Are you ready for a dinner that is seriously easy and is so good that it will make you go weak in the knees? Just wait until you try this Blackened Salmon with Zucchini. The preparation couldn’t be more simple, yet the results are absolutely stunning. It’s the perfect example of how food doesn’t have to be complicated to be good.
Blackened Doesn’t Mean Burned
“Blackening” is a cooking technique popularized by Chef Paul Prudhomme in the 1980s. It involves coating the fish in spices and cooking at a high temperature in butter until the paprika in the spice mix and butter solids form a very dark and delicious “blackened” crust. While the exterior of the fish may appear very dark brown or almost black, there shouldn’t be a burnt flavor.
What Spices Do You Use for Blackening?
I used my Homemade Cajun Seasoning for this blackened salmon, but you can take a short cut and use a store-bought blackened seasoning blend, if you prefer. Just keep in mind that store-bought seasoning mixes may contain a different amount of salt, so you may need to add more or less to compensate.
What Kind of Skillet is Best?
The blackening technique is traditionally done with a cast iron skillet, which is great at providing the high even heat needed to form that butter-infused spice crust. I used a non-stick skillet, which I know will make some people clutch their pearls, but I was still able to get a really nice crust on my blackened salmon so I was okay with it. I’m going to just go ahead and tell you to use whatever type of cookware is easiest for you and gives you the least amount of anxiety about the fish sticking because there is nothing more devastating than losing an expensive piece of salmon stuck to a piece of cookware (although there should be plenty of oil and butter to keep that from happening here). ;)
What to Serve with Blackened Salmon and Zucchini
I ate this as a meal on its own, but if you want to round out your plate with some carb action, I think this would be great on a bed of seasoned rice. A side of Vinaigrette Slaw with Feta would also be a nice compliment.
Blackened Salmon with Zucchini
Servings 4Ingredients
Cajun Seasoning
- 2 tsp smoked paprika ($0.20)
- 1 tsp dried thyme ($0.10)
- 1 tsp dried oregano ($0.10)
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp cayenne ($0.02)
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp onion powder ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp freshly cracked black pepper ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
Salmon and Zucchini
- 1.3 lbs. salmon ($10.65)
- 2 Tbsp butter ($0.26)
- 1 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.04)
- 1.3 lbs. zucchini ($1.79)
Instructions
- Combine the spices for the Cajun seasoning in a bowl (smoked paprika, thyme, oregano, cumin, cayenne, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper).
- Remove the skin from the salmon, then cut it into four equal-sized portions (if not already cut). Generously coat all sides of the fish in the prepared Cajun seasoning.
- Slice the zucchini into half-rounds and set aside.
- Add the butter and cooking oil to a skillet and heat over medium-high. When the skillet is hot and the butter is melted and foaming, add the salmon pieces. Cook the salmon for 5-7 minutes on each side, or until a dark brown crust forms and the salmon is cooked through*.
- Remove the cooked fish to a clean plate. Add the sliced zucchini to the skillet in its place. Quickly sauté the zucchini in the residual butter and spices until it is tender. Serve the salmon and zucchini immediately.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!Love salmon? Try my Baked Ginger Salmon!
How to Make Blackened Salmon with Zucchini – Step by Step Photos
Make the Cajun spice mix first. Combine 2 tsp smoked paprika, 1 tsp dried thyme, 1 tsp dried oregano, ½ tsp ground cumin, ¼ tsp cayenne pepper, ½ tsp garlic powder, ½ tsp onion powder, ¼ tsp salt, and ¼ tsp pepper. Stir the spices together.
Remove the skin from one salmon filet (1.3 lbs.), then cut it into four equal-sized pieces, keeping in mind that one end is usually thicker than the other. Generously coat all sides of the salmon filets with the Cajun seasoning.
Add 2 Tbsp butter and 1 Tbsp cooking oil to a skillet. Heat the skillet over medium-high heat.
When the skillet is hot, the butter melted and foaming, add the seasoned salmon pieces. Let them cook for about 5-7 minutes on the first side, or until a dark brown crust has formed, then flip and cook for another 5-7 minutes on the other side, or until cooked through. The total cooking time may vary with the thickness of your salmon pieces.
While the salmon is cooking, slice the zucchini into half-rounds.
Once the blackened salmon is finished cooking, remove it from a skillet to a clean plate. There should be a ton of spice-infused butter still in the skillet, so we’re going to take advantage of that for the zucchini!
Add the zucchini to the skillet (still over medium-high) and sauté the zucchini for just a few minutes or until it softens just a bit. The zucchini will pick up all the leftover herbs and spices in the skillet.
Serve immediately or pack it up into meal prep containers and enjoy for the next few days (I did!).
I love all your recipes. Thanks for sharing this article! Although I don’t know how to cook, I will definitely try it one day.
Really good! Thanks for the recipe! Did not take long at all to make. A nice healthy dish, my family really enjoyed it!
Delicious! I left the skin on the salmon and it turned out great.
I also cooked the zucchini a bit longer, so they also got slightly charred and had a delicious “kebab”-type feel to it.
This was great! I got Winco frozen salmon for $7.98 for 1 lb. We live in WA state. I am not always a fan of blackened seasoning but this spice mixture was great! We always use our grill, but it has been in the 90’s and I followed the skillet directions. The zucchini was free from the garden. I served it with Orzo with Pesto and fresh cantaloupe. A hit!
Really tasty and quick weeknight recipe. Next time I’d probably switch the skillet to high heat with the zucchini, just since the time between cooking the salmon and the raw zucchini can be a little long otherwise. Better to avoid leaving the temperatures feeling too far off between them.
I look forward to trying this but I think I’ll use something like cod or snapper when I make it … which would be an even friendlier budget option, as they’re usually much cheaper. Halibut could be good too, but can also be pricy like salmon, and again, not always a flavour I want to mask with lots of spice. My family likes the taste of salmon too much, (seafood in general) and we have an abundance of good, fresh wild salmon out here on the West Coast; I just think the ‘blackening’ process will overpower salmon’s delicate flavour.
I’m suspecting another winning recipe from Budget Bytes!!
I prep dinners for my 97-yr-old Mom and seasoned salmon is in the weekly rotation. The fish counter at her local market has some fresh portions with an in-house seasoning and it is really good. I cook it the same way your recipe calls for and usually plate it with rice pilaf and (believe it or not) zucchini. This is a good combination and holds well for the next day. Glad to see I am on the same page as you are—–and I’ll make the seasoning mix you give for her next salmon dinner. Thanks for sharing.
Perfect timing on this recipe. My family has made a “call for salmon” this week. I am going to try this. It looks right down their alley. Thanks
This was delicious! I just moved into a new apartment and this was my first home-cooked meal! Although my salmon was $15, it was totally worth it. I loved it! Will definitely be trying your other recipes! :)
It’s a keeper.
Can’t believe you removed the skin 😂 I’m only teasing, but for real, crispy salmon skin is *chef’s kiss*
I’m with you on that — I *love* salmon skin, and wouldn’t remove it! One of my favourite sushi rolls is the bbq salmon maki… if the restaurant deep-fries the skin and gets it really crispy skin, it can be amazing!!
Wow. BudgetBytes does expensive fish…never thought I’d see the day.
This isn’t the first time I’ve posted a recipe with fresh salmon. ;) I don’t do it often because, yes, it is a splurge. But splurging on an “expensive” meal at home once in a great while is still way less expensive than going out to eat!
Um…at less than $4/serving I’d hardly call this expensive lol.
I love blackened salmon, I normally leave the skin on and just coat the one side of the salmon with the spices and then the skin side crisp up, so blackened salmon with crispy skin lovely. Haven’t yet tried the zucchini but that’s my next meal.
I want to try this recipe (both the zucchini and salmon look AMAZING) but been striving for more meal prep friendly meals lately. I just prep for myself, so I usually make 4 servings of each recipe which provides lunch and dinner for me for 2 days. Is salmon something you can prep in advance if it’s going to be eaten within 2-3 days? Or is it better to cook the salmon only on the day you intend to eat it? Thank you in advance. Can’t wait to try this recipe!!
Sounds like a great plan! Yes I’d recommend eating the salmon within 2 days, but that’s my preference.
This was great! I only made the salmon (not the zucchini) and really enjoyed the blend of spices and the crispy outer layer of the fish. I can be a bit picky about salmon and don’t always like the flavor, but this was really nice. I expect that this would work well cooled as a salad topper, so I may make a larger batch next time.
I struggled a bit with removing the skin from the salmon (it was my first time doing that step), but otherwise this was easy to cook. My stovetop tends to run a bit hot, so I didn’t need the full 5-7 minutes on the other side (I think it only took 3-4) and the salmon was cooked through and well done (but not dry). Thanks!