You could call this Citrus Salmon Confit, or you could call it citrus olive oil poached salmon, but with either name, this recipe is extremely delicious and supremely easy. If I am looking for a simple pescatarian main entrée that won’t stress me out in the kitchen but will still make me feel like I’m serving something glamorous, this is exactly what I look to make! My Citrus Salmon Confit is sure to impress, and it will always be delicious.
What you need for this recipe is just a few ingredients, a good confit dish and a good olive oil. After that, your oven does most of the work. And isn’t that our favorite kind of recipe?
Table of contents
What does salmon confit mean?
“Confit” is a french term meaning preserve, but it has turned into a name that stands for cooking something in fat at a low temperature for a long duration of time. This was a traditional method of preservation, but it also just makes food delicious. You usually find this method used for things like garlic confit (which is phenomenal), duck confit (which I’ve never had!), or tomato confit. However, poaching things in fat is a method that translates well across many cooking applications, like in this case, fish!
Could I do this with another kind of fish or protein?
Absolutely. However, I will say this method tends to work best with a fish that has a higher fattiness to it. Like tuna, which is a very popular fish to either poach in olive oil or confit.
Doing this with a low-fat, high-moisture protein like tofu doesn’t seem to have the same effect. I find tofu benefits from a sear first. A low-and-slow cooking method doesn’t help it absorb flavor the way other proteins do.
However, if you are looking for a vegetarian protein to do this with, BEANS are a FANTASTIC AND DELICIOUS OPTION.
Looking for similar recipes?
I have a few salmon recipes up my sleeve! Here are a few favorites from the blog!
And that’s everything for this Citrus Salmon Confit!
If you make it, please tag me on Pinterest or Instagram so I can see! It’s my favorite thing to scroll through stories and see what you all are making.
And of course feel free to leave any questions, comments or reviews! This is the best place to reach me, and I’d love to hear from you <3
Citrus Salmon Confit
Equipment
- 1 porcelain baking dish or slab
- 1 chef's knife
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pound slab of salmon
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 3 small mandarin oranges
- 1 medium shallot
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1 small lime
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce
- 1 cup high quality olive oil plus more as needed, I love the Brightland Castelvetrano Olive Oil for this
- 1/3 cup fresh torn herbs like mint, dill and parsley for serving
Instructions
- Set a rack to the center of the oven and preheat to 325°F convection.
- Place the salmon skin-side-down on a porcelain baking slab and season the top with salt and pepper.
- Halve the mandarin oranges and pull off the peels. Try to keep the peels in as big of pieces as possible.
- Pull apart the mandarin orange slices and scatter them on top and around the salmon. Slice the peels into thin pieces and scatter them around the salmon as well.
- Peel and quarter the shallot and add it to the baking dish. Halve the garlic cloves and add them to the dish as well.
- Roll the lime on a flat surface to make it ready to juice. Squeeze as much juice from the lime as you can over the salmon. Pour the 3 tablespoons of fish sauce over and around the salmon as well.
- Pour 1 cup of high quality olive oil over and around the salmon. The salmon won't be completely submerged, but pour a liberal amount over the salmon, enough so that for the oil forms a thin layer on the bottom of the baking dish and is touching the salmon from all sides.
- Add the baking dish to the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the shallots are softened, the garlic is golden and the salmon's internal temperature is at least 135°F.
- Remove the salmon from the oven and push any citrus or peels off the top of the salmon. Scatter fresh torn herbs all over the top.
- To serve, you can either keep the salmon in its baking dish (I find this to look very pretty), or portion it onto a separate serving dish. Just make sure to include the cooked citrus, shallot and garlic pieces, plus a generous drizzle of the flavored oil. That's the best part!
This recipe sounds fabulous!! I’ll be making it tomorrow. What beans would you choose for pairing?? I am in love with Rancho Gordo beans.
I have previously made your Brothy Beans. My husband and I loved them!!
I don’t have a note on beans as a pairing suggestion BUT I love any of their cranberry beans or large white lima beans! I usually pair this meal with rice 🙂
This looks amazing! Can I cook it even if a don’t have a porcelain cooking dish? Would glass work?
This cooking method gave me PERFECTLY cooked salmon. My only note is that the mandarins picked up a LOT of the fish sauce flavor so next time I think I’d just use a few dashes. If anything I learned a new technique and got a lot of great inspiration!
SO easy and delicious, I think the fish sauce with the mandarins really makes this exceptional! What do you recommend doing with the leftover infused oil?
Oooo I love rewarming it and serving it with tofu on rice, in scrambled eggs, or with farro and beans as a sort of dressing. It’s salty enough to hold its own!
This recipe is amazing! So easy and delicious.
So glad you liked it!
Do I change the temperature if my oven only has a bake option?
I leave it the same, the time might vary by a few minutes but I’ve found it is still consistent!