Baked Salmon Fillet With Herb Crust

Baked Salmon Fillet With Herb Crust

A succulent baked salmon fillet, when prepared well, can please the most discerning palate as a fish of choice. Preparation and cooking method will determine how well your salmon fillet will turn out and be received by your guests.

If you need an idea for a quick and easy seafood dinner for your guests, this recipe is for you. Although salmon fillet can be expensive, buying a large cut of fillet is the most economical way to go, yielding enough to serve a small group.

Here's why serving baked salmon, paired with brown rice and steamed broccoli, is a win-win for you and your guests:

• Easy recipe
• Quick preparation
• Ready in under 30 minutes
• Healthy and delicious
• Pairing with broccoli and brown rice increases the nutritional value of the meal

Ingredients

• About 2-1/2 to 3 lbs whole salmon fillet, farmed or wild, scaled if skin on
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 2 teaspoons Spike-Vegit Low-Sodium All-Purpose Seasoning
• 1 to 2 teaspoons McCormick's All-Purpose Salt-Free Seasoning
• 1/4 envelope Sazon (without annato)
• Less than 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• Less than 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon thyme leaves
• Dash sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon dill weed
• Several squirts ReaLemon juice, for rinsing salmon
• Pam cooking spray, for baking

Cook Time

Preparing and Cooking

1. After scaling the fish (or buy without scales), rinse the fish thoroughly with water, then lemon juice. Rinse again and pat dry with paper towels. Salmon with skin on increases nutritional value and adds to crisper edges and flavor. Add a few more minutes to cook time for skin-on salmon. Coat 12-inch shallow glass baking dish with cooking spray. Lay fillet onto dish. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. Sprinkle fillet generously with garlic powder, sea salt, Sazon, Vegit, ginger, cayenne pepper, and black pepper, shaking evenly over entire fillet. Adjust seasonings to your taste, particularly sodium.
3. Season next with thyme leaves and McCormick's seasoning evenly over entire fillet. Shake dill weed down the center of the fillet. Spray entire fillet generously with squirts of butter spray, covering well.
4. Place salmon in preheated oven for 20 minutes (high heat and short cook time are the keys to preparing a juicy, tender salmon). Change setting to broil and add another 5 minutes to quickly brown and "crust" the salmon. Remove carefully from oven as salmon should be very hot and bubbly. Cut into 4-ounce servings (about 2-inches wide). Serve with steamed broccoli and brown rice (Uncle Ben's Instant Brown Rice is quick and very tasty).

Health Benefits and Nutritional Value

Salmon is one of the healthiest choices you can make when it comes to seafood. Brimming with omega-3 fatty acids, its nutritional value is far superior to most other fish. However, depending on your choice of farm-raised or wild salmon, nutritional value is debatable. This is primarily due to environmental differences between the two.

Controversial dietary and environmental influences affect the nutritional value of farm-raised salmon. The Environmental Protection Agency recommends eating less than 8 ounces of farm-raised salmon per month. In the end, most nutritionists would concede that, added to a regular diet, both farm-raised and wild salmon have the following health benefits and nutritional values:

Health Benefits:

• Anti-inflammatory properties
• Enhanced cognitive functioning
• Lowered risk of several types of cancer
• Increased eye health
• Decreased levels of cardiovascular disease
• Increased hair and skin health

Nutritional Value:

• Low in calories and fat
• High in protein and amino acids
• Very high in omega-3 fatty acids (aka essential fatty acids)
• High in Vitamin D (a 4oz serving contains the RDA of VitD, particularly wild)
• Vitamins B6 and B12
• Selenium, Niacin, Phosphorus, and Magnesium

Five Favorite Salmon Preparations

Baked Salmon as a Healthy Seafood Dinner

Information Source on Health Benefits

• Salmon Nutrition Health Benefits Cooking Salmon Farmed vs Wild
  Nutrition and health benefits of salmon, as well as issues around farmed vs wild salmon, how to prepare salmon, and salmon recipes.

© 2012 Janis Leslie Evans