The best Salmon Marinade for grilled salmon or baked salmon. This easy salmon marinade recipe requires only a handful of ingredients and results in the most flavorful, delicious salmon. 

Two cooked salmon filets on a white plate with mango salsa on top.

If youโ€™re a salmon lover and are looking for a delicious marinade to inject flavor into the fish, this simple marinade is the ultimate go-to.

For me, a piece of perfectly cooked salmon is my idea of the ultimate dreamy main dish.

It provides savory richness, a little tangy flavor and a touch of sweetness for a full palate experience.

With five simple ingredients, the finished product is the best salmon marinade that wins every time. You can even use it on chicken, pork, steak, and other types of fish!

This recipe makes enough to marinate one and a half to two pounds of fish. You can easily double or triple it if youโ€™re cooking fish for a lot of people. 

Two raw salmon filets in a zip lock bag with marinade.

Letโ€™s discuss the five simple ingredients.

Ingredients for The Best Salmon Marinade:

Liquid Aminos or Soy Sauce: Bringing umami flavor to the marinade, liquid aminos or soy sauce goes a long way in injecting flavor into any animal protein.

Because there is a decent amount of sodium in this ingredient, there is no need to add more salt to the marinade. The salt content of liquid aminos or soy sauce helps to tenderize the salmon and enhance its flavor.

Rice Vinegar: Vinegar brings a little acidic bite for the sour portion of the marinade. You can replace it with apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, or lime juice.

Pure Maple Syrup: Adding a touch of sweetness makes the best salmon marinade. It doesnโ€™t take much to bring a fullness to the recipe for a complete palatable experience.

You can replace the pure maple syrup with brown sugar or regular cane sugar. I donโ€™t recommend replacing it with honey because honey burns at a low temperature, which makes the salmon get too dark too quickly.

Avocado Oil or Olive Oil: A little avocado oil or olive oil brings richness to the marinade and also helps protect the salmon during the cooking process so that it stays nice and juicy.

Garlic Powder: While you can absolutely use fresh garlic cloves in this delicious marinade, I like using garlic powder because it ensures the garlic flavor runs deep throughout the marinade so that the full filet gets plenty of garlicky goodness.

The combination of all of these ingredients yields a sweet, tangy, savory marinade that covers all the flavor bases. 

This simple marinade is so delicious, it can be used on chicken, pork, or any type of fish. You can even use it as a steak marinade.

Salmon: You will also need fresh salmon. You can purchase individual fresh salmon fillets or a large salmon fillet. I love wild salmon, but any type of salmon will work. If you use frozen salmon, be sure to thaw it completely before marinating it.

Top down photo of a black bowl of salmon, rice, and vegetables with chop sticks to the side and green onion sprinkled on top of the food with a blue napkin to the side.

โ€‹Here are some different ways you can customize the marinade to make it your own.

Recipe Adaptations:

  • Substitute coconut aminos for the liquid aminos for a soy-free version.
  • Add 1/2 cup of orange juice to the marinade for citrus flavor
  • If you have fresh herbs on hand, feel free to add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of finely chopped herbs. 
  • Add 1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes or 1 to 2 tablespoons of sriracha for a spicier marinade.
  • If you love black pepper, add 1/4 teaspoon to the marinade.
  • Feel free to add any salmon seasoning you typically use (such as a spice blend or lemon pepper) to the marinade. 
  • Add 1/2 teaspoon, up to 1 tablespoon of dried herbs. 

Now that we’re familiar with the fresh ingredients, let’s make it!

How to Make The Best Salmon Marinade:

Add all of the ingredients for the salmon marinade to a small bowl or measuring cup and whisk well until combined.

Ingredients for salmon marinade in a measuring cup, ready to be used.

If you own a small blender such as a Magic Bullet or a NutriBullet, feel free to use it to blend the marinade.

Marinade blended up in a blender

Use the marinade on 1 to 1.5 pounds of salmon. You can easily double, triple, or quadruple the marinade depending on how much fish youโ€™re cooking.

How to Marinate Salmon:

After preparing the salmon marinade, transfer the raw salmon and 1/3 cup of marinade for every one pound of fish to a large zip lock bag. I use a 1-gallon zip lock.

If you’re making two pounds of fish, you’ll use all of the marinade and if you’re making one pound of fish, use half of the marinade.

Two filets of fish in a zip lock bag with marinade to be marinated.

Seal the zip lock bag, removing any excess air before sealing.

Transfer the marinated salmon to the refrigerator. How long to marinate salmon is up to how much time you have and how much flavor you’re looking for.

I find 1 to 3 hours to be the optimal time to marinate salmon.

Two salmon filets in a zip lock bag with marinade.

For the best results, marinate salmon for 1 hour or longer. At a bare minimum, marinate salmon for 15 minutes.

You can have salmon marinating up to 12 hours, although for the best results, be sure to cook the salmon 12 hours or less after marinating.

How to Cook Marinated Salmon:

Here are some methods you can use for cooking salmon. Pick your preferred method for the perfect salmon! You can simply follow the instructions in these posts (don’t season the salmon with more ingredients).

Oven Instructions:

My personal favorite way for cooking marinated fish is broiling it in the oven. I also think oven-baked salmon is the easiest way because you can simply transfer the salmon with the marinade to a baking dish, without having to separate the marinade.

To do so, place your oven on the High Broil setting and transfer the marinated salmon with all the marinade to an oven-safe casserole dish or baking sheet.

Salmon filets with marinade in a baking dish.

Broil on one of the racks thatโ€™s close to the top (but not the top rack) for 10 minutes, or until the salmon reaches an internal temperature of 125 degrees F or higher.

Skillet Instructions:

For pan-seared salmon, heat a large skillet to medium high heat and add enough cooking oil (such as a little olive oil, avocado oil, or vegetable oil) to generously coat the surface. Give the skillet a few minutes to become sizzling hot.

Remove the salmon from the marinade and pat it dry with a paper towel. 

Place salmon skin side down on the hot skillet and cook for 4 to 6 minutes.

Carefully flip to the other side and cook for another 4 to 6 minutes, or until salmon has cooked through.

Most salmon filets will need about 10-12 minutes total on a skillet.

salmon filets cooking in a cast iron skillet

Final Cooking Temperature For Salmon:

The FDA considers the safest internal temperature of salmon to be 145 degrees Fahrenheit, but many people cook it to 125 to 135 for perfectly juicy salmon.

To check the internal temperature, insert an instant read thermometer into the thickest part of the salmon filet and wait until the numbers stop moving.

The exact cooking time varies depending on the thickness of the fish and its temperature before you begin cooking it.

Close up of two salmon filets with mango salsa.

Top your delicious salmon with Mango Avocado Salsa or Corn Salsa!

If you love making homemade marinades, also try my Best Steak Marinade. 

The only salmon marinade youโ€™ll ever need, letโ€™s go!

Two cooked salmon filets on a white plate with mango salsa on top.

The Best Salmon Marinade

4.62 from 18 votes
The only salmon marinade you'll ever need! This simple recipe is perfect for any type of fish or chicken. Amazing for grilled salmon or baked salmon!
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 0 minutes
Total Time 5 minutes
Servings: 2 /3 cup of marinade

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Add all of the ingredients for the salmon marinade to a small bowl or measuring cup and whisk well until combined. If you own a small blender such as a Magic Bullet or a NutriBullet, feel free to use it to blend the marinade.
  • Use the marinade on 1 to 2 pounds of salmon. You can easily double, triple, or quadruple the marinade depending on how much fish youโ€™re cooking.
  • After preparing the salmon marinade, transfer the raw salmon and 1/3 cup of marinade for every one pound of fish to a large zip lock bag. I use a 1-gallon zip lock. If you’re making two pounds of fish, you’ll use all of the marinade and if you’re making one pound of fish, use half of the marinade. Seal the zip lock bag, removing any excess air before sealing.
  • Transfer the marinated salmon to the refrigerator. How long to marinate salmon is up to how much time you have and how much flavor you’re looking for. I find 1 to 3 hours to be the optimal time to marinate salmon. For the best results, marinate salmon for 1 hour or longer. At a bare minimum, marinate salmon for 15 minutes. You can have salmon marinating up to 12 hours, although for the best results, be sure to cook the salmon 12 hours or less after marinating.
  • Prepare the salmon using your favorite cooking method. See blog post above for grilling, baking searing, air frying, and more!

Notes

For a soy-free version, use coconut aminos instead of liquid aminos or soy sauce. If you go this route, there is no need to add pure maple syrup because coconut aminos is naturally very sweet already.
Use apple cider vinegar instead of rice vinegar if you prefer.
Olive oil or vegetable oil work as a replacement for avocado oil.
Substutute brown sugar for the pure maple syrup if you'd like.

Nutrition

Serving: 1/3 cup ยท Calories: 190kcal ยท Carbohydrates: 17g ยท Protein: 4g ยท Fat: 14g ยท Saturated Fat: 2g ยท Polyunsaturated Fat: 10g ยท Sodium: 1898mg ยท Sugar: 13g
Author: Julia
Course: Salsas, Sauces, Spreads, Dips, & Dressings
Cuisine: American
Keyword: chicken marinade, easy salmon marinade, marinade for salmon, the best marinade, the best salmon marinade
Did You Make This Recipe?I want to see it! Tag @the.roasted.root on social media!

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Julia Mueller
Meet the Author

Julia Mueller

Julia Mueller is a recipe developer, cookbook author, and founder of The Roasted Root. She has authored three bestselling cookbooks, – Paleo Power Powers, Delicious Probiotic Drinks, and The Quintessential Kale Cookbook. Her recipes have been featured in several national publications such as BuzzFeed, Self, Tasty, Country Living, Brit.co, etc.

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