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Salmon Pasta with a Creamy Garlic Sauce

Published / Updated / 98 Comments

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This salmon pasta with a creamy garlic sauce is quick and delicious and makes an easy and elegant meal. Ready in 20 minutes!

salmon pasta with a creamy garlic sauce in a beige bowl with lemon wedges
Photos updated 8/17

This is one of those dishes that tastes like some effort was put in, but it's actually easy enough to make without gnawing your arm off when you're starving after a long day at work.

And the best part is that you can finish off the bottle of wine while you're cooking this. Just kidding. Sort of.

This creamy garlic salmon pasta dish is a good option for a date night in, or you can easily double (or triple) the recipe if you have guests to feed without adding a lot of extra work. I used fettuccine, but feel free to use your favorite pasta or whatever's in the cupboard.

a white plate with a piece of salmon

Quickly searing the salmon makes it extra tasty. Piping hot pasta, butter, white wine, cream, and parmesan cheese = decadence in a bowl.

There's no fancy ingredients in here... but you'll get restaurant-quality results for a fraction of the price.

close-up of creamy garlic salmon pasta in a bowl with a fork

Only 20 minutes to pasta perfection - what could be better?!

How to make creamy salmon pasta

This salmon pasta is very easy to make; you start by seasoning the salmon and then quickly searing it on both sides. Take it out of the pan while you add the sauce ingredients, make the sauce, add the fish back in, and finish cooking it. Voila!

Pro tip: The sauce is fairly lemony, so if you're on the fence about how much to add, halve the amount of lemon. You can then always squeeze more in when you've given it a taste if you think it needs more. I love the stuff, so I usually add even more than I suggest in recipes when I'm cooking for myself. 🙂

bowl of salmon pasta with a creamy garlic sauce beside lemon wedges

Will you try making this lemony salmon pasta with a creamy garlic sauce?

Let me know if you have any questions in the comments below!

More salmon pasta recipes you may like:

This salmon pasta with a creamy garlic sauce is quick and delicious and makes an easy and elegant meal. Ready in 20 minutes!
4.64 from 25 votes
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Salmon Pasta with a Creamy Garlic Sauce

An easy to make and elegant salmon pasta dish.

Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Keyword creamy salmon pasta, salmon pasta
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Servings 2
Author Natasha Bull

Ingredients

  • 4 ounces fettuccine or other pasta uncooked
  • 1/2 pound fresh salmon (skinless if possible)
  • Onion powder to taste
  • Salt & pepper to taste
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1/2 cup dry white wine
  • Juice from 1/2 medium lemon (about 1 tbsp)
  • 3/4 cup heavy/whipping cream
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan
  • 1 tablespoon flour
  • 1 tablespoon fresh parsley chopped

Instructions

  1. Boil a large salted pot of water for your pasta. Cook using package directions until it's al dente.
  2. Grate parmesan and set aside. Season the salmon lightly with onion powder and salt & pepper on both sides.
  3. Add the olive oil and butter to a skillet on medium high heat. Once it's hot, add the salmon. Cook salmon for a couple of minutes on each side.
  4. Take the salmon out of the pan and set aside. Add the white wine, lemon juice, cream, garlic, and parmesan, and scrape the bottom of the pan so the brown bits get incorporated into the sauce.
  5. Slowly add the flour to the sauce, while stirring, to avoid any lumps.
  6. Add the salmon back in the pan and break it up with your cooking spoon so it's in bite-size chunks. Gently mix it in with the sauce. Cook for an additional five minutes or so until the sauce is thickened and salmon is cooked through.
  7. Drain pasta and add it to the skillet, along with 1 tablespoon of the water you cooked the pasta in. Gently mix the sauce and pasta. Serve immediately with parsley and extra parmesan cheese if desired.

Recipe Notes

  • If you can't buy skinless salmon, you can easily remove the salmon from the skin just before you add the salmon back into the pan (step 6), or use a sharp knife to remove the skin prior to seasoning it. Or keep it on if you don't mind it.
  • This recipe is easily doubled. I used one piece of fish when making this recipe for two people.
  • The sauce is fairly lemony, so if you're not into that, halve the amount of lemon, then add more in once you've tasted it if it's not lemony enough for you. 

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  1. Michelle says

    I don't have any white wine - what would be a good substitute? I know chicken broth is the usual substitute, but how would that work with salmon?

    Reply

  2. Annani says

    5 stars
    Lovely! Easy and quick. My hubby said it was the best meal he has had this year! Beautiful winter salmon dish..
    we added more lemon, and some oven crisp veggies.

    Reply

    • Natasha says

      The overwhelming majority of people in the comments seemed to like it. Wonder what went wrong for you!

      Reply

  4. Sheepdoc says

    5 stars
    This was awesome. I had already cooked leftover salmon and angel hair pasta. Even DH who doesn't like fish liked it.

    Reply

  5. Tae says

    4 stars
    I just made this tonight and I love how strong the lemon taste is , I used white cheddar cheese instead of Parmesan and I used apple cider vinegar as a substitute for the wine , everyone loved it !

    Reply

  6. Molly says

    5 stars
    We made this for V-Day dinner and it was such a simple but delicious recipe. My wife and I are both suckers for salmon skin so we just left the skin on and seared it for that extra crackle. Still broke up great in the salmon.

    Reply

  7. Kathy says

    5 stars
    This was delicious! I baked a chunk of salmon last night with onions, white wine, and butter with the thought that tonight I'd be making salmon cakes with the flaked salmon. Alas, no egg. Then I came across your recipe - and I had penne pasta, aging cream, parm, crisp white wine, lemon, and -- garlic and sliced red onion which I sauteed in a bit of olive oil, then added white wine and lemon juice, before adding the cream. I did thicken it slighly with a Canadian ingredient - Easy Blend Flour from Robin Hood - not as pasty as flour. What a wonderful convergance and a deliciouis dinner. Even with the cream, it had a bright lemon flavor. This is a keeper. Thank you!

    Reply

    • Natasha says

      So happy you liked it, Kathy! I'm glad you were able to find a recipe that worked with the ingredients you had 🙂

      Reply

  8. Charmaine says

    This recipe seems lovely! I don't have any onion powder but I do have fresh onions - do you think that would be a good substitute? And can any kind of flour be used? Sorry if these seem like stupid questions, I'm a total newbie at cooking!

    Reply

    • Natasha says

      Not silly questions at all! I would just leave the onion powder out. And I would use white all-purpose flour. I don't typically use different kinds of flour for basic cooking because they do behave a bit differently. Let me know if you try this recipe!

      Reply

  10. Katerine says

    This was so easy and tasty! The only thing I made different was to add a leek and some frozen peas and it was yummy. Boyfriend loved it too!

    Reply

  11. Olga says

    5 stars
    Natasha, this looks tasty! These are absolutely mouth watering! It will quickly disappear in our house, very tasty and flavorful!

    Reply

  13. Renee Waddler says

    I ABSOLUTELY LOVE this recipe & so does my boyfriend! I've made it twice & am going to make it again today. Thanks so much for for sharing your talent with us 😁

    Reply

  15. Gwyn says

    5 stars
    This was super good! Thank you. I am following the Plant Paradox system so used sorghum pasta (yum) and left out the flour. I steamed some asparagus in a sieve with the pasta and served it on the side. Really lovely flavour. I used salmon with skin on and seared the skin, removed it and ate it while the pasta was cooking :). So good for you!

    Reply

  21. Mollie Morris says

    5 stars
    Hello! Your recipe looks delicious and reminds me of Fettuccini Greta Garbo in the Fiddlehead Restaurant Cookbook. Their recipe uses a hard smoked Salmon instead of fresh. This is a nice alternative! 🙂

    Reply

  23. Ron says

    Thanks all. LMAO, I call myself an "amazing cook" and who knew?
    Guess what's for dinner tonight? I'm a friend of Bill so the no wine option was great.

    Reply

  24. Tom Kennedy says

    This was a lovely recipe, and I love salmon prepared just about anyway but I found with a little less lemon juice and a dash of dill it was spectacular.

    Reply

  25. Sharon says

    5 stars
    Hi I tried this recipe last week .. I was really hungry and I used canned salmon!!! It was epic ... I’m doin again today but adding shrimp instead 😘🤫🤭

    Reply

  26. Don says

    A slight suggestion and modification. Before cooking the salmon, brush on a slight glaze of olive oil. Then sprinkle on your preferred seasoning. Let it sit. It will stick better to the fish. After a few minutes, before putting it in the pan add just a light covering of brown sugar to both sides. Lightly smooth it in with a baking brush. It will phase out any fishy taste of the salmon and add an extra pop and flavor to the dish. Don't use butter yet. Cook in the pan with just thin film of olive oil. The secret to salmon is cooking it on low heat. All the juices will flow back into the fish and taste immeasurably better. After it is brown, take the salmon out of the pan and proceed with the rest of the recipe. When eating you will taste all the seasoning and the sweetness in the salmon with the sauce.

    Reply

    • Gwyn says

      5 stars
      Hi Don I made this as is only my salmon was skin on. I seared the skin side so I had some lovely crackle to munch on while cooking the meal :). Due to personal preference I would never add brown sugar to this as I love the taste of salmon and love the tangy lemon cream flavour. Each to their own 🙂

      Reply

    • Natasha says

      Hi Sam! I think it should be ok if you simply omit it. Otherwise, I'd use chicken broth in its place. Hope you enjoy the recipe! 🙂

      Reply

  30. Dawn says

    That recipe is delicious. I've been looking for one similar to this for a couple of years. Would you mind if I post it in my blog, giving you credit and adding your link?

    Reply

    • Natasha says

      Thanks, Dawn! Glad you liked it. Thanks for asking, but I do not allow re-posting of my recipes in full. There's a few reasons for that, including the fact that if my recipe is posted in full somewhere, there's zero incentive for someone to click over to my blog. Also, Google penalizes duplicate content. I'm ok if you make alterations and write the recipe out using your own words, though (and post your own photos) then cite me as "adapted from" and link back to me. If you'd like to include one of my photos and then a link back to my recipe, that's fine too, and direct readers to my recipe for the ingredients and directions.

      Reply

  31. Carol B. says

    I made this last night and my husband and I loved it! I used about 1.3 lbs of salmon and about 8oz of pasta. I used about 1/3 cup of half and half and about 1/2 cup of pasta water when putting together the sauce (in lieu of the cream). I used about 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. It was DELICIOUS and it reheated for lunch really well 🙂

    Reply

  34. Ron says

    1 star
    I made this today, too much lemon juice!!!!! tuned out too sour 🙁
    also, the 4 ounces (114grams) fettuccine is not enough for 2 persons.
    Very disappointed.

    Reply

    • Natasha says

      I'm sorry to hear that. 2 dry/uncooked ounces per person is the suggested serving size for pasta, so that's what I base my recipes on.

      Reply

  35. Yoyce says

    5 stars
    Hello I been wanting to find out how to make the Pasta taste so delicious just like the restaurants , I just made a slight changed on the heavy cream and substituted it for BertollI Alfredo Sauce and it tasted awesome...
    Thanks so much for sharing this recipe

    Reply

  36. Fred in DC says

    5 stars
    Thanks for this terrific recipe! Tried it with a slight reduction in cream (about 1/2 cup) and thought it was delicious, as did my family.

    Reply

  37. Stacy says

    So glad to have found this, looks delicious!! What are your thoughts on substituting the heavy cream with 2% milk and maybe a little RF cream cheese? I'd like to try bringing the fat content down just a bit but I'm not much of a cook and i don't want to ruin what looks to be an amazing dish!

    Reply

    • Natasha says

      Hi Stacy, I think that you could probably do that, but I can't say for sure how it'll work out. The milk worries me a bit because it won't quite thicken up the same as the cream does. I suppose mixing it with the cream cheese will help thicken the sauce up overall. The cream cheese will likely make the sauce a little more tangy. If you do try it, let me know how it worked out. 🙂

      Reply

    • Natasha says

      I think you may end up with a slightly thinner sauce (not sure how it would alter the taste exactly), but I don't see why you couldn't try. I've done a bit of research, and I read that sometimes using soy milk can yield unpredictable results, so I would keep that in mind. I'm curious how it goes - let me know! 🙂

      Reply

  40. Cecily Barney-Macon says

    Just prepared dish substituted pasta with Whole wheat pasta and kept the pasta water as my thickening agent instead of flour added sautéed spinach and Roma tomatoes ????

    Reply

    • Natasha says

      Nope, sorry. You could try plugging the ingredients into an online calculator but I'm not sure how accurate those are.

      Reply

  43. Persephone says

    This sounds great - I love cooking salmon so that one side is super crisp along the bottom as it makes for a great textural contract with in the final dish

    Reply

  44. Kate @ Babaganosh.org says

    This really does look fancy and elegant! Definitely a great dish when having guests over because creamy sauce + seafood looks and sounds fancy!

    Reply