Pan-Seared Creamy Tuscan Salmon with Garlic, Spinach, Artichokes, Sun-Dried Tomatoes, and Capers. This recipe features the best white cream sauce for salmon! Ready in 30 minutes!
If you're looking for a family-friendly dinner recipe to make tender and flaky salmon, look no further. This one-pan meal will surely become one of your favorite weeknight dinners! Pan-seared Tuscan salmon is generously coated in a creamy garlic sauce with sun-dried tomatoes and other veggies.
Crispy and crunchy on the outside, the salmon is moist and tender on the inside. This recipe features the same vegetables I used for fusilli pasta not long ago.
Serve creamy Tuscan salmon with roasted or steamed vegetables, pasta, or with Italian ravioli. Buy ravioli in the store and dress them up according to my recipe!
Why make Tuscan salmon
- One-pan meal. Use a large skillet or frying pan. Stainless steel, cast iron, or non-stick. The salmon is pan seared to perfection until crispy and flaky. Then, the creamy garlic sauce is made in the same pan.
- Ready in 30 minutes. Perfect recipe for a family weeknight dinner!
- Tuscan flavors. Sun-dried tomatoes, spinach, garlic, artichokes, and capers taste delicious in a white cream sauce.
Helpful tips for searing salmon
- Do not remove the skin. The skin will help salmon fillet retain its shape while you sear it. It will also protect it from overcooking. Also, when the salmon is completely cooked, you can slide the fork between the salmon fillet and the skin to remove the skin. It's much easier to remove the skin once the salmon is cooked!
- Pat dry salmon with paper towels before searing.
- Season the salmon with salt right before searing.
- Sear the salmon flesh side down first (skin side up). This will create a nice crust over the top of the salmon. Make sure the skillet is hot and the olive oil rolls easily around the skillet (without burning).
- How long to sear salmon? Sear salmon about 4 minutes on each side, until it's cooked through and flaky.
White Cream Sauce for Salmon
Creamy garlic sauce is made with heavy cream and minced garlic. Sun-dried tomatoes, artichokes, and capers add flavor and texture. The cream sauce is super flavorful, and it also keeps the salmon fillets tender and moist on the inside.
How to make Tuscan salmon
1) First, sear salmon fillets in olive oil in a large skillet.
2) Remove the salmon from the skillet.
3) Next, cook the vegetables. Add minced garlic and chopped sun-dried tomatoes to the skillet.
4) Add chopped artichoke hearts and drained capers. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
5) Then, add fresh spinach.
6) Cook for a couple of minutes, until the spinach wilts.
7) Add 1 cup of heavy cream and paprika. Bring to simmer. Simmer for about 1 minute, stirring. Season with salt and more paprika, if you like.
8) Add cooked salmon to the skillet with the cream sauce. Spoon the sauce over the salmon, and simmer for a minute or more, until the salmon is warmed up and cooked through.
What to serve with creamy Tuscan salmon
- Pasta. Because Tuscan salmon features creamy sauce, it's best to serve it with some carbs. Serve angel hair pasta, spaghetti, penne, or ziti pasta.
- Spaghetti squash. Roast spaghetti squash in the oven and scrape out the spaghetti squash strands with the fork.
- Roasted vegetables. Green vegetables will be amazing with the creamy and flaky Tuscan salmon. Make roasted asparagus, oven-roasted broccoli, garlic green beans with bacon, or cooked spinach.
Other salmon recipes
Salmon is a great source of protein. It's always handy to have a good salmon recipe to make for a family dinner. Here are some of my favorites:
Other Italian recipes
Italian-inspired recipes usually revolve around pasta, as well as meat served with lots of vegetables. If you enjoy Italian cuisine, you might like these weeknight dinner recipes:
- Creamy Farfalle (Bow-Tie Pasta) with Spinach, Mushrooms, Caramelized Onions
- Linguine with Spinach and Sun-Dried Tomato Cream Sauce
- Mushroom Ravioli with Spinach
- Baked Italian Chicken with Vegetables
- Mediterranean Chicken with Sun-Dried Tomatoes, Artichokes, and Capers
Creamy Tuscan Salmon with Spinach, Artichokes, and Garlic
Ingredients
Salmon
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 lb salmon fillets (3 or 4 salmon fillets)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
How to sear salmon
- Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet on medium-high heat.
- Season salmon fillets with salt.
- When the oil is hot, add salmon fillets flesh side down (skin side up). Sear for about 4 minutes on medium-high heat.
- Reduce heat to medium.
- Flip the salmon fillets to the other side (skin side down). Sear for another 4 or 5 minutes on medium heat until salmon is flaky.
- Remove salmon from the skillet.
How to make white cream sauce
- To the same, now empty, skillet, add chopped sun-dried tomatoes, minced garlic, chopped artichokes, capers. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
- Add fresh spinach, and continue cooking and stirring until the spinach wilts, for a couple of minutes.
- To the skillet with sautéed vegetables, add 1 cup of heavy cream and paprika. Bring to simmer. Simmer for about 1 minute, stirring. Season with salt. Add more paprika, if you like.
Assembly
- Add cooked salmon to the skillet with the cream sauce.
- Spoon the sauce over the salmon, and simmer for a minute or more, until the salmon is warmed up and cooked through. The salmon should be flaky.
- Season with salt, if needed.
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.
We have salmon about once a week and this is my new favorite! The flavors blend so well yet individually pop out with each bite. My husband loved it too!
Oh, I am so happy to hear that, Mitzie! It's one of my favorite recipes, too! 🙂
I tried this recipe but cannot use heavy cream due to dietary restrictions. I tried substituting Greek yogurt but it did not turn out as well as expected. Is there a lower calorie substitution?
Anette, I would try evaporated milk. It should work as a 1:1 substitution and provide similar texture but much lighter in fat and calories.
Would adding flour, making a roux and add milk instead of cream. Would it work.
Hi Jackie, yes, that will work!
Absolutely delicious! Rich and flavorful. Will be making it again.
That's great to hear, Claire! ❤️
It doesn’t say to add the onion
Lynn, I didn't use onions here, but they would be delicious here!
Absolutely amazing meal! Something you would expect in a five star restaurant. Added a little freshly grated Parmesan to it. Definitely will make this again and I’d like to make it using jumbo shrimp in lieu of salmon.
Don, thank you for your rave review - I really appreciate it! ❤️ This would work great with shrimp, too!
This looks delish! Can I use coconut milk/cream instead, or will it change the flavor too much?
Sara, you can use the coconut milk - it would work great!
What about lightening this up with milk and a little cornstarch slurry for thickening? Heavy cream is so rich!
Barbara, yes, you can use milk + cornstarch slurry to reduce fat. Enjoy!
Can’t wait to try this!
Awesome! I hope you love it, Donna!
do you recommend using the dried sun-dried tomatoes that come in a bag or the kind that come in a jar in oil?
Meghan, you can use either, even though the jarred sun-dried tomatoes in oil are softer in texture and you can use the flavorful oil from the jar for cooking.
I made this and it is soooooo good! My husband and guests loved it!!
Judy, thank you for taking the time to share your feedback! ❤️❤️