Do you have dishes that transport you back to your childhood? Since I was little, my favorite family recipe has been ginger garlic salmon. For me, this masterpiece is it! Nearly every holiday, birthday, or special occasion, my uncle makes a big batch for our entire extended family. It has always been the dish I look most forward to enjoying at every gathering. Yet, up until a few months ago, some members of the Yonsei generation (which includes me and my brother) hadn’t got our hands on the actual recipe. For those who don’t know about Japanese immigrant terminology, visit this article. The terminology matters, and it’s very much a part of our culture, family history and heritage.
Anyway, this ginger garlic salmon recipe had been passed down from generation to generation – Issei to Nisei, Nisei to Sansei. However, it had been kept a secret among the younger groups (Yonsei and Gosei). Well, the Yonsei time has come! After getting approval from my Uncle, I’m beyond thrilled to share the recipe with all of you too!
Ginger Garlic Salmon Ingredients
If you don’t normally cook Japanese dishes at home, you’ll most likely need to purchase a few new sauces like sesame oil, Aji-Mirin (a sweet cooking rice seasoning), and Shoyu (Japanese soy sauce). I’m always able to find them either at our regular grocery store or Target. Moreover, this recipe is very ginger and garlic forward in flavors. If you don’t like either ingredient (or salmon in general), this dish is not for you! If you love ginger and enjoy garlic, I hope you’ll bookmark this recipe and share it with your loved ones.
Overall, making this dish is a pretty straightforward process, thanks to the simple (and delicious) ingredients. After you prepare it once, it’s easy to create again and again. I hope you will!
Ginger Garlic Salmon
Equipment
- Mixing bowl
- Cutting board
- Knife
- Teaspoon
- Grater or microplane
- Tin foil
- Sheet pan
- Large sauce pan
- Measuring Spoons
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp Shoyu
- 1 tbsp Aji-Mirin
- 2 tbsp Sesame Oil
- 1 pound Fresh Salmon Filets approx. 2 filets
- 2-3 tbsp Fresh Ginger Root to taste
- 2-3 stalks Green Onion to taste
- 2-3 individual Fresh Garlic Cloves to taste
- 1 tsp Salt to taste
- 2 tsp Olive Oil
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees.
- While oven heats, place salmon fillets on a foil-lined cooking sheet. Pat fillets with paper towel to remove excess moisture. Coat top of each fillet with 1 tsp olive oil and use fingers to evenly distribute oil over salmon.
- Once oven is preheated, cover fillets with foil and bake 13-15 minutes.
- While the oven preheats and salmon bakes, prepare sauce.
- Peel fresh ginger root with the edge of a teaspoon.
- Grate ginger using microplane or grater and set aside.
- Peel and finely chop garlic cloves and set aside.
- Finely chop 2-3 green onion and set aside.
- Mix Shoyu and Aji-Mirin in a mixing bowl. If more sauce is needed, increase amount but keep ratio.
- Add garlic and ginger to the sauce mixture and stir and set aside.
- Heat sesame oil in a large saucepan on stovetop until it starts to slightly smoke. Do not overheat, as it will burn.
- Turn off heat and carefully add the shoyu, aji-mirin, garlic, ginger mixture to the hot sesame oil pan. It will splatter, so please be careful. Using an oversized saucepan with high sides will reduce the potential for spattering on stovetop.
- Stir until ingredients are well mixed.
- One salmon fillets are thoroughly cooked and plated, add sauce to the top of each fillet.
- Sprinkle the salmon fillets with chopped green onion to taste.
- Enjoy!
Closing disclaimer: I’ve never been, nor will ever be a food blogger! For all things cooking and recipes, beyond my family, I refer to a few trusted sources – my good friend, Kit of The Kittchen, Half Baked Harvest, Jean Wang of Extra Petite, Jocelyn Delk Adams of Grandbaby Cakes, Food Network, and Bon Appétit. This just happens to be a cherished family recipe that I’m thrilled to pass along to you. Enjoy!
