Our Brown butter salmon with capers and sun-dried tomatoes is a more sophisticated dish than the usual seared salmon—but no harder to prepare. This delicious weeknight salmon gets an elegant upgrade with simple ingredients and can be ready in less than 30 minutes.
If you love this Brown butter salmon, you will also love this One-Pan Salmon Dinner, Shrimp Spaghetti-Garidomakaronada or Greek Codfish Cakes With Lemon Caper Aioli!
Why this recipe sings
Here is what you need
- Salmon fillets— with skin or not, whatever you like.
- Pine nuts— They add smokey, nutty crunch to this dish. Pine nuts are widely used in Greek cuisine as well as in France, Italy, Lebanon, etc.
- Sun-dried tomatoes— Their tart intense flavor suits the mild, rich, and slightly sweet salmon perfectly. Always get the ones kept in oil, preferably olive oil.
- Capers—The salty, tart capers add a savory note to the sauce.
- Butter— My favorite butter is always salty. Of course you can use the butter of your preference. Unsalted butter will be slightly milder but you will not notice much difference in flavor.
- Extra virgin olive oil, sea salt and freshly ground pepper.
Helpful Q+A
King salmon is considered the best salmon money can buy. Wild-caught king salmon is high in fat, has a rich flavor and a delicate texture that holds up well when grilled or pan-roasted.
Wild Sockeye salmon has bright red flesh and a strong fishy scent. Has a robust flavor and is lean.
Atlantic Salmon has a mild flavor and is very affordable. It is always farmed, which caused controversy for a while due to worries about antibiotics and pollution, as well as a lack of flavor and texture. But farming has improved significantly and produces good-quality salmon that is affordable and widely available.
How to make this salmon
You can make the salmon any way you like. Oven-roasted or pan-roasted salmon fillets go well with the sauce and smoked salmon fillets also work beautifully. Below, you will find a pan-roasted method for salmon and my tips for crispy salmon skin.
- Pat the salmon dry on both sides. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.
- Chop the sun-dried tomatoes into medium-small pieces. Gather the butter and drain the capers.
- Heat some olive oil in a cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat.
- Add two salmon fillets to the pan at a time (skin side down first if you like crispy skin. Please see the tip below).
- Cook each side for 4 minutes until golden and flaky.
Tip for salmon with perfectly crisp skin: If you like perfectly crisp skin on your salmon, don’t fidget with the fish while it cooks; Press it down lightly for one minute with a spatula. The skin will start to crisp up nicely if you wait the whole 7 minutes and then turn it around—Cook the other side for 1 to 2 minutes. Then, turn salmon one more time and crisp up the skin for one more minute. Plate salmon skin side up to preserve the crispy skin and serve sauce around salmon, not on the skin.
- While the salmon cooks, place a medium skillet on medium heat. Add the pine nuts. Toast them for 2-3 minutes until they are nice and brown. Please don’t overdo it; they will become bitter and inedible.
- Add the butter to the pan. Stir the butter continuously with a spatula. After 2 to 3 minutes, the butter will start to brown.
- Add the chopped sundried tomatoes and stir for 1 minute. Add the capers, stir and remove from heat. Serve immediately over salmon fillets.
What to serve with this salmon
Pair this brown butter salmon with a green salad, roasted vegetables, araka (sweet peas with dill). Add some crusty bread to complete your meal and enjoy the sauce.
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olive oil guide
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Brown Butter Salmon With Capers And Sun-dried Tomatoes
Ingredients
- 4 salmon fillets with skin or not, whatever you like.
- 2 tablespoons pine nuts
- 2 tablespoons sun-dried tomatoes
- 1 stick salted butter
- 1 tablespoon capers
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- sea salt
- freshly ground pepper
Instructions
- Pat the salmon dry on both sides. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.
- Heat the olive oil in a cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat.
- Add two salmon fillets to the pan (skin side down first if you like crispy skin. Please see recipe notes)Cook each side for 4 minutes until golden and flaky.
While salmon cooks make the sauce.
- Chop the sun-dried tomatoes into medium-small pieces.
- Place a medium skillet on medium heat. Add the pine nuts. Toast pine nuts for 2-3 minutes until they are nice and brown. Don't overdo it, pine nuts will become bitter and inedible.
- Add the butter to the pan. Stir the butter with a spatula continuously. After 2 to 3 minutes, the butter will start to brown. Be careful not to burn the butter. If needed lower the heat.
- Add the chopped sun-dried tomatoes and stir for 1 minute. Add the capers, stir brown butter sauce and serve immediately over salmon fillets.
Notes
Nutrition
