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Seared Salmon with Balsamic Glaze

By America's Test Kitchen

Published on November 9, 2012

Yield

Serves 4

Seared Salmon with Balsamic Glaze

Ingredients

¼ cup balsamic vinegar ¼ cup orange juice 2 tablespoons honey ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes 1 sprig rosemary (about 5-inches long)2 teaspoons vegetable oil 4 skin-on salmon fillets, 6 ounces each, 1 to 1 ¼ inches thickSalt and pepper 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Before You Begin

For a complete meal, serve the salmon with steamed broccoli and rice.

Instructions

  1. Whisk vinegar, juice, honey, and pepper flakes together in small bowl, then add rosemary. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until smoking. Season salmon with salt and pepper and cook, skin side up, without moving, until well browned, 4 to 5 minutes. Flip fish skin side down and cook until all but very center of fish is opaque, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to platter and tent with foil.
  2. Wipe out pan with paper towels and lower heat to medium. Carefully pour balsamic mixture into pan (it will splatter). Simmer until thick and syrupy, about 5 minutes. Remove rosemary sprig. Whisk in butter, season sauce with salt and pepper, and pour over salmon. Serve.
Seared Salmon with Balsamic Glaze

Seared Salmon with Balsamic Glaze

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By America's Test Kitchen
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Yield

Serves 4

Ingredients

¼ cup balsamic vinegar
¼ cup orange juice
2 tablespoons honey
⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 sprig rosemary (about 5-inches long)
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
4 skin-on salmon fillets, 6 ounces each, 1 to 1 ¼ inches thick
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Ingredients

¼ cup balsamic vinegar
¼ cup orange juice
2 tablespoons honey
⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 sprig rosemary (about 5-inches long)
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
4 skin-on salmon fillets, 6 ounces each, 1 to 1 ¼ inches thick
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Ingredients

¼ cup balsamic vinegar
¼ cup orange juice
2 tablespoons honey
⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 sprig rosemary (about 5-inches long)
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
4 skin-on salmon fillets, 6 ounces each, 1 to 1 ¼ inches thick
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Why This Recipe Works

We wanted the fish in our Seared Salmon with Balsamic Glaze recipe to have a nice crust, so we added the fillets to a smoking hot skillet and didn’t move them until all but the very center of the salmon was opaque. The residual heat finished cooking the salmon once we took it out of the pan. To infuse our Seared Salmon with Balsamic Glaze recipe with light rosemary flavor, we simmered a sprig in the sauce and removed it before serving.

Before You Begin

For a complete meal, serve the salmon with steamed broccoli and rice.

Instructions

  1. Whisk vinegar, juice, honey, and pepper flakes together in small bowl, then add rosemary. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until smoking. Season salmon with salt and pepper and cook, skin side up, without moving, until well browned, 4 to 5 minutes. Flip fish skin side down and cook until all but very center of fish is opaque, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to platter and tent with foil.
  2. Wipe out pan with paper towels and lower heat to medium. Carefully pour balsamic mixture into pan (it will splatter). Simmer until thick and syrupy, about 5 minutes. Remove rosemary sprig. Whisk in butter, season sauce with salt and pepper, and pour over salmon. Serve.

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