How to meal prep salmon for the week, including an easy salmon recipe, all for just $6 per meal. This is the best way to cook salmon for meal prep and is the best salmon recipe ever!
By now, I'm hoping you've read my How To Meal Prep Chicken, my Meal Prep for weight loss guide and you've completely jumped onto the meal prep wagon.
In fact, raise your hand if you've got your meal prepped chicken in the fridge or freezer right now. Woot!
If you haven't checked it out, definitely do so BUT FIRST make this easy salmon meal prep right here.
If meal prep is new to you, that's awesome. Welcome to an easier way of living a healthy and tasty lifestyle.
Meal prep solves the problem of wanting to eat healthy, but every time you go to grab something from the fridge, nothing is ready to eat and you really, really, REALLY don’t feel like cooking a full healthy, well-balanced dinner.
With meal prep, you choose the time and the day you actually have energy and time (key factors, let's be honest) and prep your meals ahead of time.
Keep reading if you want to make life SO MUCH EASIER.
How To Meal Prep Salmon
You can very easily learn how to meal prep salmon, I promise. First, you need to decide on the best way to cook salmon for meal prep. Because salmon can come in all shapes and sizes, I like to but my own large, skinned fillet and then divide it into 4-6 oz. portions. That way, I know the exact size of the salmon portions AND I save money of having the grocery store pre-slice it.
The big trick with meal prepping salmon is (1) the spice rub, and (2) pan-roasting. Seriously. Follow this easy salmon recipe and you'll be head over heals when reheating your salmon.
Another important thing to note about meal prepping salmon is that you don't want to cook it all the way the first time. Since salmon isn't like chicken and can be eaten slightly undercooked anyways, I like to almost cook the salmon all the way through. That way, when you're reheating the salmon later, it's not overly cooked and, subsequently, dry and crumbly. This goes for the green beans as well - slightly undercook now for perfectly cooked later.
In this meal prep salmon recipe, I use my Pan-Roasted Salmon. You can grab the recipe here. Once you make it, come back and tell me how much you LOVE the spice rub. Plus I make it with my Garlic Parmesan Green Beans and Garlic Brown Rice. OMG so good.
I'll be waiting 🙂 It's seriously the best salmon recipe ever, if you ask me.
Prepare yourself: it's life changing.
How to Save Time with Meal Prep
Okay, remember all those times you opened your fridge, only to see nothing ready to grab and eat, so instead, you ordered pizza or ate a bowl of sugary cereal?
This is why we meal prep.
The whole point of meal prep is to take a little bit of time AHEAD of time to make it easier on you LATER.
That way, next time you go to fridge, tired and hungry, you'll have the most amazing salmon meal prep ready to grab, reheat, and enjoy.
Healthy lifestyle = 1, Pizza and Sadness = 0
Most people have one or two days each week where there is no work and the day is set aside to relax and catch up on errands. These are perfect days to add in your meal prep for the week ahead. The idea behind meal prep is to spend an hour or so, whatever you have, prepping out your meals so you have all your food prepped for the week ahead. Depending on your goals and schedule, you can meal prep your breakfasts, snacks, lunches, and dinners — all of them or just a few, whatever helps you reach your goals.
Meal prep is only going to last for you if it feels manageable. If Sunday doesn’t work, split meal prep into two days. This will cut down on the session length and definitely preserve the quality of your food. Sunday and Wednesday are usually a good pair, but find any two days that work best for you. Many people find meal prep Sunday to be helpful and that’s what we do in our house as well. We mostly prep out our lunches and dinners for the week, but also add in prepped snacks as we need them.
If you’re going to be starting to meal prep consistently, then cutting out unnecessary hassles is essential! Make it easy, make it yours, and make it last. I use these awesome glass meal storage containers that you can buy on Amazon, or you could use tupperware – as long as it keeps food fresh, you can use it. I prefer the glass because it reheats well and, for whatever reason, makes me feel good when I’m eating my meal.
How Long Can You Keel Meal Prep in the Fridge?
If you are using meal prep containers and have stored your easy salmon recipe well, these meals will last in the fridge for up to 4-5 days. Awesome, right? So you’ll have one of these amazingly healthy and delicious meals waiting for you all week! While other proteins, like this chicken meal prep, can last in the fridge a little longer, I prefer to enjoy fish a little quicker since it's more delicate.
If you have freezer-safe meal prep containers, you can also freeze these meals to have them store even longer. Frozen, they’ll save for about 3 months.
How to Reheat Salmon Meal Prep
When you’re ready to eat your easy salmon recipe, you can let it thaw overnight in the fridge (if it was frozen) and then reheat in the microwave for 2 minutes. You could also just reheat it while frozen for a good 4-5 minutes on High. Seriously, the best salmon recipe!
Can You Eat Cold Cooked Salmon?
Yes! Just think about tune, which is often packed into cans and enjoyed unheated all the time. You may not always have access to a microwave, but that doesn’t mean you have to forgo your healthy lifestyle. As long as the salmon has been cooked and refrigerated appropriately, you can absolutely eat your cooked salmon cold.
FYI if you’re looking for a great on-the-go cooler that holds your meal prep containers, this one is what we use and it’s awesome!
Want More Ideas for How To Meal Prep?
Here are some more great ways to save time and money with meal prep:
- How To Meal Prep Chicken
- Make Ahead Mason Jar Salads For The Week
- $75 Whole Foods 5-Day Meal Plan Challenge
- Thanksgiving Dinner Menu $100 Challenge
- Healthy Kids Lunch Ideas
- 4 Easy Mason Jar Salads
- 7 Slow Cooker Freezer Meals
Okay, now it's your turn to go and get started with your salmon meal prep. Next week is gonna be so much tastier!
How To Meal Prep Salmon
More Great Meal Prep Ideas
- 7-Day Meal Prep For Weight Loss
- Easy Sweet Potato Meal Prep: Baked Sweet Potato Fries 4 Ways
- Easy Instant Pot Pulled Pork 4 Ways | Perfect for Meal Prep!
- Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken Meal Prep
- Ultimate Guide On How To Meal Prep
How To Meal Prep Salmon
Equipment
- Stock Pot or Large Deep Skillet
*This post may contain affiliate links for products I use often and highly recommend.
Ingredients
For the Pan-Roasted Salmon:
- 4 6-oz. salmon fillets (approx. 2 lb fillet, skin removed)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoon coconut sugar
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon dry mustard
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon
For the Garlic Brown Rice:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 ½ cups brown rice, uncooked
- 3 ½ cups low sodium chicken broth
- 2 green onions, sliced (optional)
For the Garlic Parmesan Green Beans:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 lbs fresh green beans, stems removed
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoon parmesan cheese, grated (use nutritional yeast for vegan or omit for paleo)
Instructions
- Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees F for the salmon.
- While the oven is preheating, start the garlic brown rice. In a deep stock pot, add olive oil and heat over medium-high heat. Add minced garlic and cook for a minute, or until fragrant.
- Then, add the brown rice, sea salt, and low sodium chicken broth, and stir together.
- Bring this to a boil, then cover the pot, reduce to a simmer, and cook for about 20-30 minutes, or until the liquid is fully absorbed and the rice is tender. Then, add in the green onions, stir, and then set aside.
- While the rice is cooking, we can prep our green beans for our parmesan green beans. Heat olive oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet.
- Add garlic and cook 1 minute, stirring frequently.
- Add the green beans, sea salt, and black pepper, and toss to coat green beans evenly in the pan.
- Continue to saute for approx. 4-5 minutes. (We’re looking for the green beans to just become slightly tender - we don’t want to cook them all the way here or they’ll be overcooked when you reheat your meal later.)
- Then, remove from heat and sprinkle grated parmesan. Toss once again until parmesan is melted. Set aside.
- Finally, we’re going to prep our salmon. Make the spice rub in a small mixing bowl by combining the coconut sugar, sea salt, ground black pepper, ground cumin, dry mustard, and ground cinnamon, and then stir together.
- Rub the spice mixture on the top side (non-skin) of the salmon fillets.
- Now, heat an oven-safe fry pan over high heat and add the olive oil to the pan and allow to get very hot.
- Place the fillets, rub-side down, in the hot oil. The fish should sizzle as we are searing it.
- Sear this side of the fish for about 2-3 minutes, and then carefully flip the fillets over and transfer pan to the oven.
- Roast the salmon for about 5-8 minutes, until it’s almost cooked through, and then remove from the oven.
- To prep the salmon meal prep ready to go in the fridge for later, add the garlic brown rice to one side of the meal prep container and then the parmesan garlic green beans on the other side. Then, lay the pan-roasted salmon over the top. Seal tightly and refrigerate.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
This post contains affiliate links for products I use regularly and highly recommend.
Piff Lester
This recipe was easy to follow, quick, and delicious.
Amber M
This was an amazing recipe! Both the hubbs and I LOVED this salmon. And, it can be paired with whatever side you have on hand. This one's a keep for sure 🙂
Tiffany
I haven’t tried this recipe, but can this meal be placed in the freezer after it has been cooked?
Lisa
The video and blog are so detailed! Thank you!
I was inspired to try this out.
Would you happen to know how long to heat up this dish and for how long if I wanted to use a regular oven instead of the microwave?
Elizabeth
Awesome video and ideas! Very inspiring for eating healthier
Elaine
Can the prep ahead salmon be re-heated in regular oven? If so, please specify temperature and cooking time. You only mention re-heating in a microwave. Also can I place several pieces of salmon in larger dish over the rice with green beans on the side? It would make it easier when cooking for several people. Thanks this looks delicious.
Linda Carnahan
This is one of the best and quickest Salmon recipes I have ever tried!
Thanks you very much!
Lacey Baier
Oh, you are so welcome, Linda 🙂 We love it, too.