Herbed Lemon Salmon

Baked all together in a foil packet, this Herbed Lemon Salmon is an easy (and healthy!) weeknight dinner idea.

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Baked all together in a foil packet, this Herbed Lemon Salmon is an easy (and healthy!) weeknight dinner idea.I was watching the news a couple of days ago.  Ok, wait.  Let me clarify.  I had turned on the tv, but then Robbie started crying, so I stopped to take care of him.  About 45 minutes later, I realized that the news had finished it’s 30 minute loop, and it had restarted.  But yet I was still watching it…

Anyways, one of the stories was a gardening tip about grafting two types of plants together.  I know grafting is fairly common in nurseries, but I’ve never thought about doing it here at home.  The reporter was at a plant research facility showing how they were experimenting with grafting tomato plants with potato plants.

Baked all together in a foil packet, this Herbed Lemon Salmon is an easy (and healthy!) weeknight dinner idea.Tomato plants + potato plants?  What a strange combination.  Now I know the purpose of grafting is to create fruits and veggies that taste better or have higher resistances to common plant diseases.  But I’m not gonna lie.  The first thing I thought of was a plant with both tomatoes and potatoes on it.  In my head, it was a plant with french fries growing on one side and packets of ketchup growing on the other.  Genius!

Ok, so maybe the french fry & ketchup plant doesn’t exist…yet.  But we can still create easy meals that have both main dish and side dish all in one.  Take this Herbed Lemon Salmon for example.  Super easy.  Like I’m almost ashamed how easy this one is.  But it’s a super elegant meal that bakes in one pan.

Baked all together in a foil packet, this Herbed Lemon Salmon is an easy (and healthy!) weeknight dinner idea.My sister-in-law was in town a couple of weeks ago, and she was telling us about her never-ending quest for easy recipes that look fancy.  (This Almond Herb Goat Cheese made the list.)  We somehow got talking about seafood.  We don’t cook fish very often here at home.  I actually really like fish, but for whatever reason I just don’t think about making it at home.

But my sister-in-law told us about her go-to salmon and asparagus recipe, and I was intrigued.  A quick trip to the store, and soon enough we had this Herbed Lemon Salmon in the oven.  Epic dinner.  And easy, too!

Baked all together in a foil packet, this Herbed Lemon Salmon is an easy (and healthy!) weeknight dinner idea.For this recipe, you simply place a piece of salmon (or any other fish) on top of a bed of asparagus.  Toss in some olive oil, herbs and lemon slices, and then wrap it all up in a foil pouch.  Throw the whole thing into the oven.  Dinner done.

I bet you could experiment with this idea and add some broccoli florets, carrots or other veggies in there, too.  They’d have to be cut down to a smaller size to ensure that they’d cook/steam in the same time as the salmon, but it could totally be done.  Either way, we’ve made several different versions of this dish in the past couple of weeks.  Quick, easy, and tasty…and it looks fancy, too!  Enjoy!

Baked all together in a foil packet, this Herbed Lemon Salmon is an easy (and healthy!) weeknight dinner idea.What is your go-to ‘fancy’ recipe for entertaining guests?

Baked all together in a foil packet, this Herbed Lemon Salmon is an easy (and healthy!) weeknight dinner idea.

Herbed Lemon Salmon

Baked all together in a foil packet, this Herbed Lemon Salmon is an easy (and healthy!) weeknight dinner idea.
Print Pin Rate
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 324kcal

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 400°F.
  • Trim off the thick bottom portions of asparagus spears. If desired, use a vegetable peeler to remove the thicker skin at the bottom of each stalk.
  • Lay out 4 squares of aluminum foil. Divide the asparagus evenly across the 4 squares. Top each layer of asparagus with a piece of salmon.
  • In a small bowl, combine the seasonings (salt, pepper and Herbes de Provence). Sprinkle seasonings evenly across all 4 pieces of salmon.
  • Sprinkle minced garlic evenly across 4 squares. Place lemon slices on top of salmon. Divide olive oil across all 4 pieces.
  • Fold foil up and seal top. (Tip: Make sure to seal sides of foil packets together, too.) Place packets on a sheet pan. Bake at 400° for 24-28 minutes, or until salmon flakes apart easily with a fork.

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30 Comments

    1. Wait…you actually have one of these potato + tomato plants!?! I need to see it. That’s it. I’m coming over to Manchester right now. 🙂

  1. This salmon asparagus dish is a great idea! The tomato/potato plant…I’m not too sure about! It would take up less space, but I don’t like altering things. I may just be slow to accept that one. In the meanwhile, I love the idea of cooking a meal all at once!

    1. Yeah, the tomato + potato plant sounds a bit odd…but I kinda want to see it just to understand it. Thanks so much, Kathy! 🙂

  2. I love easy fancy recipes, David! Especially ones that cook this fast! I really enjoy salmon and just fish, in general. So light and perfect for Summer.

    I think one of my favourite ‘fancy’ things to make is risotto, I can pretty much flavour it however I like and it always turns out delicious. And who doesn’t love a big plate of cheesy carbs?!

    Now, onto that French fry/ketchup plant….may have to get working on that 😉

    1. Easy + fancy = perfection! I totally understand why my sis-in-law loves this recipe. It couldn’t be easier to make, and it looks super fancy…not to mention tastes delicious, too. Oh, you had to go there with the risotto. Now I’m going to be craving creamy risotto all day long! It’s definitely in the ‘fancy dinner’ category!

  3. I want one of those french fry plants you mentioned! Like right now!! LOL
    Can I just say these photos are absolutely beautiful! The lemons are so bright and vibrant… I just love it! 🙂

    1. Can you imagine that, Johlene? A plant that goes french fries? Haha! I’d have a garden full of ’em! Thank you so much for your kind comments. 🙂

  4. Dude – your sister in law is a genius – this recipe totally rocks! I adore quick and easy and fancy looking eats – especially when fish is involved (for me, “fancy” usually involves curry of some sort – but that’s mostly because curry is a bit exotic to most of my friends here).
    Getting back to the subject of genius though – I bet YOU could come up with a plant “with french fries growing on one side and packets of ketchup growing on the other” – and don’t tell me otherwise! 🙂

    1. My sis-in-law happens to live in Atlanta, Shashi. If you ever need a taste-tester, I’m sure she would be willing. Haha! Curry definitely falls into that ‘fancy dinner’ category. It seems like folks don’t make it that much…and I have no idea why!

      And if I manage to invent the french fry + ketchup plant, then I’ll need help distributing it. I’ll definitely be hiring you and your drone. Better clear your calendar! 🙂

  5. Hi David! I love it when you can just wrap a few ingredients in a foil packet and dinner is done in short order! Our asparagus is done for the year but I’ve seen some in the store that looks pretty good. I am so envious that you and Laura had crawfish!! Those little mud bugs sure are tasty! And you thought they didn’t exist in New York. 🙂

    1. I totally thought crawfish didn’t exist in New York! Turns out they exist one day a year up here. There’s a guy who owns a fried chicken restaurant up in Saratoga Springs and apparently he flies in Gulf crawfish for Memorial Day each year. It was great! But now I’m inspired to host our own Memorial Day party each year. And maybe even find some crawfish of our own. 🙂

  6. I love this kind of one-stop-shop meal! It’s all done in one place and makes it super easy. Do you think this could be done on the grill?? I love cooking foil packets on the grill. Thanks for sharing!

    1. Ohhh…this could totally be done on the grill, Amanda! I don’t know why I didn’t think about that. And the grill would give a nice smoky flavor, too. Now I know what I want for dinner tonight! 🙂

  7. I know a little (read: nothing) about grafting, but it sounds like a cool thing indeed. Would the joint plants share with some distinctive characteristics (like flavor or shape) or this affects only their tissues? Anyways, you should definitely try this in your garden. Perhaps, you can create something awesome. Knowing you love for lemons, you should cultivate a lemon tree. Maybe near some asparagus (Could you imagine lemony asparagus?) Or what about lavender and lemons? You know, that might be very much appreciated by some (unknown to me) folks. In a meanwhile, you’ve got a delicious and elegant meal here – that’s just an impeccable combo of the flavors. Nicely done, David!

    1. Yeah, I know very little about grafting, too, Ben. I’ve seen it done in greenhouses, but never with a fun combo like tomatoes + potatoes. I clearly should give this a try myself now! Lavender lemons, eh? That could be a thing! Can you imagine how pretty those would look. We need to start a gardening clinic, my friend! 🙂

    1. It totally is perfect for the season, Medha…plus, it’s super easy. That means I can spent more time outdoors now that the weather is getting nice! 🙂

  8. Well grafting sounds fun but I’m not a green thumb or at least still learning about gardening. This combo is my favorite! Always love salmon and asparagus together. Totally make a perfect duet 🙂

    1. Gardening is super fun, Linda! We just planted our garden last weekend. We have to wait pretty late in the year here to plant because we always seem to have one last cold snap in mid-May. I’ve never down any crazy grafting experiments, but I kinda want to try now! Maybe I can graft asparagus with lemon for this recipe. 🙂

    1. So a plant that grows French fries that dip themselves into ketchup? Do you want it to also reach out and feed you, too? Haha! Just kidding, Jeff. Lemme see what I can do about that. Actually, lemme just let my scientist wife get working on that one for us.

    1. I agree. I love getting in the kitchen and playing around, but sometimes it’s all about K.I.S.S. (Although I take offense if anyone calls me stupid…)

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