Tasty Garlic Butter Salmon

Sheet pan salmon with garlic butter brings fancy restaurant vibes to your home dinner with almost no work. This all-in-one meal pairs flaky salmon, crunchy-outside-soft-inside potatoes, and fresh asparagus all soaked in a tasty garlic butter mix that makes every bite rich and turns basic ingredients into something amazing.

I stumbled on this dish during a super busy time when I wanted something that looked fancy but wasn't hard to make. My husband took a bite and stopped talking mid-sentence to ask, "Where'd you find time to cook this?" I've kept how easy it is my little secret until now—sometimes it's nice when people think you put in more effort than you really did!

Delicious Flavor-Building Ingredients

• Salmon fillets work as the main star that soaks up all the yummy flavors—grab wild-caught if you can afford it, the taste is worth it
• Small potatoes give you that awesome mix of crispy outsides and soft middles—they're tiny enough to finish cooking right when the salmon does
• Real garlic adds so much more flavor than the powdered stuff—don't hold back since it gets much milder when baked
• Butter makes everything taste better—go with unsalted so you can add just the right amount of salt yourself
• Fresh lemon cuts through the richness and wakes up all the flavors—bottled juice just isn't the same
• A bit of white wine gives the sauce extra depth—even just a tiny amount makes everything taste more grown-up

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Simple Preparation Steps

Get Those Potatoes Going

First, heat your oven to 400°F, then mix your cut baby potatoes with olive oil, some of your chopped garlic, salt and pepper. Put them on your baking sheet and let them cook alone for 15 minutes. This gives them time to get golden outside and soft inside before the other stuff joins the party.

Add The Salmon

When the potatoes have had their solo time, push them to one side of the pan. Put your salmon pieces skin-down in the middle, making them the focus of your meal. Rub them with chopped garlic and fresh parsley, making sure to cover every bit. Putting these flavors right on the fish helps them soak in from the outside.

Throw In The Asparagus

Put your cleaned asparagus on the empty part of the pan. Setting everything up this way lets heat move around properly while the flavors mix together. The asparagus will cook just right alongside your salmon.

Pour On The Magic

Mix melted butter with fresh lemon juice and drizzle this amazing mixture over your salmon and asparagus. This simple combo works wonders by keeping the fish moist and basically basting it as it cooks. Finish with a sprinkle of salt and some fresh ground pepper.

Finish It Off

Stick your pan back in the oven for about 10 minutes, until the salmon turns light pink and breaks apart easily with a fork. For extra yumminess, switch to the broiler for the last two minutes—but watch it closely to catch that perfect moment when the edges turn golden and slightly crispy.

I made this once for my mother-in-law who always says she "doesn't really like salmon." After we ate, I caught her sneakily swiping the last bits of garlic butter from the pan with her finger. She's asked me to make it three more times since then, though she still claims she's "not a salmon person." Guess garlic butter can win over even the biggest fish skeptics!

What To Serve With It