How Long to Marinate Salmon?

Need to know how long to marinate salmon for best results? Find out — and try two simple marinade recipes.

While most meats benefit from hours of marinating to really help flavors penetrate deep into the meat, marinating salmon is a bit different. 

Here we’re sharing how long to marinate salmon to ensure that it is delicious and full of flavor.

What is Marinating?

Marinating is the process of soaking foods — generally meat — in a sauce.

The sauce itself is called the “marinade” while the process of soaking your food is “to marinate” it. Kinda confusing how similar the two words are, we know.

There are two reasons to do this, generally speaking. The primary one is to give the meat added flavor by letting it soak up the sauce for longer. The other reason is to soften the meat.

As we’ll get into in a moment, you really don’t need to soften fish like salmon. And that’s why marinating for too long is actually counterproductive. 

Still, it can be a great idea to marinate your fish for the appropriate amount of time to give it some added flavor. Let’s walk through the right way to do it so you get the maximum benefits without any of the drawbacks.

How to Marinate Salmon for the Right Amount of Time

The key to knowing how long to marinate salmon depends on knowing what kind of marinade you’re using.

You should marinate salmon for up to 20 to 30 minutes with an acid-based marinades (those that include a lot of vinegar or citrus juice for instance).

Any longer than that and the acid can break down the salmon, which will result in a mushy piece of fish.

Nobody loves mushy fish! (Okay, some people like gefilte fish or other similar fish products, but that’s a different category altogether.)

For other types of marinade, you can marinate salmon for up to an hour.

Alternately, if you’re using a simple combination of herbs, spices and oil, you can likely get away with marinating it for up to six hours.

Do You Have to Marinate Salmon?

Short answer — no! 

There are plenty of salmon recipes that don’t call for a marinade. It really just depends on the flavor you’re going for, but you can absolutely achieve a delicious salmon meal without going through the extra step (and time!) of marinating the fish.

For example, this classic lemon basil salmon recipe is perfectly good without a marinade. And if you want something a little more creative — or maybe you’re addicted to Trader Joe’s Everything But the Bagel seasoning mix like we are — try this roasted salmon with everything bagel spice that we love.

(You don’t have to live near a Trader Joe’s to buy the mix — it’s online — but there are also other companies that offer similar products. We just think they’re inferior.)

Salmon Recipes to Try

Salmon is one of our favorite proteins because it’s delicious and loaded with nutritional benefits. If you’re ready to start cooking, try one of these recipes:

• Our miso glazed salmon recipe, for instance, is always a hit.
• We also recommend this lemon basil salmon. It’s bright, savory and super delicious.
• Love a little spice? Our 3-ingredient blackened salmon recipe is the pick for you!
• Need even more heat? Go with this Sriracha glazed salmon and avocado salsa pairing.

Ready to start marinating? Here are two easy recipes we recommend starting with, depending on your personal preference and palate.

Salmon Marinades

There are no hard and fast rules about what kind of marinades are best for salmon.

As with meat or poultry, you should have fun experimenting with what flavor combinations you love best.

Soy Sauce Marinade

This simple, classic soy sauce marinade has a slight Asian influence that pairs beautifully with salmon. 

Because it uses balsamic vinegar you’ll want to be sure to not marinate the salmon for too long.

Loaded with lemon, garlic and fresh herbs our Mediterranean marinade is an ideal choice for salmon.

Use it for grilled or roasted salmon, and then use any leftover salmon on top of a salad the next day.

Now you’re ready to enjoy some delicious marinated salmon! Enjoy.

It’s worth mentioning that there are different types of salmon — we can help you learn about the differences.