Description

This creamy garlic salmon pasta combines tender, flaky salmon with a luscious white wine and parmesan cream sauce. Perfectly cooked al dente pasta is tossed in the rich sauce, delivering a restaurant-quality dish that’s easy to make at home. With bright lemon juice and fresh parsley, this recipe balances richness and freshness for a delicious, comforting meal that serves 2 to 4 people.

Ingredients

Scale

Pasta

8 ounces uncooked spaghetti or other pasta

Salmon

1/2 pound fresh salmon
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
Salt & pepper to taste

Sauce

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon flour
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup dry white wine or chicken broth
3/4 cup heavy/whipping cream
Juice from 1/2 medium lemon (about 1 tablespoon)
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

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Instructions

Cook Pasta: Boil a large pot of salted water. Add the spaghetti or your choice of pasta and cook until al dente according to package instructions. Drain, reserving some pasta water for later.
Season Salmon: While the pasta cooks, pat the salmon dry and season it evenly with onion powder, salt, and pepper.
Cook Salmon: Heat olive oil and butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. When hot, add salmon and cook for about 2 minutes per side until lightly browned and just cooked through. Remove salmon from the skillet and set aside.
Make Roux & Sauce: Reduce heat to medium. Add the flour to the skillet and stir constantly for about 30 seconds to form a roux. Then whisk in minced garlic and white wine (or chicken broth), letting it bubble for about 20 seconds.
Add Cream & Lemon: Whisk in the heavy cream and lemon juice. Stir until the sauce is smooth and heated through.
Incorporate Parmesan: Gradually whisk in the freshly grated parmesan cheese until melted and the sauce thickens.
Flake Salmon & Combine: Add the cooked salmon back to the skillet, breaking it into bite-sized pieces with your spoon. Gently fold the salmon into the sauce and let it cook an additional 3-5 minutes until the sauce is nicely thickened and salmon is fully cooked.
Toss Pasta with Sauce: Add the drained pasta to the skillet along with about 1 tablespoon of pasta cooking water (more if needed to thin the sauce). Add the chopped parsley and gently toss to combine everything evenly.
Serve: Serve the salmon pasta immediately while hot, with extra parmesan cheese on top if desired.

Notes

If you cannot find skinless salmon, you can either remove the salmon skin before adding it back to the sauce or leave it on if you prefer.
The sauce has a prominent lemon flavor; if you prefer milder lemon, reduce the lemon juice to half and adjust to taste later.
This recipe serves 2 to 4 people. For a more decadent meal for two, reduce the pasta amount so the sauce and salmon portions are richer per serving. For 4 servings, serve with a side salad or garlic bread or increase salmon to around 3/4 pound.