Creamy spinach artichoke stuffed salmon doused in a homemade lemon butter sauce! This summer food that’s fancy enough to serve dinner guests but takes no time at all to whip up!

Hello there!

I’m still here! I haven’t disappeared. A small Memorial Day break snowballed into a week-long hiatus for me. There are a ton of things going on behind the scenes at the moment. Things I want to share with you, but I feel it would be premature to do so now. So let’s give it a month, and I hope that by then I’ll be able to tell you more about why I’ve been so MIA! 

But I’m here now; I’m back! And I’ve got a spinach artichoke stuffed salmon recipe that is sure to be a go-to summer meal! We’re talking about fresh salmon filets that you can get your fishmonger at the grocery store to make for you if you ask nicely, stuffed with a creamy spinach artichoke dip and then pan seared and doused in homemade garlicky lemon butter sauce and oh my lanta!

This is one of the best ways I’ve ever made salmon!

Salmon is a staple at our house! It’s a fatty omega-3 + Vitamin B 12 loaded powerhouse of a protein that takes no time to whip up at all Ideal for weeknight dinners, you see? And there are just so many ways to make salmon that you could serve it every night of the week and not repeat the same recipe twice.

Our personal favorite: my garlic butter baked salmon in foil. The sauce that I use in that recipe is the same one we’re using today. But it’s a whole lot fancier because our salmon is stuffed with creamy spinach and artichoke first.

Other ways we love serving salmon: Seattle-style salmon chowdah, baked firecracker salmon, spicy miso glazed salmon, pan seared salmon with lemon cream sauce, chili lime salmon, but also with crunchy lemon pepper. 

And, well, I think you get the idea!

WHAT DO YOU NEED TO MAKE STUFFED SALMON?

• large salmon filets
• olive oil
• spinach artichoke dip (homemade or store-bought)
• shredded mozzarella cheese
• lemon juice
• cold butter
• minced garlic
• red pepper flakes

WHAT KIND OF SALMON WORKS BEST WHEN YOU’RE MAKING STUFFED SALMON?

I suggest purchasing fresh salmon for this recipe so that we can get the salmon to sear beautifully on both sides. Frozen salmon would also work, but you would need to defrost it first, then you’d want to pat it dry entirely. Even after all of that, keep in mind that frozen salmon, unfortunately, just won’t get that same beautiful sear as fresh salmon will. So I really suggest going with fresh if you can for this recipe.

HOW TO MAKE THE BEST SPINACH ARTICHOKE STUFFED SALMON

1. Make sure the salmon sits at room temperature for 15-30 minutes before starting. This is really important and keeps the salmon from shrinking and curling when you sear it! Then, brush the salmon with olive oil and generously season with salt and pepper.
2. Start by making a slit in the thickest part of the salmon. I suggest doing this with a paring knife and very carefully cutting the salmon until you get a pocket between the two searing surfaces of the salmon.
3. Stuffed the prepared spinach artichoke mixture into the pouch and gently use the paring knife to push the filling in further but we careful not to go through to the other side. 
4. Heat the olive oil in a pan and gently sear the salmon for roughly 5-7 minutes per side.

CAN I BUY READY MADE SPINACH ARTICHOKE DIP OR DO I HAVE TO MAKE IT MYSELF?

Absolutely! I love making this with leftover spinach and artichoke dip but if you don’t happen to have any on hand, feel free to grab ready-made dip! You could even use the jalapeño artichoke variety if you like that sort of thing!

CAN I  MAKE STUFFED SALMON IN THE AIR FRYER?

I’ve mentioned before that I don’t own an air fryer (gasp! I know, I’m probably the last person ever) but I do think that this could easily be made in the air fryer. Keep in mind that this is purely based on researched and that I haven’t tried it myself so actual cooking times may vary by a couple of minutes here or there. But I suggest air frying the salmon at 385-390ºF for roughly 6-8 minutes. You won’t need to flip the fish at all in the air fryer so be sure to place it skin side down. Also, be generous with cooking spray or brush with olive oil using a pastry brush.

HOW TO MAKE THE LEMON BUTTER SAUCE TO GO WITH STUFFED SALMON

The lemon butter sauce is really easy to make, but it tastes like something you’d get in a fancy restaurant. Heres how to make it: 

1. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the lemon juice and minced garlic, allow the lemon juice to reduce to 2 tablespoons. 
2. Add in 1 tablespoon of butter, remove the pan from heat and swirl, so the butter starts to melt. Place back on the heat for a few seconds, removed and continue to swirl until the butter completely melts. 
3. Repeat with the remaining butter, one tablespoon of butter at a time. When butter is completely melted, remove sauce from stove; set aside for later or you can also just place it on a simmer burner on the lowest setting if you’d like to keep it warm for serving.

DO I HAVE TO SERVE THIS WITH LEMON BUTTER SAUCE?

Nope! If you want to go a lighter route, you can simply season the salmon with 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder and a pinch of cayenne along with the salt and pepper and skip the lemon butter sauce altogether! 

WHAT DO YOU SUGGEST SERVING WITH STUFFED SALMON?

My roasted Brussel sprouts! But also, steamed asparagus, southern buttermilk biscuits, rosemary focaccia, cheddar mashed potatoes, instant pot mashed potatoes, sautéed green beans, steamed rice, butter egg noodles or a simple salad and pull-apart garlic bread! 

I hope you’ll give this easy stuffed salmon recipe a go! It’s truly delicious enough to serve company!

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