Sheet-Pan Salmon with Asparagus and New Potatoes
- Savory
- Oven
Salmon fillets roast on one tray with crisp-edged new potatoes and tender asparagus, finished with lemon juice and fresh dill. A bright, high-protein dinner with almost nothing to wash up.
- Total
- 50 min
- Prep 15 · Cook 35
- Serves
- 2
- Difficulty
- Easy
You'll practice: Roasting · Zesting
Instructions
-
Heat the oven to 220°C. Halve the new potatoes, or quarter any larger than 4 cm, and put them on the large rimmed baking tray. Toss with 1 tbsp olive oil, 0.5 tsp salt and the black pepper, then spread them cut side down in a single layer.
~10 min
Cut side down against the hot tray, the flat faces brown and crisp while the insides steam, giving the best contrast in texture.
Cut the new potatoes to an even 3 to 4 cm so they finish at the same time as the salmon; if yours are larger, give them 5 extra minutes before the fish goes in.
Roasting Spread everything in a single layer with space between pieces so hot air circulates; crowding steams the food and it never browns.
-
Roast the new potatoes until the cut faces are golden and a knife slides in with little resistance, about 20 minutes.
~20 min
Roasting Spread everything in a single layer with space between pieces so hot air circulates; crowding steams the food and it never browns.
-
While step 2 cooks
While the new potatoes roast, zest the lemon into a small bowl, then squeeze in 1 tbsp lemon juice. Melt the butter and stir it into the lemon with a pinch of salt. Trim the woody ends from the asparagus and pick the dill fronds from the stems.
~8 min
Melting the butter lets it combine with the lemon juice into a smooth, glossy sauce that coats the fish evenly instead of sitting in pools.
Zesting Zest only the yellow outer peel, stopping before the white pith, which is bitter; a light touch gives bright aroma without harshness.
-
Push the new potatoes to the edges of the tray. Lay the salmon fillets in the centre, brush them with the remaining 1 tbsp olive oil and season with the remaining 0.25 tsp salt. Add the asparagus in a single layer alongside and roast until the salmon is opaque and flakes at the thickest point, 12 to 14 minutes.
~14 min
The oil conducts heat and keeps the fish from sticking, while crowding the tray would trap steam and stop the asparagus from browning.
Pull the tray out when the salmon just flakes; it keeps cooking from residual heat, and a thinner tail end will dry out if left longer.
Roasting Spread everything in a single layer with space between pieces so hot air circulates; crowding steams the food and it never browns.
-
Spoon the lemon butter over the salmon and asparagus, scatter over the dill and serve straight from the tray.
~3 min
