Garlic Butter Salmon with Mashed Potato

This Lemon Garlic Butter Salmon dish is an easy and filling clean eating midweek meal. On the table in around 20 minutes, the crispy pan fried salmon sits atop creamy mashed potato with a tangy garlic sauce that is very moreish.  It’s the perfect dinner for two.

Why You Should Make This Recipe

• Make it in around 20 minutes
• Its a great recipe to make for date night since it serves 2
• It’s quick and fresh and full of good healthy omega 3 fats
• There’s no unusual or hard to get ingredients.
• You can use frozen or fresh salmon just like in this Lemon Garlic Salmon Potato Bake
• All the sauce ingredients are pantry staples
• Use whatever veges you have on hand. 

How to Cook Perfect Pan Fried Salmon Every Time

The trick is to make sure the salmon is dry before you put it into a very hot frypan or skillet.  I generally pat the salmon dry with some kitchen/paper towel to get rid of any excess moisture so that when it hits the pan I get the instant sizzle!

Skin on, or skin off, it doesn’t really matter.  Making sure you’ve patted it dry both sides will work both ways to create that nice golden crust on the outside.  For that bit of extra crispiness, lightly salt the fish both sides before putting it in the pan.

I love cooking salmon and include it once or twice a week as part of my dinner meals, with some of my favorites being Teriyaki Salmon Bowls, Asian Glazed Salmon with Mango Salsa, and Salmon Noodles.

I recommend that you don’t turn the salmon once it’s in the pan.  Cover it with a lid and let it cook for around 4 minutes, then remove the lid, flip it and cook again with lid on for another 3 or so minutes.

TIP:  For the ultimate crisp, after salmon has cooked top and bottom, I turn it onto the side to cook it (with lid off) so that it has a nice crust all over.  Be careful to watch monitor it as this could have a tendency to dry it out too much if you over do it.

How To Make Healthy Creamy Mashed Potatoes

I like to keep it simple and stick to the basics of potato + a little butter and a few drizzles of milk.  And a pinch of salt and pepper if you like. Russet Potatoes are perfect for smooth mashed potato.

I find a ratio of equal parts butter to milk makes for a good consistency, not to clumpy and not to runny and make sure to use a potato masher. 

To make these mashed potatoes healthier, use low-fat milk or unsweetened almond milk instead of whole milk or cream, and limit the use of butter or olive oil. This reduces the overall fat content while maintaining a creamy texture.

Variations and Substitutions

• Instead of salmon, try this recipe with lean chicken or turkey breast.
• Instead of white mashed potato, try it with sweet potato.
• If you love white mashed potato, add some cooked shredded cabbage and lemon pepper to the mash. This is once of my favourite ways to mix up a boring mash.
• Instead of beans, try another green vegetable like broccoli, snow peas, even bok choi or baby spinach.
• If you don’t have Dijon mustard, you could use wholegrain mustard.
• Dried Dill and Dried Chives could be substituted with Basil and Oregano, or Thyme and Oregano.

In terms of a healthy and filling easy and quick midweek dinner, this Lemon Garlic Butter Salmon is hard to beat.  It has classic flavours, yet looks and tastes impressive, even though you haven’t spent a lot of time in the kitchen.  If you’re not into freezer meals or batch cooking, this is a healthy made from scratch dinner you need to put on your meal plan this week. Or why not check out these Healthy Salmon Burgers for a quick and easy weeknight dinner.