Roasted Salmon with Lemon and Thyme served over Braised French Green Lentils- a simple healthy weeknight dinner recipe!
Looking for delicious salmon recipes? We have a huge selection of healthy salmon recipes on the blog. Here’s a simple healthy dinner recipe that is not only full of flavor, it’s full of protein, fiber and healthy fat – Salmon with Braised Lentils. It’s simple and humble in a way, but I really love this combination and the lentils give the salmon a bit of earthiness here. Serve it up with your favorite veggie and you’ll have a nourishing and satisfying meal.
While you braise the French lentils, marinate the salmon in olive oil with garlic, thyme, lemon zest and a little mustard. In winter, roast this in a low and slow in the oven while you braise the lentils.
Tip: In summer, grill the salmon over a medium-low heat with some applewood- my favorite!
Salmon Marinade Ingredients:
- olive oil
- fresh thyme
- lemon zest
- mustard
- garlic
- salt and pepper
How to make Braised Salmon with French Lentils
Make the simple salmon marinade.
Brush the bottom sides with marinade then coat the tops generously. Let this sit while you braise the lentils.
Make the Braised French Green Lentils from yesterday’s post which will take about 45 minutes- and yes of course, you can make these ahead!
A quick way to add veggies into the mix, is to either roast them along with the salmon (tossed in a little salt, pepper and olive oil) or steam them right over the lentils for the last 5 minutes of cooking.
When you have about 10-15 minutes left on the lentils, place the salmon in the oven.
Serving Suggestions
Elevate this Salmon recipe even further when entertaining, with a drizzle of Leek oil, or Gremolata, both are delicious here! Serve with a leafy green salad and sourdough bread!
Storage:
The salmon will keep 3 days in the fridge and can be reheated in a skilet or low 300F oven. The lentils will keep up to 4 days, or freeze some for later!
More Favorite salmon recipes!
- Miso Salmon Bowls
- 25+ Amazing Salmon Recipes!
- Citrus Baked Salmon with Kumquats and Fingerlings
- Roasted Pomegranate Salmon
- Simple Baked Salmon with Asparagus and Dill Sauce
- Miso Salmon!
- Spicy Miso Ramen with Chili Roasted Salmon (or Tofu) & Bok Choy
- Teriyaki Salmon with Baby Bok Choy
- Simple Moroccan Salmon
Hope you are surviving election week friends. Find the calm.
Hint: it is not out there.
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Roasted Salmon with Braised Lentils
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 45
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: main, dinner recipe, fish recipe
- Method: roasted
- Cuisine: French
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Roasted Salmon with Braised French Green Lentils- a simple healthy weeknight dinner recipe!
Ingredients
1- 1 1/2 lbs salmon (4-6 salmon fillets -skinless)
Salmon Marinade:
- 2–3 garlic cloves, finely minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme
- 2 teaspoons whole-grain mustard (or Dijon mustard)
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- 3 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- pepper to taste
- fresh thyme sprigs for garnish
Braised French Lentils:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion, diced ( or sub 1 large leek)
- 1 cup diced celery (or fennel bulb)
- 1 cup diced carrot ( or beet!)
- 3–4 garlic cloves, rough chopped
- 1 1/2 cups French Green Lentils (Le Puy, or small black lentils- beluga, caviar, etc. )
- 1/4 cup sherry wine, red wine, white wine, marsala wine (or skip it and add 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar at the end)
- 4 cups veggie or chicken stock ( or water and 1 bouillon cubes)
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon mustard- whole grain or dijon (optional)
- 4–5 sprigs fresh thyme (or 1 teaspoon dried)
- 2 bay leaves
Instructions
Preheat heat oven to 325F. (Or see notes for grilling)
Marinate the Salmon: Pat the salmon dry. Make the marinade by combining all in a small bowl. Brush a little marinade on the bottom sides of salmon, place on parchment-lined sheet pan, then spoon the remaining over top, to form a thin layer. Set aside. When lentils are halfway through cooking, bake salmon in a 325 F oven for 10-15 minutes, depending on thickness. (Or grill!)
Make the lentils: Heat oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add onion, celery and carrots and stir 4-5 minutes, then turn the heat down to medium. Cook 4-5 more minutes and add the garlic and lentils. Cook 2 minutes stirring. Add the wine. Let this cook-off, about 2 minutes. Pour in the stock, salt, and mustard and stir until combined and bring to a good simmer. Add the bay leaves and thyme sprigs, cover and gently simmer on low heat 25-30 minutes or until lentils are tender. When the lentils are tender, uncover and cook off any extra liquid ( or feel free to drain). Remove the thyme sprigs, taste and adjust salt. A tiny little splash of red wine vinegar livens them up.
Assemble: Place a cupful of lentils in a wide shallow pasta bowl, top with the salmon and veggie of your choice, and drizzle with a little olive oil, (or leek oil, gremolata!) top with a sprig of fresh thyme. Dig in!
Notes
Elevate this further when entertaining, with a drizzle of Leek oil, Gremolata- delicious here! Serve with Simple Sauteed Greens, or a roasted or steamed veggie like broccolini or Brussel sprouts.
To serve with a veggie- feel free to roast them in the oven with a little olive oil, salt and pepper. Or for a quick fix, steam the veggie, right over the lentils for 5-6 minutes at the end.
Leftover Lentils can be frozen for later use, or refrigerated and made into a salad the next day- adding fresh veggies and a simple vinaigrette. Or use for breakfast, warmed on toast, with Sauteed Greens, a poached egg and an herby green sauce like gremolata or Leek oil. YUM. 😉
GRill: To grill salmon, heat grill over medium-low heat with a packet of wood chips. (Applewood is nice here) Place salmon on a grill pan, close the lid and let the smoke infuse the salmon, checking for doneness after 10 minutes or up to 20 depending on thickness. Whole filets take longer, while individual portions cook faster.
SEE Braised French Lentils post for nutrition info.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4 ounces salmon (see Braised Lentil post for Nutrition info)
- Calories: 245
- Sugar: 0.1 g
- Sodium: 444.7 mg
- Fat: 15.8 g
- Saturated Fat: 2.4 g
- Carbohydrates: 0.8 g
- Fiber: 0.2 g
- Protein: 25.4 g
- Cholesterol: 57.9 mg
Can I use cod?
That should work fine here- let me know how it turns out.
EXQUISITE! What a great combination of flavors!
Thanks Maria! Appreciate you!
Excellent! Used leek instead of the onion. Would make this again many times – family loved it! We grilled the salmon without the wood chips as not a fan.
Thanks Patti!
Made this for a family member recovering from a serious heart surgery. Super healthy and super delicious. I used Moong Dal beans instead of green lentils and the timing stayed the same.
Great to hear!
This was very tasty and to save time I fried off onion, carrots etc then added the stock let it reduce a little then threw in a tin of green lentils my husband loved this recipe will definitely be cooking again
Perfect Sadie!
Oh my, this salmon recipe is so delicious and super easy to make. For some reason I have always resisted making lentils, but not anymore. I always I make sure I read the recipe notes because it’s the little additions once the dish is plated that really pull the recipes together. All of your recipes speak to my soul. Just when I think I’ve made the “very best Sylvia recipe,” I try a new one and that becomes the “very best Sylvia recipe.”
Awww… thanks Amy~! ❤️
Well said,”speaks to my soul”.
OK. Another one of your delicious sounding dishes I will make this week. I love lentils and can’t wait to try this recipe out. Thank you for sharing your wonderful recipes.
Yay! We hope give it a go!
I love lentils! I had never thought to pair them with salmon. I’m excited to try this recipe!
Awesome Emily!
This looks amazing. I love all your recipes!
Thanks so much!
One of my favourite salmon recipes of yours. Full of flavour and very healthy too.
Awww… thanks Anita!
Hi Sylvia! Can I remove the wine from the dish or subsitute it for anything non-alcoholic?
Hi Nashwa! You can leave it out and add a few drops of vinegar at the end.
This was an awesome recipe and my kids loved it too :). I made sautéed brussel sprouts as the green side to go with the salmon and lentils.
I cooked the lentils earlier in the day and reheated them on the stove top when I made the salmon and brussel sprouts.
Perfect Clare! Love it!
This was amazing! Will be making this again. I used a variety of sprouted lentils since that’s what I had and it was super yummy! Also made the gremolata to go with it, it’s a must! Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Awesome Kasey! thanks, and happy you liked it!
This is the first recipe of yours that I’ve made and I am so delighted. It was really good to serve my family such a healthy nourishing meal that was pleasant to fix, but even better was how much we all enjoyed it. It was delicious! My daughter called the salmon ‘restaurant quality’ which might be the highest compliment she’s given any of our meals. My husband was quite surprised to like the lentils very much too. It was such a happy evening for our family! Thank you!
Great to hear Christina!
I made the lentils last night and it was very easy and super flavorful. I used another salmon recipe so can’t comment on that part but the lentils paired well. I will definitely make the lentils again. I liked the addition of the mustard. My daughter suggested we could add crispy bacon as a topping and some parmesan as we do with our lentil soup.
Thank you!
Sounds great Carrie!
This was awesome!! My first time making lentils. Such an easy recipe, and full of flavor. Can’t wait for leftovers for dinner tomorrow night. Thanks Sylvia. You’re recipes never disappoint.
Thanks Amy! Glad you enjoyed this!
I just made this and it was delicious. All your recipes turn out so good!
Thanks Elizabeth!
Absolutely fell in love with the marinade! Salmon came out perfectly and the lentils were easy but flavorful. Served with broccolini on the side as shown.
Thanks Brandon! glad you liked!
First time perfect! Clear instructions, simple ingredients, stand out dinner in under an hour.
Like eating at a restaurant at home! Great flavor and easy to put together.
Delicious and quick to put together. I will cut back on salt in lentils next time.
Thanks Theresa- appreciate your regular and faithful commenting. Glad this worked for you!
Great flavor! Especially the lentils. Topping the fish with the gremolata gave a balanced taste.
Excellent. Great flavor. Subbed halibut, as that was what we had on hand. I would definitely make this again.
Just lovely! Light, fresh and a breeze to make!
This was delicious and worthy of a celebratory dinner with champagne. I give this recipe 5 stars and look forward to eating braised lentils for breakfast. Thank you for the recipe at the perfect time.
Glad you enjoyed it. Lots of champagne happened here as well. 😉 xoxo
Sylvia,
Would any other fish work? I am hosting dinner and would like to use halibut or sea bass, or something else. While I love salmon, for many people it is the to go to fish. So, any fish that would work other than cod.Thanks so much!
Yes Agnes, Sea Bass or halibut should work well here!
THANK YOU