Oven Roasted Salmon with Parmesan-Mayo Crust

You know, I was all ready to make this post about salmon and healthy ways of cooking it an all that jazz and it was going to be relevant and not contain any random tangents about whatever pops into my ADD mind.  But then I realized that this recipe is from a blog called, "She Cooks, He Cleans", and it made me giggle and then I lost track of my thoughts of salmon and started thinking about cleaning in our household.

If I were a mean wife, I would tell you all that I cook every night and also do all the cleaning myself while my husband sits on the recliner drinking beer and watching baseball.  But I'm an honest person and I'll admit that the man of the house certainly pulls his weight when it comes to cleaning.  And by "pulls his weight", I mean, "does all of the cleaning".  I mean.....not ALL of it, mind you, but probably more than the average dude.  You could argue that it's because he adores me and wants me to have time to do the important things in life, like lay on the couch and play on Pinterest and drink wine.  OR, you could argue that he cleans a lot because he thinks I do it wrong.  I'll.....just put that out there and see what you all think.


Hmmm, you think the latter?  Well, you said it, not me.

Anyway!  The "He" in our household does his fair share of cleaning and I love him for it.  As a reward, I cook him dinner every night sometimes.  Even though the poor man can't have carbs in his own house and probably has a stash of bagels at his desk for emergencies.


On to salmon.  It sounded kind of weird at first, to make a mayo/Parmesan "paste" and spread it over fish, but it's delicious, I swear it.  It got all nice and crusty at the top in the oven, and it made the salmon so moist and flavorful.  It reheats nicely, too, but I don't recommend putting it in the microwave...if you're gonna eat leftovers, spring for turning on the oven, it's worth it!

Oven Roasted Salmon with Parmesan-Mayo Crust
Source: Adapted from She Cooks He Cleans

2 large salmon fillet(s), skin on
Kosher salt/ freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons mayonnaise
4 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
a few dashes of smoked paprika
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 lemon

Preheat oven to 425F. Line a shallow roasting pan with foil and place salmon in the pan.  Season lightly with salt and pepper.

Mix the mayonnaise, Parmesan cheese, paprika, garlic powder, and cayenne in a small bowl. Spread completely over the salmon. Sprinkle with additional Parmesan cheese on top.

Roast for 12-14 minutes (depending on thickness of salmon).  Then turn the broiler on high and broil for a couple of minutes until the topping begins to brown.  Watch it carefully so it doesn't burn!

Remove from oven; carefully slide a wide spatula between the skin and meat to separate from the skin.   Squeeze a little bit of lemon juice on the fish, and serve.