Blackened Salmon

5 from 19 votes

Spice up your next healthy seafood dinner with this easy 5-Ingredient Blackened Salmon recipe, which comes together with just 5 minutes of prep!

Course Dinner

Cuisine Southern

Keyword blackened salmon, blackened salmon seasoning, healthy blackened salmon

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

0 minutes

Total Time 15 minutes

Servings people

Calories 283kcal

Author Blair Lonergan

4 salmon fillets, skin-on (about 5-6 ounces each)
1 ½ teaspoons cumin
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
½ teaspoon cayenne (omit or decrease for a mild flavor)
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
Olive oil
Optional for serving: lemon wedges and fresh chopped herbs such as thyme, oregano, or parsley

In a shallow bowl, mix together cumin, smoked paprika, cayenne, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
Pat seasoning mixture onto the flesh side of each piece of salmon.
In a large skillet, heat about 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat.
Place salmon, flesh-side down, in the hot oil. Cook for 2-3 minutes, and then flip salmon with a spatula. Cook for about 5-6 more minutes, or until skin becomes crispy and fish flakes easily with a fork.

Control the level of heat in your seasoning rub by increasing, decreasing or omitting the cayenne.
If you're serving picky kids, you can omit the blackened seasoning from their individual pieces of fish. Instead, season the kids' salmon with salt, pepper and garlic powder, then sear in the skillet according to the recipe instructions. There's no extra work for you, and everyone's happy!
Cooking just for two? You can cut the ingredients in half and just cook two salmon fillets. The cooking process remains the same. If you prepare a full recipe of seasoning, just save the extra spice for another meal.
Use fresh salmon or frozen salmon for this recipe. If starting with frozen salmon, make sure that it's completely thawed before using. You can thaw salmon in the refrigerator overnight or quickly thaw it by placing the salmon in a large Ziploc bag and submerging it in a bowl of cold water.
Skin-on salmon works best because the skin provides a safety layer between the fish's flesh and the hot skillet, helping the salmon retain its juices and cook evenly. The skin also holds the fish together, making it easier to flip without the flesh falling apart. In a pinch, you can certainly use salmon with the skin already removed -- just be carefully when turning it in the pan!