I’ll Be Making Ina Garten’s Easy Salmon Recipe Again and Again

Baked salmon is such a top-tier dinner staple in our house that it can be hard to try new salmon recipes. Recently, a friend insisted I try Ina Garten’s Panko-Crusted Salmon recipe, because she knows how much my 10-year-old loves the fish, and her family could not stop talking about it.

Reading the recipe didn’t give me much confidence—Ina’s use of breadcrumbs and mustard seemed more at home on pork chops, but I trusted this friend's advice and gave it a shot. Ina’s Panko-Crusted Salmon recipe is so fast, so forgiving, and so delicious that it has completely changed how I serve salmon at home. Here’s why my family has dubbed this delicious recipe "Ina’s Easy Salmon."

How to Make Ina’s Panko-Crusted Salmon

You begin Ina’s Panko-Crusted Salmon by cranking the oven to 425°F, though you’ll start the salmon on the stovetop. The panko is mixed with the usual salt and pepper but gets tons of fresh parsley and lemon zest. Then Ina has you mix the breadcrumb mixture with a generous amount of olive oil.

The salmon is seasoned and then brushed with a generous layer of Dijon mustard, which will act as the glue for the breadcrumb mixture. You really want to pack the breadcrumbs on top of the salmon—some will fall off when you move the salmon from your prep area to the pan.

Before it goes into the oven, you’ll put the salmon skin-side down in a hot oven-safe skillet. A fish spatula is the best tool for easily getting the salmon into the pan. The salmon cooks for just a few minutes on the stovetop—three to four minutes is enough to get the skin crisp—before it goes into the oven.

It's in the oven that the breadcrumbs will get browned and the salmon cooked through. The mustard and breadcrumbs help keep the salmon from drying out in such a hot oven. Ina says the salmon needs just five to seven minutes in the oven, but you will rest it in the pan, covered with foil, for an extra five to 10 minutes, and that’s when it will really finish cooking without overcooking.

Ina’s Genius Breadcrumb Tip

One of the steps that initially raised my eyebrow about Ina’s recipe was the covered rest time. “Wouldn’t covering the hot salmon make for soggy breadcrumbs?” I questioned. Ina’s clever instructions to toss the breadcrumbs with olive oil before they go onto the salmon protects them from sogginess in roasting or resting. As an added benefit, it also makes the breadcrumb coating taste almost fried after cooking, giving the most luxurious contrast of texture when combined with the moist salmon.

Since I already know that I’ll be making this salmon again and again, I’m also dreaming up all the ways to riff on the panko topping: Adding Parmesan and using thyme in place of parsley, swapping the lemon zest for orange zest and adding some warm spices like paprika and dried garlic.

you learn Ina’s technique for the easiest ever salmon, you’ll see how adaptable it is to every kind of weeknight dinner craving.

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