Air Fryer Salmon

Quick, easy, and hands-free, this Air Fryer Salmon recipe comes out perfectly every time. Tender, flaky, and with a delightful golden crust, you’ll want to always make salmon in the air fryer after trying it once! You can get a healthy dinner on the table in 20 minutes or less.

I love cooking salmon in the air fryer. It’s so quick from start to finish, and the golden crust you get on the outside? SO good. It’s the easiest salmon recipe possible that’s beyond foolproof.

Why You’ll Love This Air Fryer Recipe

• The salmon comes out so tender and moist on the inside and perfectly crispy on the outside with the air fryer. It’s such a delicious way to cook salmon, that I’ve been using this method constantly.
• It’s really quick to air fry salmon. Like, less than 10 minutes quick. Can’t beat that when you’re trying to get dinner on the table quickly.
• It’s beyond easy. You don’t even require flipping the salmon! You just season the salmon fillets and pop them into the air fryer.

Ingredients You’ll Need

• salmon — I have two pieces of salmon for this recipe, but you can easily double the recipe. My air fryer can fit 4 fillets. I keep the skin on the salmon as it gets deliciously crispy. One serving of salmon is around 3 to 4 ounces. My fillets are 4 ounces.
• seasoning — I keep it simple with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika. Feel free to change it up if you’d like. You can use sweet or smoked paprika. Onion powder is a great addition as well.
• oil spray — you need some oil spray to coat the air fryer basket. This also helps the skin get a little extra crispy.

How to Make Air Fryer Salmon

• Using a paper towel, pat dry the salmon fillets. Removing the moisture will help the seasoning stick to the salmon and prevents the salmon from steaming. Your salmon will be much crispier when dry. Make sure to pat dry all the sides.
• Generously season the salmon with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika.

• Spray the air fryer basket with some oil spray.
• Place the salmon fillets, skin side down, into the air fryer basket, making sure there’s space between them.

• Air fry the salmon fillets for 6 to 8 minutes at 400F, depending on the thickness of your salmon.
• Remove the salmon fillets from the air fryer basket and let rest for a couple of minutes before serving.

Recipe Tips and Notes

• For a brighter hint of flavor, you can squeeze a lemon on top of the salmon before serving.
• If you have a larger or thicker piece of salmon, you’ll have to increase your cooking time accordingly.
• Make sure there’s space between the fillets in the basket. This allows the hot air to fully circulate between each fillet so they’ll crisp up.
• Try to use salmon fillets that are similar in size. Since the salmon is essentially cooked blind in the air fryer, similar sized salmon fillets will cook evenly.
• I use skin-on salmon fillet as the skin helps keep the salmon moist. If you’re not a fan of the skin, you can remove it after air frying.
• All air fryers cook differently when it comes to temperature. Some cook hotter than others, so check on the salmon at the 6 minute mark with a meat thermometer.

My Recommendation

I love my air fryer! This is the one I'm currently using and it crisps everything up perfectly with little-to-no oil.

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Make Ahead Tips

• Meal prep: once cooled, refrigerate salmon in an airtight container for up to 3 days in the fridge.
• Freezer: while you can freeze cooked salmon in an airtight container for up to 3 months, the texture of the salmon may change. I recommend making salmon fresh when needed.

Serving Suggestion

Need something to serve with this air fryer salmon? Try these side dishes:

• air fryer garlic bread
• coconut lime rice
• Japanese corn rice
• Instant Pot basmati rice
• rosemary mashed potatoes
• rosemary roasted potatoes
• pan fried brussels sprouts
• Instant Pot cilantro lime rice

Air Fryer Salmon

Quick, easy, and hands-free, this Air Fryer Salmon recipe comes out perfectly every time. Tender, flaky, and with a delightful golden crust, you'll want to always make salmon in the air fryer after trying it once! You can get a healthy dinner on the table in 20 minutes or less.

5 from 1 vote

Print Rate

Prep Time: 10 mins

Cook Time: 6 mins

Total Time: 16 mins

Servings: 2 servings

Ingredients

• 2 (3 to 5 ounces) salmon fillets
• ½-1 tsp salt
• ½-1 tsp pepper
• ¼ tsp garlic powder
• ¼ tsp paprika
• oil spray

Equipment

• 5.8QT Air Fryer

Instructions

• Pat dry the salmon fillets with a paper towel.
• Generously season the salmon with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika on all sides of the salmon.
• Spray the air fryer basket with the oil spray.
• Place the salmon fillets, skin side down, into the air fryer basket and air fry at 400°F for 6 to 8 minutes.
• Remove the salmon fillets from the air fryer basket and let them rest for a couple of minutes before serving.

Tried this recipe?Did you make this recipe? I’m always so happy to hear about it! I’d love to see how it turned out. Tag me at @CarmysHungry on Instagram so I can see it! If you enjoyed the recipe, I’d really appreciate a comment with a 5 star rating! ♥

Nutrition Per Serving

Calories: 165kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 23g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 62mg | Sodium: 632mg | Potassium: 573mg | Fiber: 0.2g | Sugar: 0.04g | Vitamin A: 171IU | Vitamin C: 0.01mg | Calcium: 17mg | Iron: 1mg

Author: Carmy

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

More Air Fryer Recipes To Try

• Air Fryer Turkey Thighs
• Teriyaki Salmon (Air Fryer)
• Air Fryer Halloumi
• Air Fryer Gochujang Chicken Thighs
• Air Fryer Dumplings
• Air Fryer Sausage Links

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