Pesto Salmon

Are you in need of a quick and flavorful dinner idea? Look no further than this pesto salmon recipe! It's so easy to prepare and only takes 4 ingredients to make and less than 30 minutes from start to finish making this the perfect weeknight dinner for your busy family.  

Jump to:

• 🛒 Ingredients
• 📖 Instructions
• 👩🏼‍🍳 Chef Tip
• 🍃 Making Pesto Butter
• 🔥 Cooking Your Salmon
• 🍽 Serving
• 🥗 Sides
• 📖 Recipe

🛒 Ingredients

• Salmon 
• Pesto
• Butter - Softened
• Kosher salt
• Fresh ground pepper
• Lemon

📖 Instructions

The full recipe is listed below, but here are some extra notes and details for anyone who's reading this post. We appreciate you 😉

We prefer fresh salmon in this recipe because it has the best flavor and texture. It will have a firmer texture that holds up well when cooking and doesn't easily fall apart. However, if you are using frozen just be sure to thoroughly dry your salmon before seasoning it with your kosher salt & fresh ground pepper. 

You'll want to preheat your oven to 425 degrees. While our oven is preheating, in a small bowl mix together pesto & softened butter and set it aside. Boom. Pesto butter.

Lay out your salmon on a foil or parchment-lined sheet tray. Gentle run your hand overtop of your salmon, making sure the butcher didn't leave any rouge bones behind.

Season with kosher salt & fresh ground pepper. Evenly spread your pesto butter mixture over the top of your salmon.

Move your salmon over to the oven for 10-12 minutes keeping in mind that the thicker pieces can take longer.

For a crispier top, carefully broil for 30 seconds. Keeping your eyes on it the whole time so as to not accidentally burn!

👩🏼‍🍳 Chef Tip

As mentioned above, make sure you check your salmon for any small bones that may have been missed. You can easily do this by running your hand over the top of the fish and feeling for any hard, needle-like bones. If you find one, no worries! You can easily remove it with tweezers. 

🍃 Making Pesto Butter

This pesto salmon recipe was designed to be a quick weeknight dinner option, so we opted for a store-bought pesto. Plus, with the cost of fresh basil and pinenut being exceptionally high right now ($6.99 for a 2 oz jar of pinenuts), I'll double down on our recommendation to source a quality pre-made option. 

Here at Tabetha's Table, we are obsessed with the Costco brand. The flavor is amazing, and the value per dollar is high ($10 for this 22oz jar). Far better than almost any store brand we've found AND it tastes better! 

The spread used for this pesto salmon is a combination of pesto & softened butter. We found that a 1:1 ratio of pesto & softened butter was the perfect mixture. However, if you are looking to cut down on calories, you could cut back on the butter if needed. 

🔥 Cooking Your Salmon

One of the best parts of this recipe is there is very little work that goes into actually cooking your salmon. Simply set your oven to 425 degrees and bake for 10-12 minutes depending on the thickness of your salmon. We've also found finishing with a very quick (literally 30 seconds) broil gives it that perfect browned color that also sneaks in big flavor as well. 

🍽 Serving

Serve the salmon hot, garnished with additional parmesan & a squeeze of lemon, if desired. It's the perfect dinner to enjoy on a warm summer evening but is delicious any time of year.

Not a fan of salmon? No problem! This pesto sauce would also be delicious on chicken, pork, or even mixed into pasta. The possibilities are endless. Give this recipe a try and let us know what you think in the comments below. We hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

🥗 Sides

While the world is your oyster here, we recommend pairing this dish with something like our parmesan mashed potatoes or our spicy balsamic Brussels recipes. You could also serve this alongside a side salad to keep it easy! Either way, enjoy!

📖 Recipe