How do I cook salmon properly?

Pan, oven and poached salmon, and the doneness point that keeps it moist rather than dry and chalky.

Difficulty: beginner
Time: 20 min
Read: 2 min
Safety: caution

Short answer

Pull it off the heat at around 50-55°C in the centre for a moist result, or 63°C if you want it fully cooked through. Salmon goes from perfect to dry in about a minute, so timing matters more than technique.

Salmon is fatty enough to forgive a lot, but not overcooking. The white substance that appears on overcooked salmon is albumin squeezed out of the muscle — a visible sign it has gone too far.

Safety

Cook salmon to at least 63°C in the centre unless you are confident of its sashimi-grade provenance. Anyone pregnant, elderly, very young or immunocompromised should have fish cooked through.

What you'll need

Salmon fillets
Pan or oven tray
Thermometer (optional)
Kitchen paper (optional)

Step by step

Take it out of the fridge 15 minutes ahead and pat it dry.Dry skin crisps; wet skin steams and sticks. This matters more than anything else for a pan-cooked fillet.
For a pan, start skin-side down in a hot pan and press it flat.Hold it down for twenty seconds while the skin contracts. Then cook 70-80% of the total time on the skin side.
Flip for the last minute only.The heat has already travelled up through the flesh. A brief finish is all the flesh side needs.
For the oven, roast at 180°C for 12-15 minutes depending on thickness.More forgiving than a pan and better for several fillets at once. A whole side takes 20-25 minutes.
For poaching, bring liquid to a bare simmer and turn the heat off.Slide the salmon in and leave it 8-10 minutes. Gentle heat gives an exceptionally moist result.
Judge doneness by flaking or temperature.It should just flake when pressed, with the very centre slightly translucent. 50-55°C for moist, 63°C for fully cooked through.
Rest for two minutes and finish with acid.Lemon, or a dill and yoghurt sauce. Salmon is rich and it wants something sharp against it.

Tips

White albumin on the surface means it is overcooking. Lower the heat and take it off sooner next time.
Salmon continues cooking off the heat, so pull it a couple of degrees early.
Frozen salmon cooks well straight from frozen in the oven — add about five minutes and season after the surface thaws.

Common mistakes

Cooking it until it is uniformly opaque — By that point it has lost most of its moisture. The centre should still be slightly translucent.
Putting wet fillets into the pan — The skin steams and sticks rather than crisping, and the fillet tears when you try to move it.
Cooking it flesh-side down for most of the time — The skin is the best part and needs the contact. Most of the cooking happens skin-side down.

Questions people ask

How do I know when salmon is cooked?

It should flake easily when pressed with a fork and the very centre should still look slightly translucent. If you use a thermometer, 50-55°C gives a moist result and 63°C is fully cooked.

What is the white stuff on cooked salmon?

Albumin, a protein squeezed out of the muscle by heat. It is harmless but it indicates the fish has been cooked too hot or too long.