Light yet flavorful and delicious, this Salmon in Foil recipe is a perfect dish for a busy weeknight meal. It takes no more than 20 minutes from start to finish. This dish is also featured on Netflix® “Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories”.
Salmon in Foil, or SHA-ke no Hoiru Yaki (鮭のフォイル焼き), is a fast, simple and delicious dish. When I was growing up, my mom would serve a variety of ‘salmon in foil’ for dinner when she was short on time. All you have to do is toss a few ingredients into a foil, wrap it up like a parcel and let it steam over in a frying pan. In no time at all, you have a healthy meal that your family will love.
Salmon and Mushrooms – Netflix “Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories” Season 2
You can find this Salmon in Foil dish featured on the popular Netflix® show – Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories (Season 2, Episode 6). In the show, this dish is called “Salmon and Mushrooms” as they include both salmon and mushrooms.
Salmon in Foil is rather a home-cooked dish in Japan. You rarely find it on the menu at restaurants or Shokudo (食堂) diners. So let’s make it at home!
Why You Should Try This Salmon in Foil Recipe
1. Moist and tender salmon
No one likes dry salmon. Cooking the salmon in foil is all about retaining the moisture and tenderness inside. This method, when cooked over low heat, also ensures a proper steaming process. It locks in all the delicious juice, resulting in a lush and delicate salmon!
2. Versatile recipe
The recipe never gets old in my family because you can switch up the veggies and the seasonings. Salmon pairs well with a range of vegetables, so you can always include seasonal greens to make things interesting.
I included some of my suggestions below. However, I personally love this salmon, mushrooms, and veggie combination. They work very well together with simple seasonings.
3. Quick cook and easy cleanup
As opposed to the oven method, there is no pre-heating required. You can literary cook the salmon in 12 minutes. It’s that FAST! If you can wrap up all the ingredients in foil in 8 minutes, this is a 20-minute meal!!
Since everything is tucked inside the foil, it makes the easiest cleanup. There is also no oil or sauce, so you don’t even have to clean the stove or the frying pan.
Variations for Salmon in Foil
If you enjoyed this recipe and wanted to try out other variations, here are more suggestions for your next dish.
Ingredients
- Enoki mushrooms
- King oyster mushrooms
- Green leafy vegetables (cut vegetables into julienned strips so they will cook fast)
Seasonings
Instead of suggested condiments in the recipe, you can try the following seasonings.
- Butter + Lemon
- Butter + Garlic
- Butter + Shio Koji
- Butter + Soy Sauce
- Butter + Miso
- Butter + Ponzu
- Mayo + Miso
- Mayo + Soy sauce
- Miso + Mirin
- If using salty seasonings, add in sugar, mirin, etc.
My favorite way to enjoy this dish is to drizzle on Homemade Ponzu.
Do We Add Water to the Frying Pan?
I thought some of you may wonder about this – don’t we need to add water to steam the fish? The answer is no; the salmon will be steamed inside the foil, so water is not necessary.
But how about the frying pan? Will it be damaged by the heat? My pan has never damaged by this cooking method. If you are worried, you can add water but you need to cook an extra 2 minutes or longer. The water in the pan distributes gentle heat so it requires more time for the onion to cook through.
Itadakimasu!
With layers of textures and flavors, this salmon in foil is predictably foolproof, every single time. Serve with steamed rice and miso soup, and a side of salad if you have extra time. With this recipe in your back pocket, you will have more reasons to cook healthy meals for yourself and your loved ones.
Other Quick and Easy Recipes
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Salmon in Foil
Video
Ingredients
- 2 skin-on salmon fillets (8.5 oz, 240 g; I use salmon from a Japanese grocery store, so it‘s a thinner cut)
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- ½ onion (3 oz, 85 g)
- 3 oz carrot (2 inches, 5 cm)
- 1.8 oz shimeji mushrooms (½ package)
- 2 shiitake mushrooms
- 2 strands chives
- 1½ Tbsp unsalted butter (divided)
- 1 Tbsp sake (divided)
- 2 Tbsp ponzu or soy sauce (for drizzling; for the homemade ponzu recipe, click here)
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
To Prepare the Salmon
- Sprinkle Diamond Crystal kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper on both sides of 2 skin-on salmon fillets.
- Thinly slice ½ onion and cut 3 oz carrot into julienne strips.
- Cut off the bottom of 1.8 oz shimeji mushrooms and 2 shiitake mushrooms. Break up shimeji mushrooms with your hands and thinly slice shiitake mushrooms.
- Cut 2 strands chives into small pieces.
- Prepare 2 12- x 12-inch (30- x 30-cm) sheets of aluminum foil. Thinly spread ½ Tbsp of the 1½ Tbsp unsalted butter in the centers of the foil sheets (reserve the other 1 Tbsp for later).
- Place half of the onion slices and put the salmon on top, skin side down.
- Put two kinds of mushrooms and then carrot julienne strips on top of the salmon.
- Add ½ Tbsp of the 1 Tbsp sake and ½ Tbsp butter on top.
- Bring the top and bottom aluminum foil over the salmon and fold a few times. Then bring the sides together and fold a few times to make sure the foil is tightly closed and no opening. Repeat the same process for the other fillet.
To Cook on the Stovetop
- Place the two sets of salmon in foil on a frying pan and cover with a lid (no need to add water). Cook the salmon over medium heat for 2 minutes, then medium-low heat for 10 minutes. If you have 1- to 1½-inch-thick salmon, you will need to cook for 15–18 minutes (open the foil to check the doneness).
To Bake in the Oven
- Alternatively, you can bake at a preheated 425ºF (218ºC) oven for 15 minutes. For a convection oven, reduce cooking temperature by 25ºF (15ºC). If you have 1- to 1½-inch-thick salmon, you will need to cook for 18–20 minutes. Carefully open the foil to check the doneness, if you‘re not sure.
To Serve
- Carefully open the aluminum foil to enjoy the salmon, sprinkle chives and drizzle 2 Tbsp ponzu or soy sauce on top. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Editor’s Note: This post was originally published on December 16, 2017. The post has been edited and republished in April 2020.
Made this last night in the oven and it didn’t quite go as planned. Ended up cooking it 25 minutes total at 425 to get the center of the salmon cooked (in the 120-130F range by probe thermometer), but the carrot and onion were still kinda raw. Possibly my error in not cutting them thin enough or using too much.
Hi John, Thank you for trying Nami’s recipe.
We’re sorry to hear things didn’t go as planned this time. The cooking time will vary depending on how many salmon are in the oven, the size of the oven, and the size of the ingredients. Perhaps your foil was a little thicker? The video may be helpful in seeing how thinly Nami slices the vegetables and how she arranges them.
We hope you make some changes and try this recipe again.🙂
Excellent! I made this recipe last night almost exactly as written, except I used 6 ounce salmon fillets and added zucchini spears over the top with the mushrooms and carrots. Upping the salmon was a good idea, since I have hungry eaters in my family and the amount was perfect with only rice and miso soup alongside. The 6 ounce fillets were done in 22 minutes in the oven. I should have passed on the zucchini though because it added too much moisture.
Hello Scott! Thank you for giving Nami’s recipe a try!
We have some suggestions for additional vegetables that you might like:
asparagus, cherry tomatoes, green peppers, eggplant, etc.
If you prefer less moisture, you can sauté the vegetables and then add them to the foil.
We hope you enjoy experimenting with different variations of this dish. Happy cooking! 😃
Made this tonight, loved it!! This is definitely one of my staples now
Hi Anne, Thank you so much for trying Nami’s recipe and for your kind feedback!
We are glad to hear you loved it!🥰 Happy Cooking!
Can you put leftovers into a bento after being refrigerated in the foil?
p.s. I make this keto with swerve brown sugar, ginger, garlic, soy sauce, lemon juice, and sambal oelek.
Hi Sky! Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe!
We recommend heating it again and allowing it to cool before adding it to the Bento.
However, this type of dish tastes best the day it is prepared.
We hope this helps!
Hi! Where do you usually buy your salmon filets? I have a hard time finding salmon filets like the one in your picture. It is always sold out at the Japanese grocery store that I frequent. Is there on online source you recommend for salmon filets?
Hi Chappi! Thank you so much for reading Nami’s post and trying her recipe.
Costco carries good size filets ( wild sockeye salmon (1.3 lb, 600 g). Other places will be local Japanese or fish markets.
https://www.justonecookbook.com/japanese-grocery-stores-around-the-world/
We hope this helps!
Would this work with putting it directly into coals from a fire?
Hi J. Thank you for trying Nami’s recipe!
We don’t recommend placing the aluminum foil directly. 🙂
Hi! I was wondering if the seasoning variations replace the butter and sake inside the foil or if that is what you use to drizzle on top at the end once the salmon is cooked? For instance would it be 1.5 Tbsp Mayo + 1 Tsp Mirin instead of the 1.5 Tbsp Butter + 1 Tbsp sake in the original recipe? Please advise!
Hi Veronica! Thank you very much for reading Nami’s post and trying her recipe!
To try the variations, Instead of ½ Tbsp butter in the recipe (Step 8), use Mayo and Mirin. The Sake is for steaming, and keep it at this step even for variations.
We hope this helps!
This recipe is really good. I love it. Thanks for sharing 😊. Just wondering if there is an alternative to the aluminum foil that would be a healtier option.
Hi Tin, Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe! We are glad to hear you love this dish!
Alternative to the aluminum foil will be glass, parchment paper, etc. You can also cook this dish with a steamer. Place it on the oven-safe plate and steam it.
We hope this helps!
Just made this for dinner tonight for my husband and myself. Outstanding! I added some very thinly sliced zucchini (sliced lengthwise) that I wanted to use up, and the flavors of everything came together beautifully. Since onions are hard for both of us to digest, I used shallots, which carmelized nicely under the salmon. My triple ply skillet did not suffer using this technique, and no dirty pots to clean.
Hi Brenda! We are so happy to hear you enjoyed this dish!
Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe and sharing your cooking experience with us!
This was so good and easy to make! Especially for someone that doesn’t have a great fondness for cooking, but I found it easy and no fuss to prepare. Thank-you so much for sharing 🙂
Hi Chloe! We are so glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe!
Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe and for your kind feedback!
Hi, can I check what is the difference between Hinode Ryori Shu Cooking Sake vs say the sake in a ‘Tetra pak’ (see image). which is better/appropriate for the kind of sake used for your recipes? Thanks!
Hi SY ho, Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe!
Nami uses regular drinking sake for her recipes. The cooking Sake contains salt, and if you decide to use it, you will need to adjust the salt amount in the recipe.
You can learn more about sake and cooking sake in this post: https://www.justonecookbook.com/sake/
We hope this helps!
Hi. May i ask salmon is 240g each or 2 pcs=240g? Much appreciated
Hi Jesslyn! Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe!
She used 240g total (2 pcs=240g) salmon for this recipe.
We hope this helps!
I have one of those recipe box delivery services and they messed up my latest order. I got the salmon, but not the rest of the items to make the dish I had ordered. What was I going to do?
My first thought was to come here to find a salmon recipe. And I found it! I mashed two recipes together. I marinated the salmon using the miso salmon recipe, and then followed the foil-wrapped salmon recipe. I did not remove the excess marinade and it came out AMAZING!
This is going on my regular rotation of dinners! So easy to make and SO GOOD!
Thank you for both recipes!! I have made the miso salmon recipe before but never thought to cook in foil. I am SO glad I tried it!
Hi Victoria! We are glad to hear you enjoyed Nami’s salmon recipe!
Thank you very much for trying many recipes from our site and sharing your cooking experience with us!
Hi Nami, tried this recipe and it turns so nice. Thanks for continuously sharing recipes which are simple to cook yet not compromising the taste!
Hi Lynn, Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe!
We are so happy to hear it turned very nice and you enjoyed it!