Salmon with Sweet Ginger Sauce
This recipe comes from Red Hot Kitchen, by Diana Kuan, published in 2019. I also own her cookbook The Chinese Takeout Cookbook, published in 2012.
The Red Hot Kitchen is all about Asian chili sauces – some hot, some not. There are 9 different chapters, each focusing on a different sauce. I’ve previously made Fish Tacos with Yuzu Kosho Slaw, and from the Takeout book, Sweet Chili Shrimp. Both were excellent.
This quick and simple salmon recipe is from the chapter on Sweet Chili Sauce. The one I buy is Mae Ploy, but of course Ms. Kuan has a recipe to make it from scratch, which I haven’t made yet.
I used more ginger in this recipe because I felt like it. I was also tempted to add sambal oelek to the sauce, for more of a spicy sweet ginger sauce. But I’ll see how this goes, first.
Roasted Sweet Chili and Ginger Salmon
1/2 cup sweet chili sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger (I used more)
4 – 6 ounce filets of salmon
2 teaspoons white sesame seeds
2 scallions, thinly sliced
Lime wedges, optional
In a large bowl, whisk together the sweet chili sauce, soy sauce, lime juice, and ginger. Add the salmon and turn to coat with the sauce. Cover and marinate in the fridge for 1 hour.
As you can tell, I used only 2 salmon filets, and saved half of the sauce/marinade for serving.
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a roasting pan or baking sheet with parchment paper.
Place the salmon filets skin side up on the parchment and brush the tops with extra marinade. Sprinkle the sesame seeds on top. (I sprinkled the sesame seeds after the salmon was cooked, not on the skin.)
Roast until the flesh looks opaque and flakes off easily with a fork, 10 – 12 minutes.
Carefully transfer the salmon to plates and garnish with the scallions. (And sesame seeds.)
I served the salmon with white rice and asparagus, plus the leftover marinade.
The sauce was great! And it isn’t overly sweet.
About the Author: Chef Mimi
That is a fantastic idea for a cookbook. I will have to look for it.
It’s really good. And so many great recipes!
Love the looks of this one Mimi! And I love the idea of organizing the book by sauces, very clever.
I also had to laugh at your comment “I used more ginger in this recipe because I felt like it,” which is exactly how I follow recipes as well!
I also got a little carried away chopping the ginger, then noticed it only asked for one teaspoon! Oops! It all went in.
I like how you think!
My favourite meal! Love that ginger sauce a lot.
It was a very nice combination, and not too sweet!
Ginger and salmon sounds delightful! I always have to hold back a bit on ginger at my house because my husband is not a huge fan of it, but I would be right there with you in using extra! I love its zing on the taste buds, and it’s so good for us, too!
My husband doesn’t love it either, but he doesn’t eat salmon either!!! More for me!!!
I always add extra ginger. Yum! I’m intrigued by the sauce book and will have a look at it. Your salmon sounds so delicious and your photographs are beautiful! :-) ~Valentina
Thank you so much! Salmon is very photogenic!
crumbs I love all of this. love salmon and sesame seeds and ginger and asparagus! Delish!
Thanks! It was a great meal!
Mimi I need a good recipe for sweet chilli sauce as I have loads of frozen chillies from our bushes. I love salmon cooked in the Asian style. This recipe looks incredible. I would use more fresh ginger too, we love it and grow it.
I’ll send you the recipe from the book.
Must buy both! Your presentation is great!
Thank you so much!
Love any Asian cuisine and salmon I eat at least once a week! I don’t care for such a sweet sauce so would make a few adjustments – looks devine and since I just bought a nice salmon steak… :)
That’s the thing – it’s not sweet with the other ingredients!
This salmon looks irresistible delicious and perfectly cooked – so flaky and I bet flavourful!
It was a new way for me to cook salmon. I usually do it on the stove and I would have cooked it less, but it was still good!
I love salmon, and that looks delicious! Thanks for sharing!
You are so welcome!
It has been an age since I last made Sweet Chili Sauce. It is so much easier to use store bought :)
I’ll have to do that! I’m sure it’s better than store bought.
Woah – a whole book on Asian chili sauces!? That sounds like Laura’s heaven right there. We’ve been eating more salmon lately (trying to stay healthy to balance out the holidays still…haha), and this sounds like a delicious way to mix up salmon nights. Giving it a try!
Yes, it’s a great book! And great recipes.
Mimi, this looks amazing! I love the flavors in this sweet chili ginger sauce! I’m going to make this for dinner tonight :)
It’s so easy and so good!
Thank you for sharing this delicious and simple recipe for Roasted Sweet Chili and Ginger Salmon. I love the idea of using sweet chili sauce and soy sauce as a marinade, and adding grated fresh ginger for a touch of spice and flavor. The addition of sesame seeds and scallions as a garnish adds a nice texture and color to the dish.
I appreciate that you made some modifications to the recipe to suit your taste, and that you saved half of the marinade for serving. This recipe seems very versatile and can be easily adjusted to personal preferences.
It’s certainly one of the simplest recipes I’ve ever put on the blog, but it was very good. Ad the sauce was great!
I love that the sauce isn’t too sweet and I wouldn’t mind the extra ginger. :)
Thanks, Jean! I don’t like anything too sweet, but with the soy sauce and lime juice it was delicious!
Ginger and salmon are a natural pairing! I make a ginger, coated, salmon, as well, and it’s quite a bit different from yours. Yours looks much more delicate! I’ll have to try yours soon.
I don’t usually go for the quick and easy recipes, although of course I’m not against them, but this was ridiculously simple, with great results.
Sounds YUMMY!! I roasted salmon for dinner tonight but used a bottle of Soy Vay Teriyaki sauce to marinate. I’m sure your homemade sauce was better!!
I bought teriyaki sauce once and threw it away – so much sweetness. So I’ll only make it from scratch. There might be a good brand out there, but there doesn’t need to be so much sugar, in my opinion.
We try to eat salmon once a week, and how you have cooked this would be a lovely change to pan fried. I love also that it is baked in the oven. I can’t wait to cook this next time I buy salmon, I always have these sauces on hand. We love Asian flavours in my part of the world. Thanks so much for this one Mimi. Yum!
I do too. I really love Asian foods cause there’s no cheese! I have a hard time staying away from cheese and dairy!
I was so good for a while eating salmon every week. I need to get t back on it again, and this one would be great one to try
It’s easy for me – it’s my favorite fish! And you’re right, so good for you.
This is a wonderful recipe Mimi , I have to try it. I like our local salmon but the seasons are getting shorter and it’s getting very expensive.
Oh no! That’s so sad. It’s such a fabulous fish.