Juicy Tender Salmon And Creamy Garlic Herb Sauce

Juicy, tender salmon seasoned to perfection and topped with a creamy, finger-licking white sauce made from heavy cream, cooking wine, and Parmesan cheese. This dish is the ultimate comfort meal for any seafood lover.

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Hey yo I’m happy to finally upload this recipe not only because it’s delicious but it’s only my second salmon recipe on this site. My last salmon recipe I made with a lemon butter garlic sauce this one with a delicious garlic and herb sauce made with white wine Parmesan cheese and heavy cream.

I’m not the biggest fan of salmon but my mother is and has been forcing me to get into eating it more lately lol. It’s growing on me but I found myself becoming bored with it because I was eating it so much mainly for my healthy lifestyle change and weight loss Journey.

So I’ve been looking for a different ways to make it, more so different things to top it with when I luckily came across a Instagram video of someone typing it with a white creamy sauce.

So I looked it up and found out they were using Parmesan cheese and white wine and decided to give it a shot. There’s y’all know I always switch things up and customize things to my liking and to make the recipe mine and that’s what I did.

Let me get into some of the changes I made to the sauce after experimenting with it a few times and talk about how to achieve a nice juicy tender salmon and different ways to cook it.

Cookware and utensils

Ok so let me tell ya what cookware and utensils you’re gonna need. You’re going to need a Baking Sheet to cook the salmon on and an Instant Food Thermometer to check for doneness, especially if you’re new to cooking.

You also need a Small Skillet or Saucepan to make the creamy garlic herb sauce and a Whisk to stir in the sauce. A whisk helps to break up the lumps and helps the Parmesan cheese melt.

Ingredients You’ll Need:

• Meat: Salmon
• Fat: Butter and Olive Oil
• Seasonings: Adobo, Paprika, Garlic Powder, and Black Pepper
  For the creamy garlic herb sauce
• Liquids: Heavy Whipping cream, Chicken broth, and white cooking wine
• Cheese: Parmesan cheese and Cream Cheese
• Seasonings & Herbs: Italian seasoning, and Parsley Flakes

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Cooking time, temperature, and cooking tips:

Ok so first off, the best salmon is juicy tender salmon and I’ve found a few ways to achieve just that. Cooking the salmon for a short period of time is key. Now let’s talk about the two common ways it’s prepared.

• How to keep it juicy: Baking salmon in the oven is the most common way it’s cooked. But baking them at a low temperature for a few minutes gets it nice and juicy; Like at 350 for 17 minutes.
• Doneness: If the portions are really thick it may take longer. Using a thermometer by sticking it into the thickest center and an internal temperature read of 145 will determine it’s done.
• For crispy skin: Ok so one of the most common mistakes people make when baking salmon is waiting for it to brown while cooking it at a low temperature. It’s NOT, and I repeat, NOT going to get brown or a crispy skin cooking at low heat. Cook it on high heat for a short period of time if you want a crispy skin. 
• Well done salmon a no no: Another thing, it’s important not to cook it well done because it cant be reheated. I always tell people if you cook your salmon well done, its going to be even drier if you try to reheat it. This is why cooking it medium well is the way to go because when you reheat it, it wont dry out since you never cooked it thoroughly.

The olive oil and butter

About the oil and butter… I like to use a combination of both! Most people just use one or the other, with olive oil being the common choice. Olive oil helps to open up the pores of the salmon.

This allows the seasonings to get into the meat, which is why marinating this overnight is a good option. Olive oil also helps to brown the salmon. I use butter to help brown the salmon as well.

I mainly use butter for flavor and I brush both onto each side of the salmon before seasoning it. Both help the seasonings adhere which is why I brush the butter and olive oil over the salmon first.

Use unsalted butter because we’re already using a lot of seasonings and ingredients with sodium in it and you dont want the salmon salty. Also, use a good brand of butter.

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The seasonings + alternatives

Ok so the seasonings… here are the seasonings I use to season the salmon and I dont use many people you dont need many, it’s just salmon and we dont want to overpower the taste of the salmon of the sauce.

Adobo seasoning: As I said so many times before, adobo seasoning is one of my favorites, so it should no shock you that I’m using it as my seasoning for TASTE… Alternatives are…

• Seasoning salt
• Complete seasoning
• Salt

All these seasonings will work just fine if you dont have any Adobo on hand which I personally think works best for Salmon. But seasoning salt, complete seasoning, and salt will get the job done.

Just use less salt since it’s stronger and more potent per teaspoon. Always remember that salt is the saltiest “taste” seasoning because all it’s made of is salt.

Paprika: Paprika, paprika, paprika, you see it listed as an ingredient in almost every Salmon recipe and the reason it’s so important is because it gives the salmon COLOR!

I wont even make salmon without paprika! I hate very pink looking salmon but that’s just me. Salmon also help to brown the flesh of the salmon as it’s baking, or rather it gives the appearance of browned meat once the salmon’s done.

There aren’t really any substitutions of replacements for paprika! Paprika is often used for flavor but mostly as a decorative season you garnish salads with to make them more appetizing and to give meat color.

Garlic: Garlic is a must when making salmon… I always say that. It just goes so well with salmon and completes it. Salmon just isn’t salmon to me without a lil garlic being added to it.

• Minced Garlic: If you dont have garlic powder, you can use minced garlic or garlic paste if you have some on hand. But in this case, you really dont even need it because we’ll be using more than enough garlic for the garlic and herb sauce.

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The creamy garlic & herb sauce:

• Heavy Whipping Cream: The heavy cream is the base ingredient. Cant make the sauce without the heavy cream and we’ll be using more heavy cream than anything else. 
• White Cooking Wine: This is what makes the sauce… it’s the more prominent flavor and that unique taste and flavor that makes the sauce what it is. 
• Chicken Broth: Chicken broth just adds another layer of flavor and provides depth of flavor and it also thin out the sauce to give it the right consistency.
• Parmesan Cheese: Parmesan cheese adds flavor to the sauce. The parmesan cheese is probably the third most prominent flavor and the flavor you taste the most after the white wine and garlic.
• Butter: Butter is for flavor and it’s used to sautee the minced garlic. Use unsalted butter and a good brand of butter. There’s only a few ingredients so make every ingredient count.
• Minced Garlic: This is garlic herb sauce, so we use a nice amount of garlic, and the type of garlic used is minced garlic, but you can use garlic paste as well. It’s the 2nd most prominent flavor of the sauce.
• Salt: I use a pinch of salt, just a little salt brings out and enhances the flavor of the sauce. Without it, the sauce will still be good, but the salt brings out and strengthens all the flavors of the sauce.
• Herbs: So it’s called garlic and herb sauce right? So we add a few herbs, that being Italian seasoning and Parsley flakes. I use Italian seasoning because it’s made of every herb you can think of. 

The Cream Cheese:

Last but not least the cream cheese and there’s quite a few things I need to say about the cream cheese and why I add it to this sauce.

• It’s an emulsifier: Cream cheese is essential because it’s an emulsifier. Parmesan cheese is hard and doesn’t fully melt, and so just like when making Alfredo sauce, I add a hint of cream cheese to help assist it in melting. When you hear folk say ALL cheeses aren’t equal, Parmesan cheese definitely had a hand in birthing that saying because it just refuses to fully melt.
• It’s a thickener: Cream cheese is also used to thicken the sauce and to give it a velvety consistency. This is the same reason people like to add it to their Alfredo sauce.
• Philadelphia cream cheese: Last but not least, use a good brand of cream cheese. I like to use Philadelphia cream cheese because it’s the best brand and standard for cream cheese.

How to make Salmon with Creamy Garlic & Herb Sauce

1.  Place the salmon on a baking sheet and preheat the oven at 350 degrees.
2. Rub the salmon down with olive oil and season it beautifully.
3. Melt and pour the butter over the salmon.
4. Bake for 17 minutes and then remove.
5. Meanwhile create the creamy garlic butter sauce: Place a small skillet over medium heat.
6. Add in  the butter and minced garlic then stir.
7. Once the butter melts pour in the white cooking wine and simmer for 3 minutes or so.
8. Pour in the  heavy cream and broth, then add in the parm and cream cheese, then stir well.
9. Simmer for 5 to 7 minutes.
10. Add in the herbs of your choice.

Tips for best results:

• Shake the broth and cream before use: Make sure to shake the heavy cream and broth before use. Because heavy cream forms lumps in the cartoon, especially if you’ve had it a while, and all the good flavor of broth seaps down to the bottom.
• Use fresh salmon: Salmon is like ground beef in that it taste best made right after you buy it. I’ve found that cooking it after sitting in the freezer for 2 weeks diminishes its goodness. So yea… go new and fresh!
• To ensure doneness: Use a instant food thermometer if you’re new to cooking and want to check for doneness without making a mess. This will guarantee your salmon is cooked all way through.

Storage and reheating

• How to store the salmon? Cover it fully in aluminum foil or place it in a glass tupperware and cover it tightly with a lid then place it in the refrigerator. If it’s covered and sealed well, it’ll stay fresh for a while.
• How to reheat salmon? The best way to reheat salmon is by wrapping it in aluminum foil, and placing it in the oven at 350 degree until it’s warm all the through through to the center. Wrapping in aluminum foil will keep it from drying out.
• How to reheat the garlic & herb sauce? Sauce tends to thicken after sitting in cool air in the refrigerator and when you reheat it, the sauce often breaks. The best way to reheat the sauce and fix and broken sauce is by warming it up in a skillet over low heat. Stir in a little milk or water and stir until warm and smooth which will bring it together. 

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Frequently asked questions

• Can you cover the salmon with aluminum foil? The cooking time is very short, it only takes 17-18 minutes to cook Salmon so you dont have to worry about it drying it. Plus salmon if you didn’t know is a very tender meat so you dont need to cover it with aluminum foil to get it tender

Now when it comes to the garlic herb sauce…

It’s probably stiffened which happens to sauce as the cool air hit it while sitting in the refrigerator. Just add it to a bowl or small skillet, stir in a little broth or water, just a little, and warm it up over low heat.

Make sure you stir it as it’s warming up to prevent it from sticking and to remove any lumps that may have formed while chillin’ in the frig. Use a whisk to stir it with.

Make sure to print this recipe and save it to your Pinterest!

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Alright yall I’m all wrapped out and ready to grub! I’m sure yall are ready to cook now that you have all the information you need. Please like the recipe and give it a 5 star rating if you enjoy it as much as I do.

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Enjoy, later

PBJ~

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Juicy Tender Salmon And Creamy Garlic Herb Sauce

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• Author: PhillyboyJay
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 20 mins
• Total Time: 30 Mins
• Yield: 6
• Category: Fish & Seafood
• Method: Soul Food
• Cuisine: American

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Description

Juicy tender salmon seasoned to perfect than topped with a creamy finger licking white sauce made of heavy cream, cooking wine, and parmesan cheese.

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Ingredients

Salmon

• 2lbs Atlantic Salmon
• 1 Tbs Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 Tbs Butter
• 2 Tsps Paprika
• 1–1/2 Tsp Adobo
• 1 Tsp Garlic
• 1/2 Tsp Black Pepper

  For the Garlic & Herb sauce 

• 1/2 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream
• 1/3 Cup Shaved Parmesan Cheese
• 1/4 Cup White Cooking Wine
• 1/4 Cup Chicken Broth
• 2 Tbs Minced Garlic
• 1 Tbs Philadelphia Cream Cheese
• 1 Tbs Butter
• 1/4 Tsp Italian Seasoning
• 1/4 Parsley Flakes

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Instructions

1.  Clean, scale (optional), then slice salmon into 5 to 6 portions.
2.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
3.  Melt butter, then combine with olive oil and brush it on both sides of the salmon.
4.  Combine the seasonings into a bowl, then sprinkle it onto both sides of the salmon.
5. Place on a baking sheet and bake on 350 for 17 minutes, then remove.
6.  For the creamy garlic herb sauce: Place a small skillet or saucepan over medium heat.
7.   Add in the butter and minced garlic and stir for 2 minutes.
8.  Pour in the white wine and simmer for 3 minutes.
9.  Pour in the heavy cream, broth, parmesan cheese, cream cheese, and simmer for 5 minutes, while whisking periodically.
10.  Sprinkle in the Italian seasonings and parsley flakes. 

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Notes

Want a thicker sauce? Give it a few minutes, the sauce thickens as it chills.