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Broiled Mustard and Brown Sugar Glazed Salmon Fillets with Dill

By America's Test Kitchen

Published on June 25, 2009

Yield

Serves 4

Broiled Mustard and Brown Sugar Glazed Salmon Fillets with Dill

Ingredients

¼ cup packed light brown sugar 3 tablespoons cider vinegar 3 tablespoons whole-grain mustard 1 tablespoon vegetable oil 2 garlic cloves, minced4 salmon fillets, 1 ¼ inches thickSalt and ground black pepper 1 tablespoon minced fresh dill

Before You Begin

Try to find fillets that are of similar size (about 6 ounces each) for even cooking times. If the fillets are thinner than 1 1/4 inches, they will cook much more quickly and won’t have enough oven time to glaze nicely. This recipe will work with both skin-on and skinless fillets.

Instructions

  1. MAKING THE MINUTES COUNT Prepare the glaze while the broiler heats.
  2. heat and prep broiler pan

  3. Adjust oven rack 6 inches from broiler element and heat broiler. Line broiler pan bottom with foil, set broiler pan rack on top, and spray rack with vegetable oil spray.
  4. prepare glaze

  5. Stir brown sugar, vinegar, mustard, oil, and garlic together until sugar ­dissolves.
  6. prep and glaze salmon

  7. Pat salmon dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Lay salmon skin-side down on broiler pan (spaced about 1 inch apart). Reserve 2 tablespoons of glaze in clean bowl for serving, then brush half of remaining glaze evenly over salmon.
  8. broil fish

  9. Broil until all but very center of fish has turned from translucent to opaque, 10 to 12 minutes, brushing salmon again with remaining glaze halfway through broiling.
  10. add reserved glaze and garnish

  11. Drizzle reserved glaze over salmon and sprinkle with dill before serving.
Broiled Mustard and Brown Sugar Glazed Salmon Fillets with Dill

Broiled Mustard and Brown Sugar Glazed Salmon Fillets with Dill

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By America's Test Kitchen
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Yield

Serves 4

Ingredients

¼ cup packed light brown sugar
3 tablespoons cider vinegar
3 tablespoons whole-grain mustard
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 salmon fillets, 1 ¼ inches thick
Salt and ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced fresh dill

Ingredients

¼ cup packed light brown sugar
3 tablespoons cider vinegar
3 tablespoons whole-grain mustard
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 salmon fillets, 1 ¼ inches thick
Salt and ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced fresh dill

Ingredients

¼ cup packed light brown sugar
3 tablespoons cider vinegar
3 tablespoons whole-grain mustard
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 salmon fillets, 1 ¼ inches thick
Salt and ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced fresh dill

Why This Recipe Works

Determining the distance to cook the fish from the broiler was task #1 while we developed our mustard-brown sugar glazed salmon fillets recipe. Too close and the exterior was well-done before the interior was even set. Too far away and the fish took a long time to cook and the glaze never, well, glazed. As for the glaze, if it was too thin, it simply slid off the fish and pooled in the pan. We found it should be fairly thick, which meant concentrating it with a quick simmer. Thinking of our approach to barbecued chicken, in which we glaze the meat repeatedly towards the end of cooking to prevent the sugary sauce from burning, we lacquered the fish in our glazed salmon recipe with additional glaze midway through broiling and once again when the fish was done.

Before You Begin

Try to find fillets that are of similar size (about 6 ounces each) for even cooking times. If the fillets are thinner than 1 1/4 inches, they will cook much more quickly and won’t have enough oven time to glaze nicely. This recipe will work with both skin-on and skinless fillets.

Instructions

  1. MAKING THE MINUTES COUNT Prepare the glaze while the broiler heats.
  2. heat and prep broiler pan

  3. Adjust oven rack 6 inches from broiler element and heat broiler. Line broiler pan bottom with foil, set broiler pan rack on top, and spray rack with vegetable oil spray.
  4. prepare glaze

  5. Stir brown sugar, vinegar, mustard, oil, and garlic together until sugar ­dissolves.
  6. prep and glaze salmon

  7. Pat salmon dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Lay salmon skin-side down on broiler pan (spaced about 1 inch apart). Reserve 2 tablespoons of glaze in clean bowl for serving, then brush half of remaining glaze evenly over salmon.
  8. broil fish

  9. Broil until all but very center of fish has turned from translucent to opaque, 10 to 12 minutes, brushing salmon again with remaining glaze halfway through broiling.
  10. add reserved glaze and garnish

  11. Drizzle reserved glaze over salmon and sprinkle with dill before serving.

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