Look, I know seafood isn’t for everyone. But seafood is pretty damn good for you. And salmon is chock full of healthy fats your body likes for cardiovascular health among other things, so that’s a bonus.

Setting aside the lot of folks who just can’t get over eating sea creatures due to a psychological block or a texture issue (I’m not talking to vegans or vegetarians, you do you ❤ ), a big reason so many people dislike a particular food thing is simple: They haven’t had it prepared in a way that will appeal to them.

That man I tricked into marrying me wasn’t ever a fan of salmon. But he’s absolutely a fan of THIS salmon.

My late father-in-law also wasn’t a fan of salmon. He liked crab and some other seafood, but salmon? Meh.

I made this salmon for him one night. He took one bite and went, “Oh…oh wow. This is so good. Oh boy…”

He continued to make happy noises so much that my mother-in-law finally interrupted him with, “Chuck, I think that’s enough.” She was so fucking over it.

He raved about that salmon for ages.

So with that…here’s the recipe that makes people reevaluate their position on salmon to the point that they’re uncontrollably making sounds of ecstasy at the dinner table.

* * *

Spicy Garlicky Salmon

Ingredients:

3-4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (or more if you like things zippy!)

1 1/2 T olive oil

1 tsp whole grain mustard (please don’t use that bright yellow shit, that’s for hot dogs or, if you’re my elderly mother, eating by the spoonful when she gets a leg cramp)

1/2 tsp Kosher salt (or use table salt, but I don’t…Alton Brown shamed me out of it)

2 T fresh lime juice

1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper

3 salmon fillets

Directions:

First things fist: Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

Unpackage and rinse your salmon (I do, you don’t have to I suppose).  If it’s not already in serving sized pieces, chop her up if you’re so inclined. I was because it was too long for the baking dish otherwise.

Line a baking dish with aluminum foil, then brush the foil with a light sheen of olive oil (we hate when the fish sticks, yes we do).

Measure out the garlic, pepper, and olive oil into a small bowl.

Mix thoroughly with a fork – or a tiny little whisk if you’re like that – until well blended.

Place the salmon fillets in the baking dish and coat top of the salmon (that you’ve placed skin down, please) with the olive oil mixture.

Ignore the fact that there are more fillets in this picture than the recipe calls for: I doubled the recipe because I found a larger hunk of salmon. Easy peasy.

Once you’re done coating your salmon with spicy garlicky goodness, toss it into your preheated oven.

Bake salmon 20 minutes or until fish is easily flaked with a fork.

 

Remove from oven, let cool so you don’t destroy your mouth hole, and then go nuts.

Bone Ape Tit.

 

If you’d like a tasty sauce to garnish your salmon with, keep reading.

Garlic Lemon Mayo Sauce

Ingredients are exactly what it sounds like the ingredients would be.

1/4 Cup of whatever mayo blows your skirt up, I personally prefer Best Foods/Hellman’s

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 T of lemon juice.

Directions: Mix well and let sit a bit so the flavors mix together. Boom. Done.

Once your salmon is done, spoon a small amount onto the fillet of salmon. It’s a nice little garnish. The salmon is so good on its own that I rarely make this tasty sauce anymore, but it’s nice for presentation with a smattering of chopped dill, chives or green onions to pretty it up.