Three of my [many] goals for 2020 are (1) to cook more, (2) to eat healthier, and (3) to stop ordering so much food delivery! Many nights, I get home from work and I’m so exhausted that I can’t even fathom cooking. I end up ordering in and spending all of this money and eating insane portions and all of my goals for 2020 go out the window. So learning how to make easy, healthy weeknight dinner recipes has become soooo clutch.
Sure, I miss spending all of that time becoming one with my couch… But this healthy weeknight dinner recipe only takes 30 minutes of cooking time (total), so it’s not a huuuuuge loss.
Quick Background on Me and Cooking:
Up until my junior year of college, I didn’t know how to make anything in the kitchen – well, at least not anything that required more than a microwave. I was a total child prodigy with a microwave. I could make omelettes, cakes, meatloaf, whatever. However, when it came to the stove or oven, I couldn’t have been more useless.
One of my roommates at the time was a food and beverage concentration in the Hotel school at Cornell… and was totally and completely appalled at how incompetent and hopeless I was in the kitchen. I’m pretty sure she took it as a personal insult. One day, she turned to me and said something along the lines of, “what are you gonna do when we graduate? You can’t live on Lean Cuisines and microwaved cakes forever! You’re gonna starve and die!”
And now you know how to threaten me. Death? Meh, that’s not very creative. Starvation? OMG NO please don’t take away my food!
Obviously, something clicked that day.
First, my roommate teach me how to make pasta… and by “make pasta”, I really mean boil water to cook the store-bought pasta. Yes, boiling water required a lesson, I bombed chemistry for a reason. (Actually my first lesson was learning how to heat up store-bought soup on the stove, but that’s too embarrassing!)
Well, after that inaugural lesson, my love of cooking and baking just grew and grew (and kind of spiraled slightly out of control). Over the past decade, I’ve made hundreds of dishes… but I definitely have my go-to recipes. Coincidentally, one of those recipes was the first real cooking recipe that I ever attempted solo: my soy vey salmon. Tried and true, that recipe is easy and always comes out tasting delicious!
This healthy weeknight dinner recipe for sesame ginger salmon is a more dressed-up version of that recipe. I typically have it with lemon asparagus (pictured – great if you want to only use one pan!). It’s also great with stir-fried veggies or roasted artichoke.
Pro tip: If you decide to make this dish with the lemon asparagus, enclose the asparagus completely in the aluminum foil (pinch it shut on top) before putting the asparagus in the oven.
Sesame Ginger Salmon
Notes
You can also enclose the salmon entirely in aluminum foil if you prefer a more poached taste.
Ingredients
- 1 lb. of salmon
- 1 lime, zested and juiced
- ⅓ cup of rice vinegar
- ¼ cup of soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons of dijon mustard
- 3 tablespoons of sesame seeds
- 2 tablespoons of sesame oil
- 3 teaspoons of ginger powder
Instructions
- Place all of the ingredients (except for the salmon) in a large ziplock bag or food storage container. Using a fork or spoon, mix ingredients together until thoroughly incorporated. Add the salmon and shake to ensure salmon is well-coated. Set in refrigerator for 1-2 hours or up to 1 day.
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Place some aluminum foil on a baking sheet and spray the aluminum foil with nonstick cooking spray.
- Place the salmon on top on top of the foil, in the center of the baking sheet. Drizzle remaining soy and mustard mixture on top of the salmon.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the salmon is cooked to the level you prefer. At that time, remove the salmon from the oven, plate, and serve!
Nutrition Facts
Sesame Ginger Salmon
Serves: 4 servings
| Amount Per Serving: 4 ounces | ||
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 290 | |
| % Daily Value* | ||
| Total Fat 17.8g | 27.4% | |
| Saturated Fat 2.5g | 12.5% | |
| Trans Fat | ||
| Cholesterol 50mg | 16.7% | |
| Sodium 1083mg | 45.1% | |
| Total Carbohydrate 7.1g | 2.4% | |
| Dietary Fiber 2g | 8% | |
| Sugars 0.9g | ||
| Protein 25g | ||
| Vitamin A | Vitamin C | |
| Calcium 124mg | Iron 2mg | |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Glitter & Spice