Baked Salmon with Garlic Butter- Butter & Baggage

Name: Baked Salmon with Garlic Butter
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 15 min
Ingredients: ½ cup butter (softened); 8 anchovy fillets (minced); 2 large cloves garlic (minced); salt and pepper; 6 skin-on salmon fillets (4-6 oz each fillet); 2 tablespoons capers (drained and patted dry); lemon (optional)

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For an easy and scrumptious meal, try Baked Salmon with Garlic Butter. Anchovies and capers put this dish over the top. A super easy method for company worthy salmon with a sauce that you’ll love.

A skillet of salmon fillets with a spatula and a lemon.

We had friends over for dinner the other night, and while the guys wanted to grill ribs, I wanted fish, so we went with surf and turf. I made my favorite ribs that were falling off the bone by the time I gave them to Mike to put on the grill.

A platter of slow cooker ribs with a napkin and prongs — *Slow Cooker Ribs*

While they were wonderful, I thought the star of the evening was this baked salmon with garlic butter infused with anchovies. Don’t turn your nose up when you hear anchovies, these add so much flavor to a dish without making it fishy.

That unique salty briny flavor makes any dish a little bit better. It’s one of the main ingredients in Worcestershire sauce. If you’re not a fan, then try salmon with citrus or salmon with herbed butter.

I didn’t tell our friends what was in the sauce and they had a hard time guessing. The first time I made this, I was almost licking the pan to get the last of the anchovy flavored butter, it’s that good. Best to serve this with some dinner rolls to sop up the extra sauce.

A lemon being squeezed over a skillet of salmon.

Along with anchovies, the garlic butter blend is the perfect combination with salmon. Not only is the flavor amazing, but the cooking method results in perfectly flaked and not overdone fish.

You’ll start the fish out on the stove and then move it to the oven. Just one pan and it’s ready in less than 15 minutes.

Tired of salmon, try serving a seafood boil at your next dinner party or a bit pot of mussels.

Why you’ll love it

Love em or hate em, you’ll love the flavor anchovies add to the butter sauce.
Perfectly cooked salmon every time.
Dinner in less than 15 minutes!

What you’ll need

Ingredients for baked salmon with anchovy and garlic butter.

Butter
Anchovy fillets – salt cured and stored in oil, these come in a jar. Not sure which brand is best, check this out for a discussion on all the varieties of anchovies to choose from. .
Garlic cloves
Salt and pepper
Skin-on salmon fillets
Capers
Lemon

How to make baked salmon with garlic butter and anchovies

Step 1

Preheat oven to 300º.

Step 2

In a small bowl, combine butter, anchovies, garlic, salt and pepper.

A glass bowl with butter, anchovies, and garlic.

Pro tip: Use salt-cured anchovies stored in olive oil for this recipe

Step 3

Melt about half of the anchovy butter in an ovenproof skillet. Add fish, skin side down and cook over high heat for 3 minutes to brown the skin. Spoon pan drippings over the top of the fish as it cooks. Add capers and place in the oven. Cook for 8-10 minutes or until thermometer reads 115º to 120º.

A skillet of salmon covered with butter and capers.

Step 4

Remove from the pan and add remaining the remaining butter to the pan spooning it over the fish. Squeeze lemon over the top before serving.

Even though I made two entree’s, both were so easy that it didn’t take hardly any time at all. I decided I would just throw some apples on the grill for dessert while we ate.

However, I forgot to turn the grill down and then forgot about them while talking over dinner. When I finally remembered them, they were black! Oh well, we just had ice cream instead.

FAQs and tips

How do you know when salmon is cooked safely?

When cooking salmon, use a meat thermometer and bake until it is around 120º and not overdone, or you can use a fork to make sure it’s no longer translucent.

Are anchovies good for you?

Anchovies are rich in vitamins and minerals. Best known for being a source of omega-3 fatty acids, which are thought to offer brain and heart health.

Can you substitute sardines for anchovies?

Sardines are larger than anchovies with a white flesh and a less intense flavor than the anchovies offer so it will not add the same flavor. Anchovies are known for a umami-rich flavor. You’re better off just leaving out the anchovies and using garlic and capers.

MORE dinner ideas

Adapted from NY Times Melissa Clark