Baked Honey Teriyaki Salmon (No Marinating)
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My honey teriyaki salmon starts with a sauce cooked down on the stove until it becomes a sticky glaze that clings to the fish in the hot oven. I put half on before baking and save the other half for the finished salmon, so there’s plenty left to spoon over rice.
This honey teriyaki salmon has been in my back pocket for years. What makes it so good comes down to one small step: I cook the sauce before it ever touches the fish. When I tried it thin, it slid off the salmon and pooled in the dish. Boiled down by half, the honey, soy sauce, rice vinegar, ginger, and garlic turn glossy and thick enough to cling to the salmon in a hot oven.
That’s why there’s no marinating here. The salmon goes straight into the oven, and the flavor sits right on the surface where you taste it first. I hold back half of the sauce, and since it never touches raw fish, it can go over the finished fillets and your rice.
The ginger is generous on purpose, a full two-inch piece, which keeps all that honey from tasting flat. I often reach for steelhead, which stays juicy and forgives an extra minute in the oven. It’s the kind of no-fuss, easy-to-memorize dinner I can throw together when time is short and I still want something that tastes really good.
If you’d rather make dinner on the stovetop, my honey glazed salmon has similar flavors but is seared and basted in one skillet with lime.
What to serve with honey teriyaki salmon
This is my go-to salmon recipe year-round, partly because it’s delicious and partly because it makes dinner feel effortless. I’ll start a pot of rice before cooking the salmon, then quickly sear some bok choy, broccoli, or carrots while it cooks. Dinner really can be that easy.
This salmon is also delicious paired with with my soy ginger noodles or my favorite coconut rice.
Baked Honey Teriyaki Salmon (No Marinating)
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup honey
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons water
- 2 inch piece of ginger (finely grated)
- 1 clove garlic (very finely minced)
- 4 6-ounce salmon fillets
- Sesame seeds and sliced green onions (to serve)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. In a small pot over medium-high heat, add the honey, soy sauce, rice vinegar, ginger, garlic, and water and bring it to a boil. Let the sauce boil until it reduces by half, about 5 minutes.⅓ cup honey, ¼ cup soy sauce, 2 tablespoons rice vinegar, 2 inch piece of ginger, 1 clove garlic, 2 tablespoons water
- Place the salmon skin-side down in a baking dish and pour half of the sauce over the top. Bake the salmon for 8-10 minutes, or until it flakes easily with a fork.4 6-ounce salmon fillets
- Serve the salmon with the remaining sauce drizzled over and some sesame seeds and green onions on top.Sesame seeds and sliced green onions
Video
Nutrition
We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here.
More salmon recipes
For more inspiration, check out all of our salmon recipes!
My family loved this!
That makes me so happy to hear! 💛 I’m so glad it was a hit with your family — thanks so much for taking the time to leave a note!
Excellent recipe. Although we didn’t have rice vinegar, we substituted it with mirin and still came out great. Can’t wait to make it again for the family!
Thanks, Alexis!
This recipe was amazing… I had to substitute a red wine vinegar so I used
1 Tbls, and I didn’t measure exactly … but it was the best I ever made.. thank you so much for this recipe.
I love hearing that! Thanks, Diana!
The recipe was super good! I’ll definitely make it again
We love this recipe! We have made it several times. It is a great way to enjoy salmon.
Thank you for a great recipe!
Excellent recipe. It would be helpful to have the weight amount because we half found fillets from 2″ to 5″ wide which changes the ingredient amounts quite a bit but still a wonderful recipe
You’re absolutely right – salmon can vary widely in size. Will include a weight when we retest and update the recipe. 🙂
It’s suppose to be teriyaki and your using soy why is that ,the recipe is for a honey teriyaki glaze
Because the ingredients in this recipe make the teriyaki sauce. It’s much better than storebought teriyaki sauce!
We really enjoyed this simple but very tasty dish.
With a side dish of fried mushrooms and mashed potatoes and a glass of dry white wine, it was a lovely combination. Thanks so much for the recipe.
You’re so welcome, Peter!
This looks amazing! I’ve never cooked with teriyaki before.
I hope that you like the recipe as much as I do!
I love how simple this is – so easy, but so much flavor. And you shouldn’t feel silly for sharing it — it’s such a great dinner tip!
Thank you so much! Sometimes simple is the best, isn’t it?!
If I don’t have fresh ginger, how much ground ginger would I use?
I would recommend starting with a small amount (1/2 teaspoon) as ground ginger can get a little grainy feeling. You can always taste and add more!
5 ingredient recipes are the BEST – and I’m so glad you shared this one, yum! I could seriously spend days just looking through your food photos, Kristen – they are gorgeous!!
Thanks, Jess!