So you're standing in your kitchen, staring at a beautiful salmon fillet, and your oven is broken, your grill is cold, and your willpower to cook a "real" meal has completely dissolved. Welcome to the lazy chef's rescue plan: microwave salmon.
Before you laugh, hear me out. This "microwave miracle" actually works — and yes, it tastes way better than those sad emergency pizza pockets from college.
Step 1: Pretend You Know What You're Doing
Start with a good salmon fillet — something fresh, preferably not the sketchy one hiding behind the milk carton. Pat it dry with a paper towel, because soggy salmon is basically a fish that's given up on life.
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Place the fillet on a microwave-safe plate. Yes, the plate must be microwave-safe, because no one wants their dinner to double as a shattered ceramic crime scene.
Step 2: Season It Like You Mean It
Brush a little olive oil over the top, then hit it with salt, pepper, and maybe a squeeze of lemon juice. If you're feeling fancy, add some garlic — because emicrowave luxury still deserves a 5-second of effort.
How To Microwave Salmon With Garlic: Quick, Moist, And Easy Method | ShunCy
You can also toss on some herbs like dill or parsley, just to make it look like you follow a food blogger on Instagram. The salmon won't judge you; it's too busy cooking to care.
Step 3: The Microwave Dance
Cover the salmon with a microwave-safe lid or even some plastic wrap — that same wrap which has helped keep those science experiments in your fridge alive. Leave a tiny vent so steam can escape, because trapped steam equals messy explosions.
Nuke it on medium power (50-70%) for about 3-5 minutes, depending on thickness. High power will turn your fish into a rubbery monstrosity, and no one has ever celebrated that outcome.
How to Make Salmon in the Microwave
Step 4: Check the Doneness
Your salmon is done when it flakes easily with a fork and has turned a nice opaque pink — much like a proper fish should look when it's ready for its close-up. The internal temperature should hit 145°F (63°C), assuming you own an instant-read thermometer and actually care about food safety.
If it's still slightly translucent in the center, give it another 30 seconds. Overcooking it will make it dry enough to double as a dog treat, and you deserve better than that.
Step 5: Let It Rest (Not You, the Fish)
Let the salmon sit for a minute or two before serving — it'll finish cooking a little more and the juices will settle back in. Think of it as the fish's brief celebrity moment before it hits your plate.
Yes, You Can Cook Salmon In The Microwave
Serve it over rice, next to some steamed veggies, or just eat it straight from the plate while standing. No shame — the microwave never judges your eating posture.
Why Bother? Because You Can!
Here's a fun fact: salmon has been one of the most prized fish dishes for thousands of years. Ancient civilizations probably didn't have microwaves, which makes your quick method look even more impressive in hindsight.
Cooking salmon in a microwave saves time, dishes, and your sanity — a win for modern life across the board. So next time someone scoffs at your method, just smile, because you'll be eating delicious salmon before they've even finished reheating their frozen burrito.