Name: Honey Garlic Soy Glazed Salmon
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 35 min
Cuisine: Asian
Ingredients: 4 salmon fillets, about 6 ounces (170g) each; 1/3 cup (80ml) reduced sodium soy sauce (or regular); 1/3 cup (113g) honey; 1 Tablespoon (15ml) sesame oil (or olive oil); 3 garlic cloves, minced (or 2 teaspoons jarred/minced); 1 teaspoon peeled minced fresh ginger; optional for garnish: chopped green onion and/or sesame seeds

A quick and easy dinner that delivers! This is honey garlic soy salmon, a dish made from just 6 ingredients in under 35 minutes. Marinate fresh salmon in a 5-ingredient sauce, and then reduce the rest down on the stove to a glaze as the salmon bakes. Serve with thickened glaze, brown rice, and your favorite vegetables for a simple, flavorful, and healthy meal.

I originally published this recipe in 2015 and have since added new photos, a video tutorial, and a few more helpful success tips.

close-up of honey garlic soy glazed salmon with green onion, brown rice, and broccoli on plate.

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Desserts are certainly where my heart is, but it’s so much fun to share everyday dinner recipes with you. I struggle to find a meal my entire family enjoys, which includes young children who are often skeptical about what shows up on their plates! Today’s honey garlic soy glazed salmon is usually the answer when (1) I need dinner FAST, (2) I need dinner to be DELICIOUS for everyone, and (3) I need to use as few ingredients and dishes as possible. 😉

One reader, A, commented: “I never make salmon because I usually mess fish up. I wanted to try again and looked for a baked recipe that wasn’t lemon covered—this looked like something pretty simple and I decided to give it a shot. My family LOVED it! My daughter said it tastes like restaurant salmon and everyone is begging me to put it into our rotation. I never leave recipe comments, but I’m sitting in front of my empty plate and was so happy with it that I have to hype this one up! ★★★★★“

Another reader, Nikki, commented: “This is my second time making this recipe. It’s so good and so easy. This is definitely one I’m going to be coming back to. ★★★★★“

You’ll Love This Honey Garlic Soy Salmon, Too:

35 minutes total: 15 minutes to marinate, 15–20 to bake
Only 6 easy ingredients
Marinade doubles as the glaze
Minimal effort, maximum flavor
Casual enough for the week, fancy enough for guests
Healthy, wholesome, dairy free
Easy recipe to halve or double

4 baked salmon filets on white plate smothered in a dark honey soy glaze and sprinkled with green onion.

Marinade Doubles as a Glaze

The 5-ingredient glaze is inspired by delicious Asian cuisine and made with soy sauce, ginger, garlic, honey, and a little sesame oil to help the marinade stick. As a marinade, it’s sweet and salty but has a deeper, more complex flavor from the garlic and fresh ginger. Use half of the mixture for a marinade, and then reduce the rest on the stove for a few minutes to drizzle over the cooked salmon. As a thickened glaze, the flavor is incredibly bold. It’s so, so tasty.

I also LOVE this honey soy sauce glazed salmon from the fantastic food blog Omnivore’s Kitchen. There’s a little whole-grain mustard and chili powder in that sauce.

This marinade/glaze reduction is also great on chicken. Replace the salmon with boneless chicken breasts or thighs and increase the bake time until the chicken is cooked through. See recipe Notes.

You can also skip the protein, make the sauce, reduce down on the stove and pour over a plate of steamed vegetables and rice. I’ve done that often and leftovers are delicious for lunch the next day.

Ingredients You Need & Why

There are so few ingredients in this honey garlic soy salmon dish… and each one has a key job!

Salmon: The fresher the salmon, the better. You want about 24 ounces (680g) total, and purchasing individual fillets makes prep easier. There are many different types of salmon, but try to find salmon fillets that are an even thickness so that they all cook in the same amount of time.
Honey: Honey is one of the main ingredients and pairs so well with garlic, something you may know if you’ve had this honey garlic shrimp before. (A similar, but even quicker dish!)
Soy Sauce: I typically use Kikkoman less sodium tamari soy sauce, which is labeled gluten free. Again, not sponsored… just a fan! If you’re gluten sensitive or intolerant, you can use that or swap the soy sauce with actual tamari sauce.
Sesame Oil: This is a new addition over the past couple years and I use it for sticking power. After dozens of times preparing this dish, I found the salmon holds onto the marinade a little better when there’s 1 Tablespoon of oil. If you don’t have sesame oil, olive oil is a fine replacement.
Garlic: You can use fresh or jarred/minced.
Fresh Ginger: Ginger gives this dish a warm, fresh, slightly sweet element. It’s one of my favorite ingredients in cooking and you’ll love it in peach pie, too.

salmon on white plate with ingredients arranged around it including soy sauce, sesame oil, fresh ginger, garlic, and honey.

Can I Use Frozen Salmon?

Yes, you can use frozen uncooked salmon. Thaw completely and then follow the recipe as written, including marinating and baking. You can use frozen/thawed salmon when making this 5 ingredient honey chipotle salmon and this baked lemon garlic salmon, too.

Step Photos: How to Make Honey Garlic Soy Salmon

Place salmon in a container or zipped-top bag. I usually use these glass containers for marinating and they work just as well for storing leftovers and freezing meals/baked goods. (See my list of Freezer Meals for some inspiration!) Mix the marinade ingredients together and pour about half over the salmon:

honey soy sauce marinade in bowl and poured over salmon in glass container.

Marinate the salmon for at least 15 minutes and up to 4 hours. You can stretch this to 8 hours if needed. You’ll love that this dish can work with any schedule, in a rush or not!

Place salmon on lined baking sheet; reserve used marinade if desired to reduce with the rest of the unused marinade:

4 marinated salmon filets on parchment paper-lined small baking sheet.

The sauce will caramelize over the salmon as it bakes:

4 baked salmon filets on parchment paper-lined small baking sheet.

While the salmon bakes, reduce the remaining marinade on the stove to make a glaze. You want a rich, thick glaze:

spoonful of honey garlic soy glaze picked up from black pot.

Drizzle the glaze all over the warm baked salmon. You could even drizzle a spoonful onto the salmon fillets towards the end of the bake time and return them to the oven to finish baking.

And your dinner is hot & ready! Feel free to garnish the honey garlic soy salmon with green onion and/or sesame seeds. I like to steam broccoli and make a packet of brown rice as the salmon bakes.

honey garlic glazed salmon on white plate with broccoli and rice.

The edges are crisp, the honey garlic soy salmon is tender, and the flavors are unbelievable!

Other Favorite Dinners

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Honey Garlic Soy Glazed Salmon

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.8 from 42 reviews

Author: Sally
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Yield: serves 4
Category: Dinner
Method: Cooking
Cuisine: Asian

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Description

This simple baked salmon is smothered with a 5-ingredient salty-sweet glaze and is ready in under 35 minutes!

Ingredients

4 salmon fillets, about 6 ounces (170g) each
1/3 cup (80ml) reduced sodium soy sauce (or regular)
1/3 cup (113g) honey
1 Tablespoon (15ml) sesame oil (or olive oil)
3 garlic cloves, minced (or 2 teaspoons jarred/minced)
1 teaspoon peeled minced fresh ginger
optional for garnish: chopped green onion and/or sesame seeds

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Instructions

Marinate the salmon: Place salmon fillets into a large zippered food storage bag or shallow dish/container. In a medium bowl, whisk soy sauce, honey, sesame oil, garlic, and ginger together. Pour about half of the mixture (just eyeball it) over salmon. Turn salmon to coat. Seal the bag/cover the dish and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes and up to 4 hours.
Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375°F (191°C). Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil, parchment paper, or a silicone baking mat. Set aside.
Line the marinated salmon fillets on the baking sheet, skin side down. You can hold onto this used marinade—see step 5. Bake salmon for 15–20 minutes or until done, which is 10 minutes per inch thickness measured from the thickest part of the fillet. (Salmon is considered done when an instant read thermometer reads the center of the thickest part as at least 145°F (63°C).) Feel free to turn your oven to broil for the last minute to really crisp the edges.
Meanwhile, as the salmon bakes, pour the remaining unused marinade into a small saucepan or skillet over medium-high heat. If you want, you can add the remaining (used) marinade as well. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 3–4 minutes or until slightly thickened. Keep a close eye on it because it can quickly burn. It will bubble up a lot as it reduces. Remove from heat.
Drizzle thickened glaze over baked salmon and serve with optional garnish.
Leftovers keep well in the refrigerator for a few days. Reheat to your liking.

Notes

Make Ahead Instructions: You can marinate the salmon up to 4 hours in advance. If needed, you can extend to 8 hours.
Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Containers | Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Baking Sheet | Silicone Baking Mat, Parchment Paper, or Foil | Instant Read Thermometer | Small Saucepan
Sides: To complete the meal, serve the salmon with steamed broccoli and rice. Both are excellent with glaze drizzled on top. You can cook both as the salmon bakes.
Can I use frozen salmon? Yes, you can use frozen uncooked salmon fillets. Thaw completely before using.
Can I replace salmon with chicken? Yes, you can replace the salmon with boneless chicken breasts or thighs and increase the bake time until the chicken is cooked through. Marinate the chicken for closer to 1 hour instead of just 15 minutes.

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 salmon filet
Calories: 408
Sugar: 21.7 g
Sodium: 922.9 mg
Fat: 11.5 g
Carbohydrates: 28.6 g
Protein: 48 g
Cholesterol: 86.7 mg

Sally McKenney

Sally McKenney is a baker, food photographer, and New York Times best-selling author. Her kitchen-tested recipes and step-by-step tutorials have given millions of readers the knowledge and confidence to bake from scratch. Sally’s work has been featured on TODAY, Good Morning America, Taste of Home, People, and more.