How Long Should You Salt Salmon Before Cooking It? The Ultimate Guide

Salmon is one of my favorite proteins to cook and eat. It’s delicious healthy, and versatile – you can bake it grill it, pan sear it, poach it, smoke it, and so much more.

However, knowing how to properly season salmon can make all the difference between a flavorful, juicy piece of fish and one that is overly salty and dried out. One of the most common questions people have about cooking salmon is how long to salt it before cooking.

So how long should you salt salmon before cooking it? The short answer is – not long! Ideally, you should salt your salmon right before cooking it. Salting it any longer than 15-30 minutes before cooking can start pulling moisture out of the fish, leading to dry, overly salty salmon.

In this article, I’ll explain why salting salmon too early can ruin your dish, when you should salt salmon to get the best results, how to fix oversalted salmon, and some extra seasoning tips for perfectly cooked salmon every time. Keep reading for the complete guide on salting times for salmon!

Why Salting Salmon Too Early Makes It Tough and Dry

To understand why you don’t want to salt salmon too far in advance, it helps to know how salt interacts with fish on a molecular level

When you season meat with salt, the salt starts pulling moisture out of the proteins through the process of osmosis The salty solution draws water from inside the cells, essentially dehydrating the meat a bit

This effect can concentrate flavors and start to lightly “cure” the meat, which can be good for tougher cuts like brisket or steak that benefit from a longer salting time. But for delicate, flaky fish like salmon, dehydration is not ideal.

Salmon has much less connective tissue and fat than beef or pork, so it dries out very easily. Leaving salmon to sit in salt or a salty marinade for several hours ahead of cooking will draw out too much moisture.

Even 15-30 minutes of salting can start to slightly dehydrate the salmon and make it firmer and chewier. Any longer than that, and you risk salmon that is overly dry and salty, with a rubbery, leathery texture.

So for tender, flaky, juicy salmon, it’s best not to salt it until right before you are ready to cook it.

The Ideal Time To Salt Salmon Before Cooking

Ideally, you should salt your salmon immediately before putting it in the oven, pan, or grill. Lightly seasoning the fish right before cooking gives the salt just enough time to start penetrating the flesh and enhancing the flavor.

Here is a simple timeline for when to salt salmon based on the cooking method:

• Baking: Salt immediately before putting the salmon in the oven.
• Pan searing or sautéing: Season just before adding the salmon to the hot pan.
• Grilling: Salt just before placing the fish on the hot grill.
• Poaching: Add a small pinch of salt to the poaching liquid, but don’t salt the salmon before poaching.
• Smoking: Salt lightly just before placing the fish in the smoker.
• Curing or Gravlax: Heavily salt the fish and let cure in the fridge for 12-24 hours.

Salting salmon right before cooking allows the salt to start dissolving on the exterior while not having time to penetrate far into the flesh. You end up with just enough seasoned flavor on the surface without pulling out internal moisture.

The only exception is if you are curing salmon to make gravlax or lox, which requires an overnight salting to achieve the proper firm, salty-sweet flavor.

Besides those recipes, for everyday cooked salmon, last minute seasoning is key!

How to Fix Oversalted Salmon

What if you left your salmon soaking in a salty marinade for a few hours and now it’s way too salty? Don’t worry – you may be able to resuscitate the fish.

Here are a few tricks to desalinate oversalted salmon:

• Rinse the salmon under cold running water to wash away excess surface salt.

• Soak the salmon in plain milk or a mix of milk and water for 20-30 minutes to draw out some of the salt.

• Poach the salmon in unsalted broth, milk, or water to leach out salt and rehydrate the flesh.

• Slice the salmon thin and sandwich between layers of crunchy vegetables like cucumbers or radish to offset the saltiness.

• Flake the salmon into a salad, pasta, or rice dish dressed with an acidic lemon or lime juice vinaigrette to counter the salt.

• Work the salmon into fish cakes or fish balls, mixing with starch and seasoning to dilute the salty taste.

• Turn oversalted grilled salmon into salmon salad by removing the skin, flaking the fish, and tossing with mayo, herbs, and a touch of lemon. The mayonnaise helps cut the saltiness.

With a little creativity and the right supporting ingredients, you can often redeem oversalted salmon. But next time, remember – resist the urge to season too far ahead of time!

Extra Tips for Perfectly Seasoned Salmon

To guarantee tender, juicy, perfectly salted salmon every time, keep these extra tips in mind:

• Let thicker fillets come to room temp before cooking so the interior finishes cooking at the same time as the exterior. Thinner tails can go straight from fridge to pan or grill.

• Blot fish dry with paper towels before seasoning to ensure the salt and other seasonings stick.

• Brush on oil before seasoning to help the salt and spices adhere evenly.

• Season under the skin by running your fingertips between flesh and skin to evenly distribute salt or spice rubs.

• Try “dry brining” – sprinkle fish all over with salt, then leave uncovered in the fridge for 30-60 minutes to allow salt to lightly penetrate. The fridge prevents moisture loss. Rinse before cooking.

• Flavor poaching liquid for extra taste but don’t heavily salt poached salmon.

• Use big salt flakes like Maldon or fleur de sel for pretty presentation and a milder salt flavor.

Salmon should sit out of the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes before cooking to reach room temperature and cook evenly. This helps prevent the salmon from being cold on the inside, especially if it’s being served rare or medium-rare.