Prepare quick and easy baked salmon foil packets with fresh vegetables in your oven in less than 30 minutes! Oven baked salmon with veggies is a nutrient-dense powerhouse sheet pan dinner packed with omega-3s, vitamins, and minerals that will surely be a year round favorite.
Salmon filets can be a pain to cook. Luckily, they don’t have to be. Preparing salmon in a foil packet is a foolproof technique, eliminating the stress of not knowing what to expect. Baking a fatty fish like salmon in foil locks in flavor and moisture; guaranteeing that the final result is flakey, moist, and most importantly, fork-tender, for a perfect salmon dish every time! Cooking with foil packets also helps ditch those cleanup woes. Just toss out the foil when you’re done!
Easy Oven Baked Salmon Packets with Fresh Vegetables
Serves 4
Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 20 min
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Ingredients
1 summer squash, sliced
1 zucchini, sliced
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes
4 garlic cloves, divided
1 lemon, sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
salt and pepper, to taste
1 pound salmon, skin on or off
fresh dill sprigs
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Supplies
digital instant-read thermometer
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Directions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with two large pieces of aluminum foil, then spray the foil with cooking oil. Set aside.
- Wash and dry your produce. Carefully cut and discard the woody stems at the top of the zucchini and summer squash. Cut both the zucchini and summer squash in half lengthwise and then slice them in half-moon pieces. Next, halve the cherry tomatoes. Then, carefully mince the garlic. Finally, halve one lemon. Cut one half of the lemon into thin, round slices, and save the other half for juice_. _
- In a medium bowl, mix the zucchini, summer squash, cherry tomatoes with two cloves of minced garlic, one tablespoon of olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.
- Place one salmon filet in the center of each foil, then season with salt and pepper to taste. Brush each filet with the leftover olive oil, and sprinkle with the remaining garlic. Next, lay the lemon slices directly onto the salmon filets, followed by a drizzle of lemon juice from the other half of the lemon. Finally, place fresh dill on the salmon filets.
- Divide the prepared vegetable mixture over and around the salmon filets. Then carefully fold the aluminum foil upwards to create a tent to seal the tin foil around the fish and vegetables.
- Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes, or until the salmon has reached an internal temperature of 145 degrees on a digital instant-read thermometer. Since all salmon are different regarding general thickness and cut, salmon should be cooked until the correct internal temperature is reached to ensure the proper doneness.
- When finished baking, remove the salmon from the oven. Carefully open the foil packets, avoiding the hot steam. Transfer the salmon and vegetables to dinner plates using a spatula. Enjoy.
Cooking Tips While Aging in Place
Our recipe calls for fresh sliced zucchini, summer squash, halved cherry tomatoes, along with minced garlic and sliced lemon. Kitchen prep can be challenging for some seniors due to hand and wrist mobility.
Many local grocers carry pre-cut vegetables in the produce section, which can save significant time during meal prep. However, a more budget-friendly alternative would be to utilize frozen vegetable medleys. If using frozen vegetables, thaw them before adding to the foil packets.
Although our recipe calls for halving the cherry tomatoes, feel free to leave them whole.
The taste of fresh garlic is by far superior to pre-minced garlic; however, mincing can be quite tedious. Jarred garlic or garlic powder is a suitable substitute for this recipe.
As an alternative to sliced lemons, bottled lemon juice such as Realemon can make a fantastic substitute. Pour two tablespoons on top of each salmon filet for a bright, citrusy flavor.
Reynolds Wrappers Pre-cut Pop-up Aluminum Foil Sheets make recipe prep a breeze, especially for this simple foil packet dinner. Don’t hassle with the right amount of foil or stress about possible tears. Pre-cut aluminum foil sheets make kitchen prep and clean up easier.
