Thinking about what to serve with salmon for your next fish dinner? Here are the best suggestions of side dish recipes that pair well with salmon.
Salmon is one of the easiest dinners you can make, since it cooks so quickly and can be paired with so much. There are so many ways to season salmon and serve it that are family-friendly.
Whether you are feeding a family big or small, you’ll find plenty of options here. These salmon pairings help you easily plan and make filling meals for everyone.
This post contains affiliate links. That means that if you make a purchase after clicking on a link, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
What side dishes go with salmon?
There are a lot of dishes that go well with salmon dinners. You can pair salmon with green salads, slaws, potatoes, pasta salads, and more.
Since baking salmon takes little time and effort, you can focus on making several delicious sides. Salmon is typically paired with lemon, but you can do any spice mix or seasoning to have it coordinate with the flavors in the side dish recipes.
If you aren’t baking salmon, you can pan-fry it or poach it. If you have an air fryer, it cooks quickly there, too. Did you know you can even use your slow cooker to make salmon?
Sometimes it is easier to not make separate dishes, but to make something all-in-one dish like salmon pasta with peas. Or, use a baking sheet to make salmon and vegetables at the same time.
What goes with salmon dinner?
As mentioned above, you can serve all kinds of side dishes with your salmon for dinner. Salmon is light and flaky, so you can either match that with a light side or add contrast with a heavy, filling one.
No matter what you choose–salad, carbs, vegetables–there should be a recipe here you’d serve with salmon again and again. Not only are these side dishes simple to prepare, but they don’t have too many ingredients.
Helpful tools for making salmon dinners
Before knowing what to eat with salmon, make it a point to double check your kitchen to make sure you already have these must-have kitchen supplies.
These tools will not only be handy in making easy salmon meals, but the side dishes to serve with it as well.
- Digital meat thermometer
- Cast iron skillet set
- Air fryer
- 9×13 Pyrex baking dish
- Charcoal grill
- Cedar planks
- Parchment paper
- Baking sheet
- Kosher salt
- Pepper
- Extra-virgin olive oil
What to serve with salmon
If you want to try a new side dish to serve with baked salmon, these recipes are just perfect. These sides only use a few ingredients and are quick enough for weeknight meals.
Vegetable Sides
Vegetables are always a favorite side dish, so try some new-to-you recipes to find the perfect accompaniment for salmon.
Broccoli with Bacon Salad
This broccoli with bacon salad is quick and easy to prepare. It's naturally gluten free and a delicious way to eat more broccoli!
Easy Garlic Green Bean Recipe With Tomatoes
This garlic green bean recipe with tomatoes is so simple and flavorful, and it matches well with salmon.
Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Shallots
These Brussels sprouts have an amazing texture and extra flavor from the bacon and shallots, but they're not too heavy to be a side dish to fish.
Pasta Sides
Serving salmon on top of a pasta salad is a great way to easily add both carbs and vegetables to the meal. Just season the salmon to match the flavor profile of the pasta or quinoa salad side dish.
Mexican Pasta Salad
Enjoy this easy recipes for Mexican Pasta Salad with fresh vegetables and all your favorite Mexican flavors.
Vegetarian Greek Quinoa Salad
This Vegetarian Quinoa Salad is a favorite to serve to guests, so you can just add salmon on top for those who do eat meat/fish.
Bacon and Ranch Pasta Salad
This easy bacon and ranch pasta salad is perfect for appetizers, parties, and even lunches.
Potato Sides
Potatoes make a fantastic side dish for salmon because of the contrast of light, flaky fish and starchy, filling potatoes.
5-Ingredient Red Potato Salad
Need a super easy recipe for your next barbecue or potluck? How about this 5-Ingredient Red Potato Salad.
Homemade Mashed Potatoes Recipe
These easy and delicious homemade mashed potatoes are great with any main dish, even salmon.
Ways to prepare salmon
No matter how you cook salmon, it doesn’t take very long. And the fish is such a blank slate for any of your favorite seasoning combos.
Grill
Salmon is hearty enough to be cooked on the grill. You may want to use a fish basket just to be safe. This easy grilled salmon recipe will go well with any side dish on our list.
Stovetop
If you can fit them in a big enough skillet, you can easily pan-fry right on the stovetop. Some people prefer to use a cast-iron skillet when cooking salmon. For a very quick dinner, we use salad dressing to make balsamic salmon, though any dressing would work.
Oven
This is my favorite way to prepare salmon because it leaves the stovetop free to prepare side dishes. It’s simple enough to use your favorite seasoning mix on fresh or defrosted salmon and then bake for 15-20 minutes. Learn how to bake salmon.
Slow Cooker
The slow and steady heat of a slow cooker means the texture of your salmon filets will be perfect. No more overcooking, plus you can walk away for the two hours it takes to cook. This recipe for salmon with lemon sauce looks delicious.
Instant Pot
It’s both easy and fast to steam salmon in a pressure cooker or Instant Pot. This is best done with frozen fillets, and you’ll need to have a rack so they’re not sitting in the liquid. Otherwise, they’ll just fall apart.
Air Fryer
Air frying is another way to get a crispy skin and flaky texture for cooked salmon. Try this lemon and parsley air fried salmon recipe.
Fish Cakes
One of the most family-friendly ways to serve salmon is by making salmon cakes. This is a great way to introduce kids to the flavor of salmon since it’s mixed with potatoes.
More recipe collections
Looking for more easy family meal ideas? These are our most popular collections:
- Ground beef crock pot recipes
- Budget casserole recipes
- Egg dinner recipes
- Summer slow cooker meals
- Ground beef pasta recipes
