Fresh Or Frozen: The Best Way To Cook Salmon Is Also The Quickest

Salmon is a delicious protein choice for many meals, but home cooks can be turned off by how difficult it can be to prepare. Salmon filets can easily overcook or fall apart, but don't overlook the trusty air fryer as one of the best and fastest ways to cook salmon: It takes just six to 10 minutes, depending on the filet's thickness and desired doneness.

Some methods get close to an air fryer's timing; both pan-seared and grilled salmon can also take about 10 minutes, but with far greater opportunity for error (and longer-than-expected cook times) than a few buttons on an air fryer. And at about 15 minutes minimum for a decent-sized filet, the oven never stood a chance.

The air fryer's supremacy is only more apparent with frozen salmon. Rapid convection means it will cook a frozen filet in 10 to 14 minutes, whereas the next-fastest option is a classic pan sear at 14 minutes or more. Grilling frozen salmon takes even longer, at 18 minutes minimum, and ovens once again trail the pack, taking no less than about 25 minutes.

Air frying salmon is almost as easy as throwing it in and hitting start, but there are a few things to know to make the cook truly successful. One of the first mistakes everyone makes when air frying salmon is not using a liner. Even though salmon is oily, it's prone to sticking to even nonstick air fryer trays or baskets, to say nothing of the fish's natural oils getting all over the air fryer. Using a liner is significantly easier.

There's also a flavor benefit to using liners. Despite its natural fattiness, you shouldn't shy away from extra oil when cooking salmon, even in an air fryer. Before you brush the filets with melted butter or olive oil to keep them juicy and encourage color development, put them on a liner first. This will keep the added oil near the fish as it cooks, rather than drip all over your machine, leaving not only an easier mess to clean but also a perfectly cooked filet.

Another benefit of this method is that air fryer salmon does not need to be flipped while cooking. Thanks to convection technology, the filet is evenly surrounded by constantly moving heat, and trying to flip the delicate flesh in such a tight space means it will likely fall apart. Air fryer salmon is typically cooked skin-down, though if you're all about crispy skin you can try cooking it skin-side up instead. In either case, no flipping is necessary.