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Bourbon Brown Sugar Glazed Salmon

Oven Roasted Bourbon Brown Sugar Glazed Salmon

A bourbon brown sugar glaze makes this oven roasted glazed salmon an absolute delight! Easy to make and perfect for any night of the week.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Servings 2
Calories 499 kcal

Equipment

Ingredients
  

  • 2 Skin-on salmon fillets about 6 oz each
  • ½ cup bourbon
  • ¼ cup brown sugar packed
  • 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
  • 1 teaspoon low sodium soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • Pinch kosher salt
  • Pinch black pepper
  • 1 small shallot diced fine
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 2 Tablespoons water
  • Lemon wedges
  • Green onions for garnish

Instructions
 

Prepare the Salmon

  • Preheat the oven to 400°F. Clean and pat dry your salmon fillets with paper towels. Place salmon fillets on a rack over an aluminum foil lined rimmed baking sheet, skin side down, in the refrigerator for 20 minutes or so as you make the glaze and let the oven preheat.
    2 Skin-on salmon fillets

Make the Glaze

  • For the glaze, whisk the bourbon, brown sugar, dijon mustard, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, a pinch of kosher salt and black pepper, finely diced shallots, lemon juice, and the water in a saucepan. Turn the heat to medium low and carefully heat the glaze. Bourbon is flammable, so keep the heat down and let it simmer gently for several minutes, stirring often. The sugar will dissolve and the mixture will just start to thicken.
    ½ cup bourbon, ¼ cup brown sugar, 1 teaspoon dijon mustard, 1 teaspoon low sodium soy sauce, 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce, Pinch kosher salt, Pinch black pepper, 1 small shallot, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 2 Tablespoons water
  • At this point, remove the pan from the heat. The alcohol from the bourbon should have cooked off - you’ll be able to tell by the smell. Be careful not to cook your glaze too much - you do not want it to caramelize in the pan.

Roast the Salmon

  • Remove the salmon from the fridge. Sprinkle the top of the salmon fillets with a pinch of kosher salt and black pepper. Baste on the top and sides with some of the glaze using a silicone brush or natural brush. Place the salmon in the preheated oven on the lower or center rack for 10 minutes.
    Pinch kosher salt, Pinch black pepper
  • While the salmon cooks, pull the salmon out briefly to brush with more of the glaze. Return to the oven for 5 minutes more, then remove the salmon and turn the heat to broil. Brush the salmon fillets again with the glaze and place on the top rack to broil for 3 minutes. The salmon should be just flaky but not overdone but the cooking times will depend on the thickness of your salmon fillets.
  • If you like the salmon cooked more, return it to the oven on the lower rack (do not continue to broil the salmon) for a minute or two. The internal temperature of cooked salmon should be between 125-145°F based on preference - we prefer our salmon cooked around 125°F for flaky salmon that is still very tender at medium rare doneness.

Finish the Dish

  • Remove the salmon from the oven. If you have remaining glaze, pour it over the salmon fillets. Let it rest for a few minutes, then remove it from the rack by sliding a metal spatula between the skin and the flesh of the fish. The skin should remove easily and will be left behind, as it should stick to the rack.
  • Serve the salmon, garnished with lemon wedges and green onions.
    Lemon wedges, Green onions

Notes

Substitutions:
  • Salmon: Although the fattiness of salmon helps take in the glaze, you could use other fish, such as trout, swordfish or mackerel.
  • Bourbon: You could actually use any spirit you choose here! The bourbon complements the brown sugar but experimenting with other spirits like brandy or rum is fair game here.
  • Brown sugar: ​Replace the brown sugar with maple syrup for a maple flavored glaze.
  • Soy sauce: ​You could use tamari for a gluten free option.
  • Shallot: Onion is a good substitute for shallot in this recipe.
Storage:
How to store leftover glazed salmon: Store leftover glazed salmon in a covered airtight container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. Bring the salmon to room temperature before storing.
How to reheat leftover glazed salmon: You can eat it cold, but if you want to reheat it, place in the oven at 300°F until warmed through.
Top tip:
This recipe assumes you are using salmon fillets with the skin on. When you first put the salmon on the rack, do not put anything on the rack to make the skin release (unless you really want to eat it) after cooking. That way the skin can be left welded to the rack after cooking and you can easily remove it for serving.
If cooking the salmon without skin, we recommend cooking it on a sheet pan with parchment paper sprayed with cooking spray so that you can easily remove the fillets to serve.

Nutrition

Calories: 499kcalCarbohydrates: 30gProtein: 34gFat: 11gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 94mgSodium: 242mgPotassium: 952mgFiber: 1gSugar: 28gVitamin A: 73IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 54mgIron: 2mg
Keyword bourbon, brown sugar, glaze, salmon
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