Lemon Garlic Salmon (Whole30, Paleo, Low Carb, Keto)

A quick but elegant lemon garlic salmon recipe that's perfectly flavored. Whole30, paleo, low carb, and keto friendly.

 Course Main Course

 Cuisine American, Paleo, Whole30

 Keyword garlic, lemon, salmon

 Prep Time 10 minutes

 Cook Time 15 minutes

 Total Time 25 minutes

 Servings  people

 Calories 384 kcal

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup ghee or butter if not on Whole30
• 6-8 garlic cloves minced
• 1/4 cup chicken broth
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• Sea salt
• 1 tablespoon avocado oil
• 4 salmon filets about 6 ounces each, patted very dry
• Fresh cracked black pepper if desired
• 2 Tbsp. fresh parsley minced
• Fresh lemons thinly sliced, for garnish

Instructions

Make the lemon garlic sauce:

1. In a small saucepan, melt ghee or butter over medium heat. Add the garlic and sauté 1-2 minutes or until fragrant. Add in the chicken broth, lemon juice, and a few generous pinches of salt. Simmer this mixture until reduced by 1/3 to 1/2. The sauce will turn from a really thin liquid to a thicker, more bubbly boil. Remove from heat and set aside.

Make the salmon:

1. Remove the salmon from the fridge 10-20 minutes before cooking. Sprinkle both sides liberally with salt and season with fresh cracked black pepper, if desired. Heat avocado oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat until shimmering.
2. Carefully place salmon filets skin side up and cook until lightly browned on bottom, about 2-3 minutes or until crispy. Use a spatula to carefully flip, taking care not to flake off any flesh. Cook 3-4 minutes on second side, or until skin is crisp and flesh begins to feel firm to the touch. Remove at this point for a salmon cooked around medium. Continue to cook until flesh easily flakes with a fork for a well-done salmon.
3. Remove pan from heat and pour lemon garlic sauce over. Sprinkle with parsley and arrange lemon slices over, if desired. Serve with skin or easily remove with a spoon, and serve with more lemon garlic sauce and lemon slices from the pan.

Recipe Notes

If you're on a Whole30, make sure you use ghee.

If you're dairy-free, use olive or avocado oil in place of the ghee or butter. You can also use a vegan butter.

I prefer my salmon cooked to medium-rare or medium. If you want to cook yours to this temperature, you might try cooking the flesh side of the salmon only 1-2 minutes then flipping and cooking another 2-3. If you like well-done salmon, cook 3 minutes on the flesh side and 4 minutes on the skin side, or until the flesh feels very firm and flakes easily with a fork.

Make sure you pat your salmon very dry on both sides with paper towels. This will help the salmon cook quickly and evenly, will promote a nice crust, and will  prevent sticking to the pan.