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A quick and easy Salmon Piccata that tastes like it came straight from a restaurant kitchen. Seared salmon fillets are bathed in a bright, zesty piccata sauce made with lemon, garlic, capers and a splash of optional white wine for depth. Light, elegant, and full of flavor.
Have I mentioned how much I adore good food? Especially when it feels gourmet but comes together in under 20 minutes. This easy salmon piccata proves you don’t need hours (or a culinary degree) to whip up something unforgettable.
What Makes This Salmon Piccata Work
This Salmon Piccata comes together fast, but tastes like fine dining. A bright, buttery piccata sauce of lemon, garlic, and capers brings bold flavor to every bite. It’s simple, fresh, and full of charm.
What makes this easy salmon piccata so good is the balance—crispy edges, tender salmon, and a drizzle of zesty sauce. The quick pan-sear keeps the fish juicy and flavourful. It’s effortless, elegant, and always a hit.
What Goes Into This Salmon Piccata
This salmon piccata recipe comess together with a handful of pantry staples and fresh ingredients to create that signature zesty piccata sauce. Here’s what you’ll need to bring it all to life:
- Salmon Fillets: Choose skinless fillets, about 24 ounces total, for even cooking and a tender, flaky texture.
- Garlic: Freshly minced garlic infuses the sauce with rich, aromatic depth.
- Lemon Juice: Freshly squeezed lemon gives the piccata sauce its signature bright and tangy flavor.
Note: Please see recipe card at the bottom for a full list of ingredients with measurements
How To Make Salmon Piccata
- Season and Dredge the Salmon: Pat the salmon dry and season both sides with salt, pepper, and lemon pepper. Lightly dredge each piece in flour.
- Heat the Pan: Melt 1 tablespoon of butter with the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Swirl the pan to combine and evenly coat the bottom.
- Sear the Salmon: Add the salmon and cook for about 4 minutes on each side until golden. Transfer to a plate and tent loosely with foil
- Sauté the Garlic: In the same pan, melt the remaining tablespoon of butter. Add the minced garlic and cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
- Deglaze with Wine: Pour in the white wine and bring it to a boil, scraping up any browned bits. Let it simmer until nearly evaporated.
- Build the Sauce: Add ¾ cup chicken stock and lemon juice to the pan. Bring to a boil and simmer for 3 minutes to reduce.
- Thicken and Finish the Sauce: Whisk the cornstarch with the remaining stock, then stir it into the pan. Cook until the sauce thickens, then stir in the capers.
- Coat and Serve: Return the salmon to the pan and gently turn to coat in the sauce. Garnish with chopped parsley and lemon slices, then serve warm.
This salmon piccata pairs beautifully with sides that balance its bright, buttery flavor. Try it with Sheet Pan Garlic Parmesan Roasted Broccoli & Green Beans for something crisp, or Seared Salmon and Prawn Fried Rice to soak up that zesty piccata sauce. For a refreshing touch, Mediterranean Pasta Salad adds coolness and crunch.
Recipe FAQ’s
Yes! You can replace the wine with extra chicken stock or vegetable broth. The piccata sauce will still be flavourful, slightly less complex.
Skinless fillets work best for this salmon piccata recipe, as they sear evenly and absorb the sauce well. Look for center-cut pieces for uniform thickness.
Absolutely, just make sure to thaw it completely and pat it dry before seasoning. This helps you get that perfect golden sear.
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Salmon Piccata
Ingredients
- 24 ounces skinless salmon fillets
- 1 pinch sea salt or black pepper, to taste
- 1 pinch lemon pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup flour
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1/3 cup dry white wine optional – replace with extra broth, but the wine adds amazing flavour!
- 1 cup low-sodium chicken stock broth, fat free if you can find it
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch or corn flour
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 4 tablespoons capers rinsed and drained
- 2-4 tablespoons parsley coarsely chopped to serve
- 4 lemon slices to serve
Instructions
- Season both sides of salmon fillets evenly with salt and pepper. Add 1/4 cup of the flour to a shallow dish; dredge the salmon in the flour to evenly coat. Shake off excess.
- Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a large nonstick pan or skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil and swirl to mix through the butter.
- Sear salmon for 4 minutes on each side or until cooked to your liking. Transfer salmon to a warm plate; tent with foil and set aside.
- Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter in the pan. Saute garlic for a further minute until fragrant. Add wine; bring to a boil scraping any browned bits off of the bottom of the pan. Cook until liquid almost evaporates, stirring occasionally.
- Add 3/4 cup stock/broth to the pan along with the lemon juice; bring to a boil and cook for a further 3 minutes.
- Whisk cornstarch (or cornflour) together with the reserved 1/4 cup stock/broth. Pour the mixture into the pan, stirring through the liquid to create a sauce. Cook for 1 minute or until slightly thickened. Remove from heat.
- Stir capers through the sauce. Place the salmon fillets back into the pan, gently turning each fillet to evenly coat in the sauce.
- Sprinkle with chopped parsley and extra pepper. Serve immediately over rice, pasta or vegetables of choice.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Great recipe! I was actually turning this into a salmon piccata Caesar salad. WhIle I think I would want more sauce if it was going over rice or noodles, it was perfect for my application. I did double the cornstarch though because I wanted the sauce to really stick to that salmon.
Make this for dinner. It was delicious.
This was a big hit this weekend. I love cooking fish and this is a great way to jazz up salmon steaks. I paired with some farfalle pasta and fresh green beans. Perfect for a somewhat “light” meal that won’t slow you down. I very much recommend.
I often serve chicken picatta so this should have been easy…but
First, I was in a new to me kitchen so oven settings and controls were a bit trial and error. Next I could only find salmon with skin and that was not a good choice. Too fatty
That being said, inspite of slightly burning the sauce, it still tasted great and I will certainly make this again better prepared.
This looks good and I am going to try it tonight. I just want to point out that in the ‘how to make salmon piccata’ section above the actual recipe you say to fry the salmon and then dredge it in flour. I knew that was incorrect because I am a seasoned cook, but I think it would be horrible if someone was confused and actually made it that way.
My fiancé and I made this last night and WOW! This is definitely going in the rotation as we agreed this is one of the top 5 dishes we’ve made together. I had mine with whole grain linguini (his regular) and steamed asparagus with lemon and a small splash of olive oil. I cut mine up and made it part of my pasta dish. The only thing we did different was adding extra broth for more sauce.
The family loves this. However, one needs much more sauce so I ended up adding around two cups of broth, more seasoning (salt needed), capers, pepper, cornstarch. After thickening I added angel hair right into the skillet. The starchy water thickens more and the noodles are infused with flavor. Then I put the fish back in.
I left this in the fridge for a day and when I heated it up for din din everyone went crazy for it.
Thank you!