15 Best Sauces For Salmon

Now that you already master how to prepare the best salmon dish, all you need is the right sauce. 

Here are our 15 best sauces for salmon that can elevate your favorite fish, from umami-packed Miso Glaze to fancy Remoulade Sauce.

Salmon is among the most popular types of fish that’s also consumed as food. 

Salmon consumption worldwide has grown three times higher in the last half-century,  making salmon aquaculture among the fastest-growing food production systems in the world. 

This type of fish is well consumed due to its ample supply, which is why there are endless delicious recipes abound with salmon. 

Salmon is known for having a buttery and mild taste, with a no-fishy taste that differentiates it from other varieties of fish. 

It has a high-fat content without feeling or tasting “fatty,” making its fish meat more pleasant and appetizing.

The enticing flavor of fish meat derives its taste from its fat and inosinic acid, which also provide savory umami. 

Salmon fish meat has an outstanding balance of these key elements, making salmon a well-desired protein for many recipes.

Whether you’re cooking a whole fresh salmon or enjoying salmon filets, you’re always assured of a satisfying meal. 

And while salmon on its own is quite incredible, dressing it up with sauces is always a great way to elevate any dish. 

Sauces for salmon can be made right at home, making any home cook seem like a fancy restaurant chef. 

To create mouth-watering combinations on your plate, here are sauces for salmon for you to learn! 

The #11Pesto Sauce is a zingy and bright option that can make your simple salmon look incredibly enticing.

1. Miso Glaze

This Miso Glaze can enrich your salmon dish with delectable umami in every bite. 

With just a handful of ingredients, it can be made in just 5 minutes. 

Miso is the ultimate reference point for the sensation of umami. 

This glaze provides a profoundly savory, toasty, tangy, sweet, and briny flavor that can make a plate of Miso Salmon much better. 

This Japanese-inspired sauce features miso, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sugar, sriracha hot sauce, and salt; all whisked together to create an instant miso glaze that you can cover the meat, seafood, and vegetables with. 

It’s so delicious that you might choose to brush it on just about everything. 

2. Honey-Mustard Sauce

This sauce is the highlight of the Honey-Mustard Salmon recipe and provides all the right profiles for tender salmon baked in the oven or on the grill.

With ingredients such as whole-grain mustard, honey, garlic, lemon, and smoked paprika, this sauce is unlike any other and can get your succulent salmon to pop with so much flavor and color. 

This sweet and savory Honey-Mustard Sauce can be modified according to preference by adding in more mustard or using more honey if you prefer it to be more savory or sweeter.

3. Lemon Butter Sauce

This excellent sauce is a standard when cooking with salmon, providing a rich and tangy addition to the briny taste of the fish. 

Made with butter, fresh lemon juice, garlic, salt, and pepper, the flavors of the combined ingredients truly pop out to become a luscious, buttery sauce that you can use with just about anything. 

You can serve it on roasted vegetables, chicken, pasta, and so much more, but it has a special place drizzled generously right on top of scrumptious salmon. 

4. Creamy Cilantro Lime Sauce

This sauce provides fresh and dazzling flavors that can complement the delicate salmon. 

The combination of the tasty herb cilantro with fresh lime adds in all the citrus zest you would want that’s best paired with your filet of fish.  

This recipe combines sour cream, onions, cilantro, garlic, and fresh lime juice, all processed to integrate and become an irresistible sauce.

5. Chimichurri

An impressive way to make your salmon an absolute crowd-pleaser is by adding herby chimichurri sauce. 

Chimichurri is an authentic classic from Argentina that adds a bright and garlicky taste to many grilled types of meat, such as chicken, fish, and vegetables, and pairs remarkably well with supple salmon. 

To create this acidic, herbal sauce, combine parsley, garlic, and oregano to acquire its herby flavors and bright green color, then add some red chilies for heat. 

This wonderful classic sauce is so delicious that you won’t be able to resist heaping spoonfuls over your salmon.

6. Béarnaise Sauce

Béarnaise is a delicate sauce that pairs perfectly well with various types of fish and can also be slathered onto chicken or steak. 

Regarded as an off-shoot of the famous Hollandaise sauce, it’s made of butter emulsified in egg yolks and tarragon vinegar and infused with various herbs. 

The addition of tarragon provides elevated tastes that make this sauce luscious and rich, with its pale yellow color and creamy texture. 

7. Dill Sauce

Ideal for grilled salmon, this Dill Sauce is creamy and thick and can be whisked together in under 5 minutes.

Dill herb has a bright and sweet flavor, with a fresh and citrus-like taste and a herbaceous undertone. 

It pairs well with garlic and mint, making this herb a tremendous complementary side to fish and seafood. 

Made with Greek yogurt, sour cream, fresh dill, chives, garlic, and lemon juice, this sauce is easily combined by whisking it all together and letting it sit for some time since the ingredients can intensify the longer you let it rest. 

8. Honey Garlic Glaze

Best paired with salmon eaten alongside vegetables and rice, this sweet and sticky Honey Garlic Glaze is a definite must-try! 

The sauce combines butter, garlic, water, soy sauce, sriracha, honey, and lemon juice, to quickly simmer on a large skillet over medium-high heat until the sauce is heated through. 

This sauce’s combination of zingy, spicy, and sweet profiles makes it irresistible! 

9. Leek & Olive Gremolata Sauce

This delicious green garnish can add freshness to your plate and is highly regarded in Italian cuisine. 

It’s made with leeks, olives, herbs, and white wine vinegar, making this recipe a vibrant addition to your salmon dish. 

This sauce provides aromatic and vibrant flavors that you would want on your mildly tender salmon, with this version of the traditional recipe being a bit tangier.

10. Coconut Lime Sauce

This tasty Coconut Lime Sauce is inspired by Thai coconut curry sauce, offering sophisticated flavors with just a fraction of the traditional ingredients needed to make the original sauce.

This sauce is mainly made by caramelizing ginger, garlic, and lemongrass with sugar before the coconut milk is added into the mix. 

Elevate its taste by adding fish sauce, chili garlic paste, and lime to taste, and you’ll have a sauce that goes perfectly great with poached salmon.

11. Spinach Basil Pesto

Pesto is another incredible sauce that can make tender baked fish stunning! 

Bright green pesto provides bright and herby flavors, with a creamy texture and a remarkably luscious green color. 

This recipe combines baby spinach, basil, almonds, parmesan, garlic, lemon juice, salt, olive oil, and pepper, all coming together using a food processor.

Add your favorite herbs and spices, like mint, cilantro, cayenne, paprika, and much more. 

Pair this Pesto Sauce with lemon and smother it onto your salmon, and you’ll have everything that’s to be desired right on your plate! 

12. Tomato Basil Salsa

This Tomato Basil Salsa is an ideal topping for your grilled salmon if you’re craving an Italian-inspired recipe for dinner! 

This recipe combines herbs with fresh tomatoes, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar to provide a fresh, light, and delicious sauce that goes perfectly with your restaurant-worthy baked salmon. 

13. Apricot Dijon Glaze

A fruity and delectable glaze that offers sweet, spicy, briny, and sour profiles, this sauce made from apricot and dijon mustard provides a blend of flavors that complements salmon to create a fabulous dish! 

It combines apricot preserve, grainy mustard, dijon mustard, soy sauce, lime juice, ginger, and garlic, to create a tasty glaze that you can marinate your salmon with before baking and brush with after the salmon is cooked.

14. Beurre Blanc

A classic French butter sauce, the Beurre Blanc is a pale yellow sauce that’s thick and creamy, traditionally made from butter, shallots, white wine, and white wine vinegar. 

It offers sweet and tangy tones with a velvety richness worthy of being savored. 

Herbs such as parsley, thyme, and tarragon may also be added to provide more layers of flavor. 

Creating this sauce may be a bit tedious, with the process of emulsion by adding butter cubes at a slow pace being vital to making the thick and creamy sauce.

15. Remoulade Sauce

Remoulade is a traditional French sauce with a mayonnaise base that typically includes mustard, herbs, pickles, or capers. 

It’s a zingy condiment that’s often eaten with seafood and is often featured in Cajun and Creole cuisine. 

This sauce can uplift even the simplest pan-fried salmon, making it an elevated dish that’s so flavorful.

The bottom line

With the variety of sauces for salmon, you can create plenty of different delicious dishes that you can pair with simple salmon. 

These options can add complex layers of various profiles to your salmon dish, whether grilled, baked, or fried on a pan.