Pan Seared Salmon with Apricot Jalapeno Butter Sauce
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If you’re looking for a quick dinner to come together, fresh fish is always a good go-to for me and this Pan Seared Salmon with Apricot Jalapeno Butter Sauce is one to soon become a house favorite.
Pan Seared Salmon
See the other night I was in the mood for some salmon. I didn’t feel like a house favorite, Thai Sweet Chili Glazed Salmon even though it was so hot out I didn’t feel like grilling. These Lemon Dill Copper River Salmon Pinwheels are always a good one, but I had dill the other night making some Swedish Meatballs. So when I was looking around Pinterest I came across these salmon filets that were tied round to look like a filet mignon. PERFECT. These would do and with a sauce poured over and a side salad.
Does this not look killer? Well the taste was even better than it looks. TRUST.
You need to be careful when tying the salmon filets. After I rinsed and patted them dry with a paper towel I rolled them up as tight as I could, cinching as tightly as I could, so they wouldn’t unwind. Well I almost garroted the poor thing and the twine went in pretty deep. Just be gentle and keep it tight but don’t go all crazy assassin on it. Do it for all and trim the kitchen string ends off.
Sprinkle each filet with kosher salt on both top and bottom. See the one on the right? Yeah that’s the one where the string almost cut all the way through. Oops.
Heat a large frying pan or your trusty cast iron skillet with olive oil over high heat. We are going for Pan Seared Salmon!
When hot, add the salmon steaks, cook for 2 minutes. Carefully peak for a nice crust to build up on bottom and turn the salmon over. Cook an additional 2 minutes. Turn heat to medium-low, and cover pan loosely with lid.
Depending on thickness of salmon, cook for 5 minutes, or until the salmon is cooked through. Mine were 2 1/2 inches thick and I cooked them covered for 6 minutes total. Remove salmon to plate and make the sauce.
In the same pan over medium-low heat, add the butter, jalapeños, apricot fruit preserves, balsamic vinegar and fresh cracked black pepper. Cook until bubbly and butter is melted, about 30 seconds.
Season with salt to taste if needed and pour on top of each salmon filet. Using scissors, snip the string and pull off each filet. Serve immediately.
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Pan Seared Salmon with Apricot Jalapeno Butter Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 (6 oz) salmon filets skin removed
- salt
- kitchen twine
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 6 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp pickled jalapeños chopped
- 4 tbsp apricot fruit preserves
- 1 1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- salt and pepper
- 1 tbsp minced chives
Instructions
- Rinse the salmon and pat dry with a paper towel. Roll up tight, wrap with kitchen twine and secure with know. Trim off the string ends.
- Heat a large frying pan or cast iron skillet with olive oil over high heat. When hot, add the salmon filets, cook for 2 minutes. Carefully peak for a nice crust to build up on bottom and turn the salmon over. Cook an additional 2 minutes. Turn heat to medium-low, and cover pan loosely with lid. Depending on thickness of salmon, cook for 5 minutes, or until the salmon is cooked through. Mine were 2 1/2 inches thick and I cooked them covered for 6 minutes total. Remove salmon to plate and make the sauce.
- In the same pan over medium-low heat, add the butter, jalapeños, apricot fruit preserves, balsamic vinegar and fresh cracked black pepper. Cook until bubbly and butter is melted, about 30 seconds. Season with salt to taste if needed and pour on top of each salmon filet.
- Using scissors, snip the string and pull off each filet. Serve immediately.
Video
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
You make it look SO darn good. Beautiful!
Thank you Luna! I hope you give this a try!
Kevin, i have done this recipe many times and always my guests love it. today i will do it for lunch with salad. I have tried many of your recipes and all are wunderbar. You are my favorite one and my first choice when i want to prepare something special for my friends and relatives.
Thank you so much for sharing this! This made my day!
Perfect dish! I canned my own pickled jalapenos this past fall so now I know how to use the rest of them besides on top of nachos. My hub isn’t a big fan of fish but I serve it anyway. He loved this dish. Thank you
Yahoo! So happy to read this Sue!
HI Bryan. This sounds wonderful! Could you give an approximation for total weight of the salmon please.
I use 6 ounce filets Carl. Enjoy!
Curious, why pickled jalapenos versus fresh? Wouldn’t carmelized fresh have more heat & provide a nice balance with the apricot preserves?
If you try fresh let me know how it turns out!
I plan on trying this recipe this week, but I would think it calls for the pickled jalapeños for the brine to balance the sweetness of the dish as well as bring in a little heat.
Can you tell me what equipment was used
Kitchen twine to tie the salmon, a frying pan or caste iron skillet, tongs to turn the salmon and a spoon to stir the sauce. Finally scissors to cut the twine before serving. Sound good?
We got salmon sent to us (Maine) from our daughter in Alaska. Made this dish last night with the sockeye she sent. It was out of this world with flavor! I did switch out the pickled jalapenos because my husband doesn’t like them and I roasted a jalapeno, peeled it, and chopped it. This recipe will be used with the 30 pounds she sent us! Thank you for an amazing recipe; one of many that I have tried and LOVED all of them!
Oh you made my day reading this Beth! Thanks so much for taking the time to come back and let me know. Lucky you with all that salmon!
Holy moly that butter sauce sounds amazing Kevin! I’ve got to get this dish on our menu soon!
Thanks so much Mary Ann, it’s a tasty one! 🙂
Whelp, now you’ve done it. I’m drooling and making a huge mess on my keyboard 🙂
This recipe looks and sounds simply amazing! Sadly, I don’t cook a lot of fish b/c my husband isn’t a fan, however, every now and then I have the energy to cook two dinners, one fish for me, chicken for the hubs. The next time I cook fish THIS is the recipe I’m going to try. Pinning!
Thanks so much. Let me know what you think next time you make it Christina. Cheers!