Sweet and Spicy Salmon and Lemon Corn Quinoa
A dry rub of brown sugar, cumin and chili powder take this salmon over the top! Serve it alongside lemon corn quinoa and roasted broccoli for a quick dinner.
I have a fast recipe for you tonight that will taste like you ordered it from a restaurant! On a recent date night in Bethesda, I noticed a brown sugar and cumin salmon on the menu. Oddly enough, I actually ordered tacos since I had a craving for them that evening but that combination stuck in my head and I thought I would try it out at home soon.
Lucky for me the time came soon enough! Salmon was on sale recently so I bought a pound and cut it into 3 fillets. Such a great decision. You will absolutely love it. The salmon was perfectly cooked and had a crunchy exterior from the caramelization of the brown sugar with a hint of smokiness. This would probably do great on the grill too as long as you oil up the grates otherwise the sugars in the dry rub might make it stick.
I served the salmon up with some garlic roasted broccoli and lemon corn quinoa (recipes below!)
Rinse and cut the salmon into small fillets (I got a little over a pound so I cut it into 3) and dry the pieces well with a paper towel. You want the rub to stick to the salmon!
Mix up brown sugar, cumin, chili powder, cinnamon, and a little salt and pepper. The mixture is enough for about 4 fillets as I had some leftover.
Press about 1 tablespoon of rub onto each fillet (I did the skin side as well so it would be nice and crunchy!). Saute in 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil for about 4-5 minutes on each side. The sugars will caramelize and they might be a little sticky to move. Turn them over carefully!
My favorite side dish that I love to make for dinner is GARLIC ROASTED BROCCOLI. I could seriously eat an entire pan of this stuff for dinner alone. I bought a head of broccoli at the store and cut it into small florets (little trees!). I tossed it with salt, pepper, garlic powder and olive oil before placing them on a baking sheet lined with foil that had been greased. Bake at 400 for about 20-25 minutes. The florets should turn a little brown and crispy at the edges.
For the lemon corn quinoa: I cooked 1 cup of quinoa in 2 cups of chicken stock (according to the package instructions). It took about 20 minutes and then I added the juice from half a lemon, a teaspoon of honey, the kernels from one corn on the cob and diced red pepper halve. I like raw corn kernels but if you don’t you could it a little bit beforehand 🙂
This sweet and spicy rub will make your salmon restaurant worthy!
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- 2 salmon fillets
- olive oil
Instructions
- Mix the spices for the dry rub together.
- Brush both sides of salmon fillets with olive oil using a pastry brush.
- Rub each fillet with the spice mixture (I rubbed both sides including the skin).
- Place salmon skin side up in a pan heated with olive oil.
- Cook salmon for about 5-6 minutes and then flip to the other side and cook for another 5 minutes.
Notes
This creates enough dry rub for at least 4 fillets of salmon
Yum, this sounds fantastic! Big salmon fan, and always looking for new ways to try it out
Thanks Donna! It’s an easy dry rub to make!
This is one of my favorite ways to prepare salmon. The marinade in this recipe is the perfect combination of spicy, sweet, and savory in fact, I also love to use it with steaks or chicken.