hear you love this as much as we do!
I was afraid that my Instant Pot would not pressurize with the half batch of ingredients so I stayed nearby until I heard the float valve engage. About 8 minutes later I had the fillet sauced and served. 😉 Colleen
Wise to linger nearby! And great to know that it works with minimal ingredients–that information will help us as we test future Instant Pot recipes. Thank you!
Overall, I enjoyed making this Vietnamese caramel salmon in the pressure cooker. There was very little prep time and in the instant pot, cooking took little time as well. I enjoy the mixture of sweet, salty, and sour on this salmon and I love ginger.
While the final product was delicious, the sour part was a little muted, so an extra squeeze of lime at the end would have been even better.
Taking off the skin would have allowed more flavor to seep into the salmon because you only briefly spoon it onto that side before cooking. It might also be helpful to give a rough idea of the dimensions of an ideal portion of salmon.
This would be the perfect easy weeknight dinner served with a quick side of veggies and rice that feels both healthy and a little out of the ordinary. However, the fish sauce has a strong flavor and smell so for picky eaters, I’m thinking of my kids, this will be a hard sell.
Magnificent, Karima!
Does this recipe use fresh or frozen salmon?
Christina, we tested it with fresh salmon. You could probably use thawed frozen salmon although the texture may be slightly compromised. The taste, however, will be the same!