The easiest, most delicious and healthy Baked Lemon Herb Salmon recipe combines fresh ingredients for tons of flavor! It's made in less than 30 minutes, and it's gluten free and Whole30 compliant.
Add the olive oil to a small mixing bowl. Add the basil, rosemary, parsley, lemon juice, lemon zest, garlic, salt and pepper.
Place the salmon skin side down in a shallow baking dish. Top with the lemon herb mixture.
Thinly slice the additional lemon and place on top of the salmon.
Place the salmon in the oven to bake for 10 minutes per inch of thickness. The salmon will turn from a bright orange/red color to an opaque pink as it’s cooked.
Notes
I recommend leaving the salmon skin on when baking it. The skin provides a barrier that prevents the salmon from overcooking and drying out. Salmon is also very delicate and trying to remove the skin before cooking it is very difficult unless you're a trained sushi chef. The salmon will easily peel from the skin once it's been cooked. While you can remove the salmon skin after it's cooked, the cooked skin is totally safe to eat.
Salmon can usually be purchased at the grocery store in large pieces that average from 1-3 pounds or in 6 ounce salmon fillets. If purchasing the larger piece of salmon, I recommend waiting to divide the salmon into fillets until after it’s cooked. Unless you have a very sharp knife, the salmon can get ruined when trying to slice it raw at home. You can also ask the butcher at your local grocery store to slice a larger piece into filets for you. Most grocery stores will do this, no problem! For this recipe, you’ll need four 8 ounce filets, six 6 ounce filets or one 2 pound piece of salmon.
The salmon should be cooked for 10 minutes per 1 inch of thickness, measured from the thickest part of the salmon. For example, a 1 1/2 inch thick salmon should cook for 15 minutes.
Leftover cooked salmon will stay good in the fridge for up to 3 days. While I don't recommend reheating the salmon, it is delicious served cold over a salad, like this Quinoa Caprese Salad or Greek Orzo Salad.