The only grilled salmon recipe you’ll ever need! Crispy and tender perfectly cooked grilled salmon with a grilled zucchini and tomato salsa. Serve it with your favorite side dishes for a winning meal!
You’re looking at my go-to grilled salmon recipe that produces excellent results every single time! I find grilling is the best way of achieving a perfect cook and crispy skin with natural smoky flavor. It is my absolute favorite during grilling season!
This entire post is devoted to providing resources for achieving perfect grilled salmon.
The way I see it, grilling should be easy peasy, and always produce succulently delicious results.
A good quality cut of salmon speaks for itself and only requires a dash of salt, garlic powder, and black pepper. We really only need minimal spices for flavor here!
Looking to grill using aluminum foil? Follow my tutorial for How To Grill Salmon In Foil.
Let’s dive right into this easy grilled salmon recipe!
Grilled Salmon Ingredients:
Fresh Salmon Filet: Choose skin-on salmon fillets for grilling. I prefer wild salmon, but farm-raised salmon (like Atlantic salmon) works if that is what is available. I have included all of my tips for choosing the best piece of salmon below.
Seasonings: Sea salt, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, cayenne pepper, and sea salt. Boom, that’s all.
I’ll let you in on a little secret. More often than not, I just go with garlic powder, salt and pepper.
Use your favorite spices and dried herbs, or drizzle the fish with lemon juice when it comes off the grill.
Store-bought seafood seasoning blends? Those totally work, too!
Also try my Salmon Marinade if you have some time before cooking.
How to Choose a Good Salmon Fillet:
The grilling process begins not when you fire up the BBQ, but when you acquire your fish. Not all fillets are created equally! Here are some tips for choosing your next fillet for grilling:
- Choose a skin-on fillet. Grilling salmon without skin can be a mess, as the flesh sticks to the grill and falls through the cracks. Sure, you can grill seafood using a foil packet, but in order to get uber awesome crispy-on-the-outside, tender-on-the-inside smoky BBQ flavor, you’re going to want the skin.
- A lot of the seafood you see at the grocery store is farm-raised and/or imported. Whenever possible, I select sustainable, wild-caught salmon, and domestically-sourced fish.
- Know the differences in the various types of salmon so you know the kind of flavor and texture you’d like. For instance, both Sockeye salmon and King salmon have rich flavor. However, Sockeye salmon is much leaner than King salmon. In addition, Coho salmon has delicate flavor yet firm texture. When given the option, I always choose the fattiest salmon that will yield the moistest result, but that’s my own personal preference.
- Pay attention to color and fat marbling. You’re going for uniform light pink flesh, free of discoloration or tares with visible, generous streams of fat throughout the fillet. The fat keeps the fish moist and tender and also gives it a great deal of flavor.
- If you’re feeding a lot of people and choose a large, long salmon fillet. Simply cut it in half (or quarters, or serving-size pieces) prior to grilling it. This makes the grilling process easier when flipping the fish.
How to Grill Salmon:
- Brush or spray the grill generously with cooking spray. Perform this step BEFORE preheating the grill to avoid any fire flare ups.
- Preheat your gas grill to a medium high heat setting (around 400 to 450 degrees F works well!). Give the grill plenty of time to heat up all the way before placing the fillet on the grill.
- Place the salmon skin-side down on the grill, just over the flame. Cook for 3 to 6 minutes with the cover down without touching the fish, until deep grill marks appear. Use a spatula to carefully flip the salmon and cook an additional 2 to 4 minutes, or until the fish reaches an internal temperature of 145 degrees F. Insert an instant read thermometer into the thickest part of the fish to take its temperature. For medium-rare fish, cook to 125 degrees F.
- Serve with your choice of side dishes, and enjoy!
For a Charcoal Grill:
For a charcoal grill light the coals in a charcoal chimney starter about 20 minutes prior to grilling.
The coals must be at least partially white prior to spreading them below the grill grate.
When spreading coals, lump them in one general area of the grill to give yourself direct heat and indirect heat. Aside from this step, the cooking time and method is the same for a charcoal grill.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
How Long To Grill Salmon:
The exact grilling time depends on several factors. The weight of the fish, its temperature going on the grill, and your preferred level of doneness.
A 1-inch salmon fillet that is perfectly cooked all the way through requires about 8 to 10 minutes.
For salmon that is thicker than 1-inch, adjust the grill time to be closer to 10 to 12 minutes total.
For a 1-inch salmon fillet that is rare on the inside, cook for a total of 6 to 8 minutes. Only leave the fish raw on the inside if it’s sushi-grade and can safely be eaten raw.
Tips for The Best Grilled Salmon:
- Sourcing a good quality fish fillet is essential to winning at the BBQ thing.
- Use a meat thermometer to spot check the temperature.
- Place the fillet on the grill such that the salmon is parallel with the grill grates. You’ll see why when it is time to flip the fish. Placing salmon on the grates perpendicularly means navigating around many grates versus going with the flow of the grate.
- Most of the time when I barbecue, I do the lazy thing and don’t even brush the grill grates with a wire brush before plunking down the food. I’d avoid taking that approach when grilling fish, as it has a tendency to stick to unclean grill grates. Take a wire grill brush and get all the leftover food particles from your last grilling experience off.
- Use medium sized to small salmon filets. Large salmon filets are harder to flip and can be difficult to manage. For this reason, I recommend using a 1.5 pound maximum, but ideally smaller.
- Stick with avocado oil instead of olive oil for cooking. Avocado oil has a high smoke point, and olive oil burns at a relatively low temperature.
Serving Options:
I love serving salmon with a fresh seasonal salsa or chutney on top. This enhances the whole experience and it requires very little additional time. Mango Avocado Salsa is amazing in the summer. I’m also a fan of a simple Avocado Salad.
For this particular recipe, I grilled up a zucchini and yellow squash, chopped them up, then added them to a salsa with heirloom cherry tomatoes, garlic, jalapeno, fresh mint, and lime juice. This is just a fun way of taking the experience to the next level.
You can also whip up a homemade dressing, vinaigrette, or sauce and drizzle it on the grilled salmon, or simply leave it on the side for dipping if desired.
Serving the salmon atop a bed of greens and fresh veggies and fresh fruit, as seen in my Grilled Salmon Salad with Strawberry Salsa is a wonderful option.
My Cilantro Lime Rice and Grilled Sweet Potatoes Zucchini and Yellow Squash are incredible pairings too! In addition, Crowd-Pleasing Roasted Vegetables is always a great idea.
And that’s it! Your complete guide to cooking salmon on an outdoor grill!
If you prefer baking salmon in the oven, also try my Oven-Baked Salmon in Foil recipe!
Here’s that recipe I’ve been talking about..
Grilled Salmon Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
Grilled Salmon:
- 1½ pounds skin-on salmon fillet
- 2 Tbsp avocado oil
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1/8 to ¼ tsp cayenne pepper optional
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
Grilled Zucchini Tomato Salsa
- 1 medium zucchini squash grilled and chopped
- 1 medium yellow squash grilled and chopped
- 1½ cups cherry tomatoes halved or quartered
- 1 jalapeno seeded and chopped
- 1 clove large garlic minced
- 1/4 cup red onion finely chopped
- 4 leaves large mint finely chopped
- 3 Tbsp lime juice
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 2 tsp pure maple syrup optional
- sea salt
Instructions
Prepare the Salmon:
- Brush the grill with a wire brush to remove any food particles. Spray the grill liberally with cooking oil. For a gas grill, preheat the grill to medium-high (400 to 450 degrees F). Note: if using a charcoal grill, heat the grills in a chimney for 15-20 minutes ahead of time, until many of the coals are white.
- Mix together the seasoning and salt in a small bowl until well-combined. Drizzle the fish with avocado oil and use your hands to gently coat the full surface of the flesh. Sprinkle the seasoning blend over the fish. NOTE: If you're performing this step ahead of time, store salmon in a seal-able container or plastic bag in the refrigerator until you're ready to grill.
- Place the salmon fillet on the hottest part of the grill skin-side down. Ensure the fish is sitting parallel to the grill grates rather than perpendicular. This helps simplify the flipping process.
- Cover the grill with the lid. Cook for 3 to 6 minutes, or until the skin is very crispy and fish is opaque. Carefully flip and cook an additional 2 to 4 minutes, or until salmon reaches your desired done-ness. Salmon is cooked through when it reaches an internal temperature of 145 degrees Fahrenheit. Insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the fish to get an accurate temperature read. For medium-rare salmon, cook about 2 minutes per side, or until the internal temperature reaches 125 degrees F in the center. Adjust the grill time up for salmon fillets that are thicker than 1 inch.
- Transfer salmon to a serving platter and serve with grilled zucchini salsa!
Prepare the Salsa:
- Grill the zucchini and yellow squash while you're grilling the fish. To do so, cut the zucchini into 1/4 to 1/2-inch thick rounds, lightly coat with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Place zucchini on the grill and cook until grill marks appear, about 2 minutes. Carefully flip and cook on the other side until grill marks appear, another 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and chop when cool enough to handle.
- Transfer the chopped grilled zucchini and yellow squash to a mixing bowl. Add the remaining ingredients for the salsa and toss until well-combined.
Nutrition
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The tips on the type of salmon to buy was really helpful.
I’m happy it helped!
Salmon should be grilled skin side up initially. Reason – salmon is a cold water fish with a layer of fat between skin and flesh. The fat will render and add moisture to the flesh. Added benefit is that the skin will pull off easily. If you flip the fish too soon the flesh will stick to the grill, you need to leave it alone longer than you think in order for the flesh against the grill to release. I learned this tip from a top chef in Seattle.
Thanks so much for the feedback, David! 😀 xo
Simply amazing
Thank you, Thomas! xo
I have tried seveal recipes for cooking salmon but this is by far my families favorite. The salsa was the factor that made it so great. I made the mistake of overcooking the zucchini on the grill and not considering that the lime juice in the salsa would continue to break it down. Next time I will follow the directions more closely to get more crunch to my veggies. But if you do make my mistake, don’t worry, the flavor is still fantastic with a little bit of sweet and a little bit of heat. This is so much better than those recipes where you douse the fish with sugar to make it taste less fishy. Thank you for giving us an excuse to eat fish more often!
Thanks so much for the sweet note, Cyndi! I’m so happy you and your family love the salmon, and thanks for the tips! xo
Did a close derivation of this, over multigrain rice, and the fam loved it. Did a strawberry avocado lime juice chutney (that’s what was on hand…). Thin sockeye fillets, skin on, barely stuck. Marinated it. I’m hero of the day. Great article, thanks.
That sounds absolutely amazing, Mark! Double high fives for being the hero of the day ;D
I love Salmon, it is so tasty, thanks
I learned so much from this post, I feel like I should pay you! I had no idea there were so many different varieties of salmon and that King was…well, the king. I also have no clue how to cook it but I feel like I know everything there is to know after reading this. You left me craving a big ol’ slab of salmon.
p.s. I’m coming over the next time you get a delivery from Copper River Salmon, k? With wine in hand, of course. 😉
Mm… This looks awesome! What a coincidence I just made for dinner yesterday cedar plank salmon and it was so good. I can’t get enough of grilled salmon. It is my favourite and your recipes looks absolutely AMAZING!
Yummy… I love grilled salmon! Thank you for the insightful tips, I had wondered why there was so much difference between the salmon I bought. I love to serve it with forbidden or japonica rice(black rice) for the color contrast. A favorite at a restaurant here serves grilled salmon over lentil salad which is excellent … but a bit of protein overload.
I’ve always been weird about eating fish (as in, I don’t eat it!) but I’m really trying to learn to like it! And salmon is so good for you! And grilling it?? This just may convince me… 🙂