Low Sodium Salmon with Lime and Herbs
This Low Sodium Salmon takes a handful of fresh herbs, some limes, and a hint of lemon pepper seasoning and turns it into a super healthy, delicious meal ready in under 30 minutes. Wrap it in foil with some asparagus and pop it in the oven, or throw it all on the grill – take your pick!
Approximate sodium content: 84mg per serving
Why You’ll Love This Low Sodium Salmon
When sticking to a healthy diet, chances are salmon’s going to be on the menu. It’s a great pick for low-sodium meals too since it’s got a lot of great natural flavor.
But even salmon needs a little something extra sometimes – and nope, it’s not salt! Instead, we’re using fresh ingredients like herbs to make the flavors of this low-sodium salmon really pop.
Make it in the oven or on the grill, either way it’ll taste fantastic! The best part about the oven option is that it’s easy to clean up since we wrap everything up in foil.
Sodium Notes By Alex G., Registered Dietitian
Salmon naturally contains about 75-80 milligrams of sodium per 6 ounce serving, but the rest of the simple but flavor-filled ingredients in this recipe are very low in sodium.
Cooking the salmon and asparagus in foil packets helps to retain all the flavors that make this recipe work, including the sweet acidity of the lime juice and the generous amounts of fresh herb seasoning. Adding your vegetables directly to the foil packet to cook with the salmon saves time while also giving the asparagus the same delicious lime and herb taste combination.
Ingredients
- Salmon filets: Make sure you’re using fresh salmon filets, about 6-8 oz each. No need to worry if they’re a little bigger, but the 6-8oz size is very common.
- Herbs: To flavor our salmon! No need to go crazy measuring exact amounts. I recommend dill, thyme, flat-leaf parsley, curly parsley, or rosemary.
- Olive oil: We’ll toss all the ingredients in rich, extra virgin olive oil to ensure they cook to perfection.
- Lemon pepper seasoning (no salt added): A must have for low sodium cooking. Mrs. Dash and Kinder’s are excellent salt-free brands.
- Limes: Two limes will give us lime slices, lime juice and lime zest.
- Asparagus stalks: A tasty, healthy side that goes deliciously with our salmon.
Why Cook in Foil Packets?
Wrapping salmon and asparagus in foil packets has its perks. It helps the salmon cook faster and stay nice and moist. And since the foil does most of the work, you don’t need to use much oil or butter. Just enough to keep things flavorful without overdoing it.
Other Veggies to Try
No asparagus on hand? No problem! You can easily substitute with yellow squash, zucchini, green beans, or almost any other vegetable you have available. You really can’t mess this up.
Preparation
If you’re grilling, preheat your grill to medium heat. If you’re baking, preheat the oven to 400°F.
Prepare the fresh herbs by removing the stems and chopping them. Aim for about 1/2 cup of a roughly chopped herb mixture.
Add the herbs to a medium bowl and mix. Then add tablespoons of olive oil, lemon pepper, and the lime zest and juice.
Now place each salmon fillet, along with 4 pieces of asparagus, on a piece of aluminum foil.
Pro Tip: Each square will have to be big enough to cover the salmon and a few spears of asparagus with room to spare.
Brush on the herb mixture, dividing it evenly for each salmon filet. Then slice the remaining lime and place the slices on top of each fillet. Drizzle the remaining olive oil over the asparagus. Wrap each salmon fillet in the foil, bringing the edges together to seal. Fold the edges tightly, making a ½-inch fold, then fold again to ensure a secure seal.
Cooking
You have a couple of options here. You can place the pouches on a baking sheet and bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes. Or, toss them on a preheated grill, with the cover closed for about 13-15 minutes. Either way, we want the internal temperature of the salmon to be 145°F.
Pro Tip: Be careful not to overcook the salmon or it can start to become dry and rubbery. The fish will be done when it easily flakes with a fork. It’s also okay for the salmon to be slightly pink in the middle.
Serving
Now that your salmon is nice and flaky with all the fresh herbs and lime, you’re ready to enjoy it! Feel free to add any additional fresh herbs or even more lime or lemon.
I recommend serving this with a side of white or brown rice, cauliflower rice, or potatoes for a complete meal.
Storage & Reheating
If you’ve got leftovers, store the salmon and asparagus in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. If you still have it sealed in foil, you can store it that way too. Just make sure it’s tight.
When you’re ready to reheat, bake for 10-15 minutes until warmed through. If you grilled your salmon, you can reheat it by searing it in a pan or heating it up on the grill for a few minutes per side.
Easy Low Sodium Salmon with Lime and Herbs
Ingredients
- 4 6 oz. salmon filets (fresh)
- ½ cup herbs removed from stalk and finely chopped. For instance: Dill, thyme, flat-leaf parsley, curly parsley, and rosemary
- 2 ½ tablespoons olive oil divided
- ½ teaspoon lemon pepper seasoning no salt
- 2 limes divided
- 16 asparagus stalks
Instructions
- Preheat the grill to medium heat or the oven to 400°F.
- In a medium bowl, mix together the herbs, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, lemon pepper, and the zest and juice of one lime.
- Place each salmon fillet, along with 4 pieces of asparagus, on a piece of aluminum foil large enough to completely cover them, leaving extra space to create a sealed pouch.
- Divide the herb mixture evenly among the salmon fillets. Using a brush or spatula, spread the herb mixture over the fillets.
- Slice the remaining lime and place the slices on top of each fillet.
- Drizzle the remaining olive oil over the asparagus.
- Wrap each salmon fillet in the foil, bringing the edges together to seal. Fold the edges tightly, making a ½-inch fold, then fold again to ensure a secure seal.
- Place the foil packets on the preheated grill and cook for 13-15 minutes, or place the packets on a baking sheet in the 400°F oven and bake for 15-20 minutes. The salmon is done when it flakes easily with a fork or when it registers 145°F on an instant-read thermometer.
- Garnish with any remaining herbs and serve.
Do you know how to cook the salmon in the oven? I like this technique–I need to know temp and amount of time. Thanks.
Hi Cindy,
Go with 375 degrees for 15-25 minutes, depending on the size of the salmon fillet. Give it a check with a fork after 15 to see how it is. You’ll probebly din it done at about the 20 minute mark on average. Good luck! Let me know how it goes.