This lemon dill salmon pasta recipe makes an easy and elegant weeknight dinner. It's perfect for date night!
This salmon pasta with dill sauce is ready in only 20 minutes!
If you want more easy salmon pasta recipes, try my Cajun salmon pasta, this garlic butter salmon pasta, my creamy garlic salmon pasta, or my fresh tomato salmon pasta.
If you've got some fresh dill in your garden, this is the perfect recipe to try. This year I'm just growing basil and tomatoes (we have limited space), but herbs are plentiful in the summer, so they're easy enough to find at the grocery store. You can use fresh dill for plenty of things. I like to add it to salads, salad dressings, or even things like tuna salad.
I haven't tested this recipe with dried dill, but I would suggest starting with one teaspoon of dried dill and building your way up from there if you need more.
I used fettuccine for this recipe, but any shape pasta you have on-hand will work just fine.
Creamy dill sauce for salmon
This sauce is pretty simple. It has dill, garlic, heavy cream, butter, and lemon juice. Prior to cooking the salmon, I coat it in a bit of flour, which allows the sauce to thicken up. It's all cooked in one skillet, which makes it easy.
Salmon tip: I used a piece of fresh sockeye salmon that weighed around half a pound (anything around that size is fine). You can buy either skin-on or skin-off salmon. The skin is fine to eat, but some people prefer not to. If you buy a piece with the skin on but don’t want to eat it, you can peel the skin off on the step where you’ve taken the salmon out of the pan (it should peel off quite easily).
Love easy salmon recipes? Try my creamy lemon salmon or my creamy salmon piccata.
Do you ever make salmon pasta at home?
Questions about this creamy lemon dill salmon pasta? Ask me in the comments below.
Lemon Dill Salmon Pasta
This lemon dill salmon pasta recipe makes an easy and elegant weeknight dinner. It's perfect for date night!
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound fresh salmon
- Salt & pepper to taste
- Flour for dredging
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1/4 cup chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 cup heavy/whipping cream
- 1 tablespoon fresh dill chopped
- Optional garnish: fresh parsley, parmesan cheese
- 4 ounces uncooked pasta
Instructions
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Boil a salted pot of water for your pasta. Cook it al dente according to package directions. I suggest starting the sauce once the water's boiling.
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Season the salmon with salt & pepper and coat it in the flour.
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Add the oil and butter to a skillet over medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot, add the salmon and cook it for 2 minutes/side, then take the fish out of the pan and set it aside.
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Add the chicken broth, lemon juice, and garlic to the pan. Let it bubble for about 30 seconds. Reduce the heat to medium.
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Add the cream, dill, and salmon back into the pan. Break the fish up with your spoon into bite-size pieces. Cook it for a few more minutes until it's cooked through and the sauce has reduced and thickened a bit.
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Drain the pasta and add it to the skillet. Toss it & serve immediately with parsley and parmesan cheese if desired.
Recipe Notes
- You can use skinless or skin-on salmon. I prefer buying the kind with the skin already removed, but it's fine to eat it or peel it off.
- Can't get fresh dill? Try 1 teaspoon dried dill instead (build your way up from there).
- I don't recommend substituting the cream for milk or half-and-half because the lemon juice will likely curdle the sauce.
Lewis Elliott says
Fantastic dish, I extrapolated out to make if for 3 and it was delicious. We too traded the cream for Crème Fraiche and it was lovely and light. I do have a photo but no section to load these up 😀
Would greatly recommend.
Natasha says
That's great! I'm glad it worked out! Yup, there's no way to load photos in the comments here unfortunately... but if you're on Instagram, tag me and I'll be able to see it. 🙂
Tisam says
Can you use frozen salmon fillets?
Natasha says
You'd have to thaw them first.
Mazz says
Great recipe! The whole family liked this one 🙂
Natasha says
That's what I like to hear!
Jeffery Wood says
I love to cook and i love good food. That was amazing. I could eat that every night for the rest of my life,
Thanks.
Natasha says
Aww that's awesome!! Thanks for commenting!
Natalie says
So delicious! I used creme fraiche instead of heavy cream as that’s all I had. Also added frozen peas and some fresh spinach at the end before serving - soooo yum!!
Natasha says
I'm so happy you liked it! Love the creme fraiche idea.
Jeanne says
I just made this tonight (I was so hungry I forgot to take photos!) and it was delicious! Definitely one to add to the meal rotation - thanks for all of the deliciousness!
Natasha says
Yay so glad to hear it! Thanks for letting me know! 🙂
Anna says
I just made this and omg the flavors were on point ! This is seriously one of my favorite dishes. It is so comforting and delicious 👌
Natasha says
I'm so glad to hear that! 😀
Alex says
Awesome recipe. Everyone had clean plates. Shared on Facebook for all of my friends.
Natasha says
So glad to hear it, Alex! Thanks for sharing the recipe - I really appreciate it! 🙂
Taylor says
I made this and it is very delicious 🙂
Mine didn’t turn out as creamy or saucy as yours looks. Do you know where I may have messed up?
Natasha says
So happy you liked it!! I am sure that if you followed the recipe it turned out just fine! 🙂
Elizabeth says
I’m going to give this a try tonight! How many calories would you say per serving?
Natasha says
Hi Elizabeth! Calories will vary depending on the ingredients you use. Plugging the exact weights/measurements of the actual ingredients you use into one of the free calculators out there should give you a good idea of the calories.
Chuck Redding says
This was my first time making a salmon pasta dish and it came out exceptional. Thanks for posting!
Natasha says
I’m so happy to hear that! 😊
Pat says
Do you think i could Use another fish fillet ? not salmon like a white fish ?
Natasha says
Sure! Let me know how it goes.
Bob says
Ok, this is a great recipe for a quick meal. Flavors all compliment each other. I added toasted sour dough bread to suck up the juices. Will make again. Suggestion, wear old socks cause this recipe will make your toes wiggle right through them.
Natasha says
Great!! I am very pleased you liked it, Bob 😀
Maja from Jernej Kitchen says
Yummm! Love the combination. Salmon, lemon, dill, and pasta. Yesss please! Sounds and looks so good, truly perfect for hot summer days. Thanks for sharing (:
Natasha says
Enjoy! 🙂