Easy Baked Salmon with Mango Salsa

This recipe for salmon with mango salsa will be a hit in your house! A simple oven-roasted salmon with fresh lemon and butter will cook while you put together a deliciously sweet mango salsa. Dinner is served!

This oven baked salmon is such an easy way to get a healthy meal on the table, even on a busy weeknight.

This was inspired by this Yummy Mango Salsa on my site because it was calling for out for a simple slice of delicious salmon to go with it.

Ingredients

Ingredients for the salmon

• Salmon filets
• Unsalted butter
• Lemon
• Salt and pepper

See the recipe card below for quantities and instructions.

Ingredients for the mango salsa

• Frozen mango chunks (or fresh mango)
• Red pepper
• Red onion
• Jalapeno
• Cilantro
• Lime
• Kosher salt

Quantities in the recipe card below.

Go here for the the complete instructions and tips for making the mango salsa.

Instructions

To bake the salmon in the oven, here's what you'll do:

• Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F
• Place the salmon filets on to pieces of tinfoil on a baking tray
• Season the salmon with salt
• Add 1-2 small pats of butter to each filet and cover the top with thin lemon slices
• Wrap up the tinfoil around the fish to create a little pouch
• Bake in the oven for 11-13 minutes

See the recipe card below for detailed instructions.

While the salmon bakes, make the mango salsa:

• Dice the mango, red pepper, red onion, jalapeno and cilantro
• Toss all the ingredients in a bowl to combine
• Top with the juice from 1 lime and the salt. Stir and keep in the fridge until the salmon is ready

Equipment

All you'll need for this recipe is a baking sheet to put the salmon on to.

Wrapping them in tinfoil helps to seal in moisture and flavour.

This is especially important if your fillets are on the smaller side or don't have the skin on them.

Storage

Store any leftover cooked salmon in the fridge. It will be good for up to 2 days.

If you need to use up baked salmon, warm it up with some scrambled eggs the next morning - delicious!😋

For the mango salsa, an unused mango salsa can be kept in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Here are some things to serve with leftover mango salsa:

• Grilled chicken breasts - see this recipe for Cast Iron Skillet Chicken Breast that would be perfect
• Shrimp - this Sweet and Spicy Shrimp brings some heat, a great pairing for sweet and cooling mango
• Pork chops - yep! Pork isn't just great with apples and applesauce. Mango (or other fruit) also bring sweetness to balance the heartiness of the pork
• Fish tacos
• Fish quesadillas - along the same line as the tacos, these Simple Haddock Quesadillas would welcome the freshness from the fruit salsa
• Grilled halloumi - like this Grilled Halloumi Salad with Tomato and Parsley
• Shrimp tacos - 'nuff said🌮
• Tuna steaks - a "meaty" protein like a tuna steak is a perfect contrast to the light and sweet salsa

Top tips

Using frozen salmon

If you have frozen salmon filets, take them out the night before and let them thaw out in the fridge for the best results.

Be sure to pat them dry with paper towel before you season them.

Don't overcook the salmon!

It can be easy to do, especially if your filets are small - say under 4 oz (around the size of a deck of cards.)

But adding a little butter and wrapping them in tinfoil helps to lock moisture in.

If you're looking for an awesome guide on all things cooking salmon, check out this guide from New York Times Cooking.

How to know when the salmon is done

To know when your salmon is done baking, you can either:

• Check the internal temperature with a good instant read thermometer. The salmon is done when it reads 145 degrees F. This has to be in the thickest part of the fish
• Or, you can test for doneness using the "fork method": when the salmon flakes easily with a fork, in the thickest part of the salmon, it's done

Make the salsa the day before

The mango salsa is actually better when it sits for a little bit.

So if you're looking ahead, make the mango salsa the day before and keep it in the fridge overnight.

Take it out of the fridge once you put the salmon in oven. That way, you take the chill off the salsa before you put in onto the cooked salmon.

What to serve with salmon

First, I will say I also love to keep it simple.

Lightly steamed veggies - like broccoli or green beans, and steamed basmati rice are my favourite things to serve with salmon.

It keeps it easy, delicious and gluten-free. And not to mention healthy!

If you want more ideas for a side dish to go with this mango salsa and salmon, check out this post: What to Serve with Salmon (10 delicious side dishes)

Hope you love this recipe for salmon for mango salsa!

~April

📖 Recipe