Honey Sesame Salmon with Rice Noodles and Asparagus - you'll love this Asian-style dinner. The salmon is first marinated in a sauce made with sesame oil, honey, soy sauce, rice vinegar, garlic, and ginger. Then, the salmon is baked in the oven.
If you don't like salmon because it's fishy or dry, you will change your mind after you try this Asian salmon recipe! The salmon in this recipe is very moist, flaky, juicy, and flavorful. The Asian sauce is smooth and silky, with just the right amount of garlic. The whole dish is very easy to make - I make this for dinner right after a long day at work! Rice noodles and asparagus in addition to honey sesame salmon make this a complete meal - you don't need to worry about side dishes!
The key to the moist and juicy salmon is is to bake it at 350 F for only 15 minutes, and then broil it for 5 minutes ((or longer if you like it more charred). This way you get the very best out of salmon: it will be moist and juicy (not dry), and it will also have a nice charred look, which is much more appetizing and pretty than if you just baked it.
I like to serve this honey sesame salmon over a small bed of very thin rice noodles, which will absorb some of the sauce from the fish, and also the sauce that you will pour on top of Asian-flavored salmon after condensing it a bit. You can serve any type of your favorite greens: cooked spinach, green beans, or Asian greens (baby bok choy, Chinese spinach, etc.). I only had asparagus, so that's what I served it with. Enjoy!
If you enjoyed this honey sesame salmon, you might like these Asian seafood recipes as well:
Honey Sesame Salmon with Rice Noodles and Asparagus
Ingredients
Honey Sesame Salmon:
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 4 tablespoons soy sauce (for gluten free, use gluten-free soy sauce)
- 4 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 4 cloves garlic , minced
- a pinch of ginger , powdered
- 1.2 lb salmon
Rice Noodles and Asparagus:
- 8 ounces rice noodles , very thin
- 1 lb asparagus
- salt and pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
How to cook honey sesame salmon:
- To prepare the marinade, in a medium bowl, combine the sesame oil, honey, soy sauce, rice vinegar, garlic, a pinch of ginger and whisk to blend.
- Place salmon in a baking dish, skin-side down. Pour the marinade over the salmon, cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Bake the salmon uncovered for 15 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit in the same baking dish in which you marinated it. Remove the salmon from the oven, pour the marinade from the baking dish into a small saucepan.
- Preheat the broiler.
- Slide the spatula under the salmon the remove the skin. Broil salmon (without the marinade or the skin) for about 5 minutes (or more, depending on your broiler), until it caramelizes nicely. Remove from pan.
- While the salmon is broiling, reduce the sauce (the marinade) in the sauce pan on the stove top by boiling it down a little bit. Be careful – don’t over do it – reduce it just a bit to have enough to pour over each of 4 serving of fish.
How to cook rice noodles and asparagus:
- While your salmon is baked and broiled in the oven, prepare rice noodles and asparagus.
- Cook very thin rice noodles according to package instructions, drain.
- Place asparagus in a glass baking dish, season with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil.
- Bake in the preheated oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit (at the same time with salmon, but in a separate dish), until soft but still crispy.
How to serve Asian salmon with rice noodles and asparagus:
- Place a scoop of rice noodles in the center of each serving plate.
- Add several sprigs of asparagus on the side.
- Place a serving of salmon on top of noodles. Pour the condensed sauce on top.
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer:
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
emily
Can you please tell me what exact thin noodles did you use? Is it vermicelli? what kind?? Thank you!
Julia
Emily, it was actually Asian rice noodles - I bought them at the Asian store. They are made from rice and are very thin and are gluten free - so they are different from vermicelli. Here is the link of what my rice noodles looked like - click on the link and then click to enlarge the photo where you will see the noodles: http://www.igourmet.com/shoppe/Hsinchu-Rice-Noodles-by-Roland.asp?src=froogle&gclid=CjwKEAjw-o6hBRDOmsPSjqakuzYSJADR2V3Su7FKwaUb8WLi44wsXinMaso9G5Krd0IFn8zR_Md5JRoCUsbw_wcB
Sandi
My husband said this is the BEST fish he's EVER had! Will be making it again. I doubled the sauce and served it over rice - my husband loved the sauce over the rice.
Julia
Sandi - thank you so much! So glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Therese
Thanks for the recipe! Freakin' delicious. I never minded my dry salmon before, but now I know what's up!
Julia
Hi Therese, thanks for stopping by! So happy you liked this salmon recipe! 🙂
Dana
I can't wait to make this! I'm going to make it with shrimp and I bet it will be delicious.
Julia
YES, this would be so delicious with shrimp!
Catarina
Im making this for lunch right now for my brother & I, its amazing so far! & I told my boyfriend the recipe & he said "Oh my gosh, that sounds amazing you have to make it for me at least once a week!" Also, amazing pictures! 🙂
Julia
Catarina, thank you very much for such a sweet comment! It brightened my day. 🙂 So happy you liked the recipe. Salmon once a week is not a bad idea - I used to have fish for dinner AT LEAST once a week, not so much lately, but really want to return to that old routine.
Aubrie
I made this for dinner tonight, it was divine, my husband was so impressed, thank you so much for the wonderful recipe
Julia
Aubrie, you are so welcome! So glad both of you enjoyed the recipe! 🙂
Jennifer Bostwick
Made this tonight. Ah-Mazing! Thanks for the recipe.
Julia
Jennifer - thank you! Very glad you liked it!
Carol
This looks amazing and delicious! I'm trying it out for Sunday dinner. Thanks for sharing!!
Julia
Great! Let me know how it comes out! 🙂
Paul McKay
Tried it tonight and... Loved it! It browned wonderfully under the broiler, looked great and was delicious!
Julia
Paul, thank you! 🙂 So glad you liked it!
Marilynn
I made this today with salmon caught in Alaska this summer and it was delicious! We substituted agave for honey and apple cider vinegar for the rice wine vinegar. It was so tasty and will certainly make again. I may add some sirracha to the next sauce. Look forward to trying more dishes. Thank you.
Julia
Marilynn, thanks for stopping by and such sweet comment! Good to know that agave and apple cider vinegar work great with this recipe - need to try that combination! Adding sriracha sounds like a brilliant idea!