Salmon Teriyaki
This easy salmon teriyaki gets back to its Japanese roots—supple salmon that’s medium-rare with crisp skin bathed in a slightly sweet and salty glaze that enhances, not overwhelms, the flavor of the fish. Rest assured, this recipe keeps the sweetness of the teriyaki firmly in check.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon mirin
- 1 1/2 teaspoons sake
- Four (6-ounce) skin-on salmon fillets (about 3/4-inch or 18-mm thick)
- 1 tablespoon mild vegetable oil
Instructions
- In a small bowl, stir together the soy sauce, sugar, mirin, and sake until the sugar dissolves.
- Run your fingers over the flesh side of the salmon fillets to check for pin bones, removing them with your fingers, kitchen tweezers, or needle-nose pliers (if you snuck the pliers out of your toolbox in the garage, give them a good cleaning first!). Or, even easier, before your fishmonger wraps up your purchase ask him or her to please remove the pin bones for you.
- Pat the salmon dry with paper towels. Arrange the salmon in a single layer in a smallish baking dish. Pour the marinade over the salmon and turn the fillets to coat them. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Place a large, wide skillet or saucepan on the stove over medium heat and add the oil. When the oil is shimmering but not smoking, carefully remove the fillets from the marinade, allowing any excess to drip off, and place the fillets in the pan, skin side down. Reserve the marinade.
- Cook the salmon until the skin is golden brown and crisp, about 3 minutes. Using a long, thin, flexible spatula, carefully flip the fillets and cook until the top of the salmon is light brown and the middle is slightly translucent for medium-rare, about 2 minutes more. If you notice the glaze on the fillets starting to burn, reduce the heat to medium-low.
- Pour the reserved marinade over the salmon fillets and gently shake the pan to distribute the sauce evenly. Cook until the sauce is reduced to a syrup and the salmon is cooked to the desired degree of doneness, 1 to 2 minutes more if you like it just a little rare in the center of the thickest portion of the fillet.
- Transfer the salmon to individual plates and spoon the sauce over the top. Serve hot, preferably with some rice to soak up that exquisite yet easy pan sauce.
Nutrition
Serving: 1portion | Calories: 301kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 35g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.02g | Cholesterol: 94mg | Sodium: 681mg | Fiber: 0.1g | Sugar: 4g