20-Minute Sweet Chili Rubbed Salmon Filets

These delicious slightly spicy and sweet chili rubbed salmon filets are dairy free, gluten free, perfectly seasoned and come together in just 20 minutes as a healthy meal! 

20-Minute Sweet Chili Rubbed Salmon Filets

It was about time I revisited this delicious recipe. These sweet chili rubbed salmon filets made their way into my kitchen way back in 2013 and became a staple, go-to, fave! I’ve noticed on my analytics that this recipe over the last 7 years is still being visited by readers all the time so it was definitely due for new beautiful photography and a little update. 

When I created this recipe I had been experimenting with “enhancing” simple meals. For those who aren’t familiar with the term in relation to food, to me it basically means to bring out the natural flavors and add flavor intensity without adding heavy sauces, oils, butter, etc. The best way to do this is with using spices, herbs, or citrus!

How To Enhance Food With Spices & Herbs 

I love cooking with a variety of spices, some you may have never even heard of before (ahem… “fenugreek”?!). It’s so much fun to attack the spice aisle in your favorite grocery stores and come up with some amazing flavor combinations. There are a bunch of spice combinations to be found all over Pinterest, and if you feel so inclined, there’s a book called The Flavour Bible that gives tons of profiles for different foods and the flavours, spices, and herbs that work well with them. If you feel this area is new to you my recommendations are to:

• Start simple, using one unfamiliar spice at a time in a familiar recipe or by following a recipe online (like this one!) 
• Experiment with dry herbs during cooking and experiment with fresh herbs as garnishes 
• Always consider citrus! Try  lemon, lime, or even orange as a garnish or in your dishes as it always enhances with so much freshness!
• Write down your faves for future inspiration. When you come across a new spice, herb, or citrus that you love with a particular food or recipe, write it down and go back to it again. 

The Sweet Chili Rub for the Salmon

Salmon is a great ingredient when it comes to trying out different spices, herbs, and citrus as it’s a very versatile fish, not to mention it’s super healthy, full of essential fatty acids, and delicious! I love to make maple or ginger soy salmon and recently I made this delicious blackened salmon salad using a great combo of spices. For the sweet chili rubbed salmon filets I combined chili powder for a little heat with coconut palm sugar for a little sweet. Then, dill adds in a perfect amount freshness along with lemon and the staples, garlic and onion powder. 

If you aren’t into spicy food, this rub is actually very mild so it’s worth a try and your mouth definitely won’t be on fire after eating it! 

Here’s what you’ll need to make the rub:

• chili powder
• fresh dill
• garlic powder
• onion powder
• ground cumin
• coconut palm sugar

This delicious mix of herbs and spices for the rub truly creates an amazing flavor combination that “enhances” the salmon wonderfully.

 Complete the Sweet Chili Rubbed Salmon in a Bowl!

You can literally serve this rubbed salmon with any sides your heart desires but my favorite way to gobble it up is with a bed of rice or quinoa, a sprinkle of mixed greens, roasted broccoli and lightly salted tomatoes, and a big wedge of lemon to squeeze over it all….there’s the citrus! I also decided to add a sprinkle of hemp seeds at the end which is totally optional but adds even more nutrition and a touch of texture. 

In less than 20-minutes from start to finish you have an amazing, nourishing, wonderfully “enhanced”, easy-peasy lunch or dinner to enjoy on your own or make for the whole fam. Yum!

Be sure to pin the photo below the recipe to save this one for later as it’s also a great “stay-at-home” recipe idea for these crazy times! 

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Sweet Chili Rubbed Salmon Filets

Yield: 4

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

This delicious salmon recipe takes less than 20-minutes to make and is perfect for lunch or dinner. Dairy free and gluten free too!

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Ingredients

• 4 x 5oz wild salmon filets

Sweet Chili Salmon Rub

• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 2 tablespoons fresh dill
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon coconut palm sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1 lemon, cut into 4 wedges

Optional Bowl Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 cups broccoli florets
• 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 cups mixed greens lettuce
• 3 cups cooked brown rice or quinoa (or a blend of ancient grains)
• 1 tablespoon hemp seeds (optional)

Instructions

1. Cook rice or quinoa ahead of time according to package instructions.
2. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. Mix the chili powder, dill, garlic powder, ground cumin, onion powder, coconut palm sugar, salt and pepper in a small bowl.
4. Once combined, sprinkle the spice mixture evenly over each salmon filet and rub into the top of the salmon filets until evenly distributed (or as much as possible!), and set salmon aside.
5. In a large bowl add the broccoli and toss with the olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper.
6. Arrange the broccoli on half of the baking sheet and the chili rubbed salmon filets on the other half (rub side up).
7. Bake the broccoli and salmon for 15 minutes in the oven or until salmon is just flaky. Remove the pan from the oven and transfer the baked salmon to a plate.
8. Add the cherry tomatoes to the pan with the broccoli and place back in the oven for 3 more minutes to slightly blister the tomatoes and finish baking the broccoli.
9. Remove from the oven and assemble four bowls dividing the rice/quinoa among each, topping with the mixed greens, baked broccoli, blistered tomatoes, and chili rubbed salmon filets.
10. Serve with a wedge of lemon and a sprinkle of hemp seeds (optional).
11. Enjoy!

Notes

Preparing the salmon as part of a bowl like this is totally optional. Use the sweet chili rub for the salmon and bake, then serve the chili rubbed salmon however you would like!

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