Side Dishes for Salmon Dinner
Wondering what to serve with salmon? Whether you’re making grilled, baked, or cedar plank salmon, the right side dishes can turn a simple meal into something special. If you’re looking for even more salmon inspiration, try my Smoked Salmon Dip or Amazing Dill Sauce for Salmon. This collection is filled with the best side dishes for salmon, from fresh vegetables and salads to potatoes, rice, and other delicious pairings.
Best Side Dishes for Salmon
Salmon is one of the easiest proteins to pair with almost any flavor, making it simple to choose delicious side dishes for salmon. Its rich, buttery texture complements everything from roasted asparagus and garlic mashed potatoes to fresh salads, rice pilaf, and crusty bread. Whether you’re planning a quick weeknight dinner or a special meal for guests, these easy side dishes will help you build a delicious menu everyone will love.
Favorite Salmon Dinner Combinations
- Grilled Salmon: Creamy pasta salad with grilled asparagus
- Baked Salmon: Garlic mashed potatoes with roasted broccoli
- Cedar Plank Salmon: Wild rice pilaf with green beans
- Blackened Salmon: Mexican street corn potato salad with coleslaw
- Smoked Salmon: Cucumber salad with crusty bread
What to Serve with Salmon
Salmon has a rich, buttery flavor that pairs well with a wide variety of side dishes, making it one of the easiest proteins to build a meal around. The key is balancing its richness with flavors and textures that complement rather than compete with it. Fresh vegetables add brightness, grains and potatoes make the meal more filling, and crisp salads provide a refreshing contrast.
Roasted asparagus, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, green beans, and glazed carrots are all classic vegetable pairings. If you’re looking for something heartier, try garlic mashed potatoes, roasted baby potatoes, wild rice, rice pilaf, or a simple pasta. For warmer months, fresh salads, pasta salads, and fruit salads make excellent choices alongside grilled salmon.
Whether you’re cooking a casual weeknight dinner or entertaining guests, these side dishes for salmon below offer plenty of delicious ways to create a complete salmon dinner.
Easy Side Dishes for Salmon
Side Dishes for Salmon
A collection of the best side dishes for salmon, including vegetables, potatoes, rice, pasta, salads, and breads that pair perfectly with every salmon dinner.
Green Chile Rice Casserole
Green Chile Rice Casserole is a creamy, mildly spicy side dish that adds comforting flavor and a little kick to any salmon dinner.
Mashed Potato Casserole Recipe for Two
This Mashed Potato Casserole has a light, fluffy, creamy texture with flavors of bacon, cheddar cheese and chives.
Garlic Bread Rolls
Warm, fluffy garlic bread rolls with rich garlic butter topping are an easy way to round out any salmon meal.
Easy Creamed Spinach
This quick and easy salmon side dish is loaded with Mascarpone, cream cheese and parmesan cheese.
Garlic Bok Choy
Bursting with flavor, this yummy garlic bok choy side dish will be ready in 10 minutes.
Sour Cream Bacon Onion Tart
Sour Cream Bacon Onion Tart is a flaky, savory side with creamy sour cream, smoky bacon, and sweet onions that pairs perfectly with salmon.
Miso Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Simply bake in the oven and brush with a glaze made of miso paste, water and sesame oil and caramelized under the broiler.
Creamy Baked Lemon Noodles
These creamy lemon noodles are rich, buttery, and bursting with fresh citrus flavor, making them a delicious side dish for salmon.
Roasted Cauliflower Salad with Lemon, Pomegranate, and Feta
Cauliflower is the star in this roasted salad with lemon, pomegranate and feta with Tahini dressing.
Charlie Bird's Farro Salad
Charlie Bird's Farro Salad is a fresh, hearty grain salad with bright flavors and a satisfying texture that pairs beautifully with salmon.
Easy Vegetable Stir Fry
This easy vegetable stir fry is loaded with crisp, colorful vegetables tossed in a savory sauce, making it a healthy side dish for salmon.
Southwest Quinoa Salad
Southwest quinoa salad combines protein-rich quinoa with crisp vegetables and a tangy dressing for a healthy salmon side dish.
Apple and Gouda Mixed Green Salad
This salad takes minutes to prepare and hits all the right notes - crispy apple, nutty gouda, buttery croutons and a delicious homemade vinaigrette.
Garlic Parmesan Mashed Cauliflower Recipe
Garlic Parmesan mashed cauliflower delivers all the cozy comfort of mashed potatoes in a lighter side dish that's perfect for salmon dinners.
Basil Lime Charred Corn and Zucchini Salad
Charred corn and zucchini create a light, flavorful salad that's the perfect complement to salmon dinners all season long.
Cool Peanut Sesame Noodles with Crunchy Vegetables
Highly addictive and flavorful rendition of Chinese cold noodles tossed in freshly toasted sesame and peanut butter sauce, with added crunchy vegetables.
Spinach Rice Casserole
Spinach rice casserole is full of creamy cheese and rice mixed with fresh spinach, red bell peppers and red onions.
Mandarin Orange Salad with Raspberry Vinaigrette
Mandarin Orange Salad with Raspberry Vinaigrette is a light, refreshing side with sweet citrus and tangy raspberry flavors that complement salmon perfectly.
Oven Roasted Garlic Green Beans
Fresh green beans are roasted with garlic until lightly caramelized for a simple, flavorful side that pairs beautifully with salmon.
Easy Smashed Potatoes
This easy smashed potatoes recipe creates buttery, crispy potatoes with tender centers for a simple side everyone will love.
Easy Refrigerator Pickled Beets
This easy pickled beets recipe delivers the perfect balance of sweet and tangy flavors for a refreshing salmon side dish.
Gluten-Free Mac and Cheese with Goat Cheese and Roasted Peppers
Made with a thick and gooey homemade cheese sauce that includes cheddar and goat cheese plus roasted red peppers.
Keto Broccoli Salad With Bacon- The Best Cold Broccoli Salad Recipe
When you want a hearty broccoli salad recipe, but you don't want the sugar and carbs to go with it, then you'll love this salad!
Napa Cabbage Salad Recipe {Asian Ramen Noodle Salad}
Asian ramen noodle salad, crunchy chopped napa cabbage with toasted ramen noodles and nuts in a sweet soy dressing.
Moroccan Carrots--kid-friendly, vegan, gluten-free & whole30
Seasoned with cumin, coriander, and parsley in a warm vinaigrette, they're a lovely colorful vegetable side that the whole family will love.
Balsamic Caprese Quinoa Salad Recipe
Packed with fresh tomatoes, creamy mozzarella, basil, and quinoa, this balsamic Caprese salad is a light and flavorful side for salmon.
Creamy Mashed Sweet Potatoes
These mashed sweet potatoes are creamy, buttery, and naturally sweet, making them a comforting side dish for salmon.
Citrus Summer Slaw With Toasted Almonds & Raisins
A citrus summer slaw with toasted almonds, raisins, pepitas, green onions, purple cabbage, cilantro and perfected with a lime and orange vinaigrette!
The Best Sautéed Mushrooms
This easy sautéed mushrooms recipe delivers rich, earthy flavor that complements baked, grilled, or pan-seared salmon.
Sweet Bell Pepper Salad
With onions fennel, and feta cheese, eating the rainbow never tasted so good!
Instant Pot Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Follow the guide to making perfect, fluffy mashed potatoes in the pressure cooker!
sweet potato bake with maple and bacon
The sweetness of the maple combined with the saltiness of the bacon makes this recipe a winner!
Herb and Feta Polenta Fries with Smoky Tomato Yogurt Dip - My Kitchen Love
This side dish is packed with flavor and then baked for a healthy polenta dish.
Avocado Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette
Avocado Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette combines crisp vegetables, creamy avocado, and a bright red wine vinaigrette for a fresh, flavorful side that balances rich salmon.
Curried Creamed Corn
Curried Creamed Corn is a fusion of rich flavors that combines the comforting creaminess of classic creamed corn with curry's bold and aromatic spices.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the best side dishes for salmon?
The best side dishes for salmon depend on how you’re preparing the fish, but classic choices include roasted asparagus, garlic mashed potatoes, wild rice, roasted broccoli, green beans, pasta salad, fresh garden salads, and buttery dinner rolls. Because salmon has a rich, flaky texture, it pairs well with both light vegetable sides and hearty comfort foods. Whether you’re serving grilled, baked, or pan-seared salmon, there’s a delicious side dish to complete the meal.
What vegetables go well with salmon?
Some of the best vegetables to serve with salmon include asparagus, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, green beans, zucchini, carrots, spinach, cauliflower, and roasted sweet potatoes. Fresh vegetables balance salmon’s rich flavor while adding color and texture to your plate. Roasting or grilling vegetables with simple seasonings like garlic, olive oil, lemon, and herbs is an easy way to complement almost any salmon recipe.
What starch goes well with salmon?
Potatoes, rice, quinoa, couscous, pasta, and crusty bread are all excellent starches to serve with salmon. Garlic mashed potatoes, roasted potatoes, wild rice, rice pilaf, and buttered noodles are especially popular because they soak up flavorful sauces while creating a satisfying, well-balanced meal.
What salad goes with salmon?
Fresh green salads, Caesar salad, cucumber salad, Greek salad, pasta salad, coleslaw, and potato salad all pair beautifully with salmon. For grilled salmon, light salads with citrus or vinaigrette dressings add brightness. If you’re serving smoked or baked salmon, creamy salads like potato salad or macaroni salad create a comforting combination.
How do you make a salmon dinner feel complete?
A complete salmon dinner usually includes three elements: the salmon, a vegetable, and a hearty side like potatoes, rice, or pasta. Adding fresh herbs, lemon wedges, or a homemade dill sauce brings everything together and enhances the salmon’s natural flavor. Mixing different colors and textures creates a meal that’s both beautiful and satisfying.
What herbs and seasonings go best with salmon?
Fresh dill, parsley, chives, thyme, rosemary, garlic, black pepper, paprika, and lemon are all classic seasonings for salmon. Butter, garlic, and fresh herbs create a simple yet flavorful combination, while Cajun seasoning or blackened spices add a little extra heat. A squeeze of fresh lemon before serving brightens the flavors and complements nearly every salmon recipe.
Salmon Toolbox
Whether you’re grilling, baking, smoking, or pan-searing salmon, these kitchen essentials make preparing a delicious salmon dinner even easier.
- Cedar Grilling Planks – Perfect for infusing salmon with a subtle smoky, wood-fired flavor on the grill.
- Fish Spatula – A thin, flexible spatula designed to slide under delicate fillets without breaking them apart.
- Fish Tweezers – Makes removing pin bones from fresh salmon quick and easy.
- Grill Basket – Perfect for preparing grilled vegetables and other side dishes for salmon.
- Salmon Seasoning Blend – Perfect for seasoning salmon before grilling, baking, or pan-searing.
Whether you’re planning a quick weeknight dinner or hosting a special gathering, the right side dishes for salmon can turn a simple recipe into a memorable meal. I hope this collection has inspired you to try a few new favorites and made it easier to decide what to serve with salmon.
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