Lemon Pepper Salmon

Imagine this: You need dinner, and you need it fast. You’re also tired and don’t want to do a lot of work. But you’ve already served your family stir fry with chicken nuggets masquerading as fine Chinese breaded chicken, and macaroni and cheese with hamburger in it, just to make it fancy. You’re out of ideas.

Boy, do I have the solution for you.

Let’s talk about salmon, shall we? As far as fish goes, you cannot beat salmon. It’s delicious. It’s pink (so as to be attractive to little girls). And it cooks so dang fast. That’s what I love the most. You can have dinner on the table in 15 minutes flat (as long as you have preheated your oven first).

And as far as the effort required…. Can you lay the fish down on a pan, sprinkle it with some salt and lemon pepper, and put it in the oven? Of course you can! But there’s ONE THING you HAVE to do, or the effort it takes to make this salmon will multiply!

This is the secret. You must put your salmon skin-side down on an UNGREASED foil-lined pan! Do not put the salmon in a glass dish or on anything that has not been covered with aluminum foil. This equals trying to scrape fish scales off your bakeware, which is super nasty.

Not greasing the foil is extremely important. During baking, the skin will adhere to the foil. After removing the salmon from the oven, you just slip a spatula between the meat and the skin, and the meat is easily separated from the skin and can be transferred to a pretty plate. Then all you do is crumple up the aluminum foil with the skin still stuck to it and throw it out. No dishes! Wahoo!

Now you have a beautiful, delicious, and super healthy meal that is perfect for any time of year!

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Lemon Pepper Salmon

Author: Melissa Howell

Ingredients

• 1-2 lb. salmon fillet
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp. lemon pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. Line a small cookie sheet or baking pan with aluminum foil.
3. Lay the salmon down on the aluminum foil, skin side down.
4. Sprinkle with salt and lemon pepper. (Use as much or as little as you would like).
5. Bake on the center rack in the oven for 12-15 minutes. When salmon easily flakes with a fork, it is done.
6. Let salmon rest for about five minutes.
7. Slip a spatula between the skin and the meat and gently separate the two. Carefully lift the salmon from the skin and place it on a serving plate.