Panko crusted salmon with dill, mayonnaise, and lemons. The best baked salmon you will ever taste with a few simple ingredients.
This post is all about Panko-crusted Baked Salmon. Made with a Mediterranean mayonnaise sauce with lemon, mayonnaise, and lemon topped with crunchy panko flakes.
Hard to imagine the best tasting baked salmon you'll have only required a few ingredients. Mediterranean inspired, you'll absolutely love this salmon because it is fresh tasting, and no ingredients to overpower the great taste of salmon!
I've been using the recipe for a very very long time. I've done teriyaki chicken, salmon with a butter creamy mushroom sauce, and even fish and chip version with salmon! They were all amazing, but our family still comes back to this Panko Crusted Baked Salmon because it tastes great, it's healthy and so simple!
There's something special about dill and salmon. These two ingredients pair so well together. My kids rarely like the taste of dill of its own, but they absolutely adore this recipe!
You have to try this recipe! Easy ingredients to find and even easier cooking time when it is baked in the oven. You can quickly make a gourmet salmon within a few minutes!
It's crunchy, savoury, and citrusy. Great for the summer since salmon is more widely available and the citrus flavour really brings out summer vibes.
What is Panko?
Panko is a Japanese type of breadcrumb made only with dried white bread and no crust. It is not fried, but baked with an electric current. They are super duper crunchy and a staple in Japanese deep frying cuisine. They use it a lot as the final ingredients to roll food into before it goes into the deep fryer.
Whenever I can, I always choose panko over breadcrumbs. They have a cracker-like, crispiness to them that breadcrumbs can't mimic. And the taste is similar to fried food.
Salmon Fillet
The type of Fresh Salmon I normally buy is the salmon with the skin on. I like to eat salmon with the skin because when the fish is baking in the oven, the skin at the bottom of the pan gets crispy and chewy.
Dill
Both fresh and dried dill works for this recipe. For dried dill use only 2 tsp for the recipe. For fresh, use 1/4 cup. Dried dill is stronger in taste than fresh.
Why You Will like this recipe
- Delicious! It’s smooth, silky, and flakey on the inside with hints of lemon and dill flavour, and the outside is super crunchy and moist from the panko and mayonnaise.
- Summer dish: summer flavours are here! Fresh lemon with salmon is my favourite smell and taste of summer!
- Easy to make: whip the sauce together, marinate it on top of the fish, and put it in the oven. It’s really that simple!
- Minimal clean-up: that’s right, you’re not stuck with piles of dishes or spoons to wash!
- Healthy: the salmon is steamed in its juice with some lemon, dill, and mayonnaise while it is being baked in the oven. There’s no excessive fat like butter or deep frying with lots of oil.
Fool-Proof Professional Tip
Pro Tip #1: run a finger along the spine of the salmon
Sometimes not all fish mongers are perfect at filleting fish. Running a finger along the spine of the fillet can help detect if there’s a bone stuck in the flesh. Trust me, you’ll feel it if you run across one.
Pro Tip #2: salt the fish
Before you gather the marinate together and slather it on the salmon, best you marinate the fillet with some salt first. This way the fish will absorb some of the salt and penetrate some flavours into the fish before the mayonnaise sauce.
Pro Tip #3: Trade Mayo for Natural Yogurt
You can lower the calories of this dish by trading mayonnaise with yogurt. It will still come out tasty and unbelievable crunchy.
Pro Tip #4: Steam veggies
Before you put the salmon in the oven, boil some vegetables for 5 minutes. Drain them and toss them on the side of the baking sheet with the salmon. Once the juice and sauce start to melt in the oven, the vegetables will soak up the sauce while it gets crunchy in the oven.
And on top of everything, you get some crunchy vegetables to go along with the baked salmon.
Food that goes well with this Crunch Baked Salmon with Panko Crust:
- Baked potatoes: I love bake potato with this baked salmon. I especially love adding butter and extra sauce on top of the baked potato.
- Pesto salad: complete this Mediterranean dish with some pesto pasta salad. Best summer dish combo!
- White rice: sometimes plain white rice is the best way to taste the salmon. We love serving it with plain rice so we can later on the burnt mayonnaise sauce on the rice.
- Salad: a green salad on the side is an effective way to eat healthy and lower calories.
Crispy Panko Crusted Baked Salmon
Ingredients
- ½ kg fresh salmon fillet optional: with skin
- 1 tsp sea salt
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 1 lemon on juice
- 1 lemon zest
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 2 tsp dried dill or ¼ cup fresh ¾ chopped dill
- black pepper
- ½-¾ cup panko
- oil
- ½ lemon sliced
- parsley chopped
Instructions
- wash the salmon fillet and pat dry with paper towels.
- Run your finger along the spine of the fillet to check is there's any bones stuck in the fillet. If you feel a small brick with your fingers, find the bone, and use a tweezer to pull out the bone.
- Sprinkle salt both sides of the fish and let it sit for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile combine mayonnaise, lemon juice, lemon zest, salt, dill, and pepper in a bowl. Mix well.
- Preheat oven to 375°F with the rack in the middle.
- Take a baking sheet out and lay a parchment paper on top that fits the fish fillet.
- Lay the salmon on top with the skin down.
- Generously spread the mayonnaise mixture on top of the fillet. Cover all areas.
- Sprinkle the panko over the mayonnaise. Give a quick drizzle of oil on top.
- Bake the fish for 25-30 minutes in the oven. Serve with lemon slices and parsley on top.
