Let’s face it, salmon could use a facelift. So we wanted to share an easy, but wickedly flavorful recipe that will take your salmon up a notch! This Salmon with Mango Lime Cream Sauce will leave you licking the plate and coming back for more!
How to Cook the Salmon Fillets
Oven-baked salmon seasoned with salt and pepper may sound basic, primarily because it is! This is probably the simplest way to cook these fillets, but there are two reasons why this is the method of choice for this recipe.
First, it allows the salmon to be the star without some heavy seasoning covering it up during the cooking process.
Second, having a simple preparation of salmon really lets the sauce make its presence known and, most importantly, combines with the fish to create the magic of the dish. The sauce is the true hero here, and we wanted to make sure it shows!
The Magical Mango Lime Cream Sauce
So, what about this sauce? It may sound a bit “out there,” but it really is just about making sure flavors go together, are prepared together in the right way, and are used in proportions that make your final sauce sing like an opera star!
The mango-lime combo with salmon is a match made in heaven! There are tons of great recipes for salmon with mango out there that are always a hit (like this Blackened Salmon with Mango Salsa recipe)! So adding this flavor combo to cream for a sauce makes all the sense in the world!
The key to making a good cream sauce is patience. Don’t boil it to reduce it just because it should be thick. You must take the time to get the flavors to infuse in the sauce. So simmering the sauce and giving it the time it needs is important here.
We chose vegetable stock as part of the base in the cream sauce. But you can certainly use a different stock to start the process. A light seafood or fish stock would be great as well, but we had a beautiful homemade vegetable stock handy; and it is our personal preference anyway.
Using a little cayenne pepper helps balance the dish a little without making it “spicy.” If you can find the French pepper called Espelette, grab some and use it here! It has a unique taste that really is hard to describe, but if you like cayenne, paprika, etc., you’ll love this French Basque pepper!
Enjoy!
We hope that you enjoy this recipe for Salmon with Mango Lime Cream Sauce! If you give it a try, leave us a comment below or tag us on Instagram @cooking_with_wine!
Looking for more recipes like this? Check these out:
- Sea Bass with Seasonal Citrus Salsa
- Yellowtail with Lemon Caper Cream Sauce and Spinach Orzo
- Mussels in Fennel Saffron Wine Sauce
- Scallops with Golden Romesco Sauce and Black Rice
- Delicious Red Snapper Amandine
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Salmon with Mango Lime Cream Sauce
Course: DinnerCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Easy4
servings15
minutes40
minutes55
minutesIngredients
- For the Salmon
Salmon fillets (about 4-6 oz per person)
1 Tbsp 1 olive oil
1 tsp 1 kosher salt
½ tsp white pepper
Pinch cayenne pepper (if you can find Espelette pepper, use it)
- For the Sauce
½ of a mango, chopped
2 tsp 2 sugar
1 1 lime – juice and zest
½ tsp kosher salt
¼ cup white wine or Prosecco
2 tsp 2 olive oil
1 small 1 shallot
2 cups 2 vegetable stock
8 8 peppercorns
1 tsp 1 kosher salt
1 1 bay leaf
3 sprigs 3 thyme
2 2 parsley stems
1 1 -1/2 cups of heavy cream
Cayenne pepper (or Espelette) for garnish
Directions
- Prepare the Sauce
- This sauce should not be rushed, so start it ahead of time. In a small pan over medium heat, cook your chopped mango, sugar, lime juice, lime zest, kosher salt, and wine for several minutes. You want to cook this down so the mango is very soft and most of the liquid is gone. At this point, you can remove the mango mixture from the heat, and either puree it or pass it through a fine sieve. Set aside.
- While you are cooking the mango mixture, in another saucepan, heat the olive oil and sauté the shallots for just a couple of minutes to soften them. Once softened, add the stock, peppercorns, salt, bay leaf, thyme, and parsley. Cook until the stock is reduced by half, then add the cream and 2 Tbsp of the mango mixture. Make sure you whisk in the mango mixture thoroughly.
- Bring the sauce to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, reducing for about 20 minutes. Strain the entire mixture and discard the solids.
- After straining, return the sauce to a saucepan and continue to reduce until the mixture has thickened into a sauce consistency (approx 20-30 min). Taste for seasoning. This can be warmed up on low right before serving over the salmon.
- Prepare the Salmon
- Preheat the oven to 425°F
- Dry the salmon completely and either let rest in the refrigerator for a little while or cook immediately. Lightly coat the salmon flesh with olive oil, then sprinkle the salt and the two peppers on the fish. It is not necessary to oil the salmon skin as it will be discarded before serving. Place the fish on a cast iron pan or baking sheet skin side down (again, no need to oil the pan/sheet). Put the salmon in the preheated oven for about 8 minutes. Depending on the thickness of your salmon, it could take a minute or two less or more. If you are using a thermometer to determine doneness, 120°F internal temperature at the thickest part is perfect for salmon.
- Remove from the oven and let the fish rest for a couple of minutes before you remove the skin (it should easily separate from the fillets. Serve the fish with rice (or your sides of choice) and the cream sauce. Enjoy!
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