salmon alfredo

This salmon alfredo recipe is made with a luscious garlic-scented cream sauce, lemony salmon, and perfectly al dente fettuccine pasta. Go big with herbs for extra freshness and a pop of color!

Salmon alfredo is the perfect mix of simplicity and elegance. I just love the contrast of the silky cream sauce with delicate flakes of salmon, fresh herbs, and plenty of parmesan.

It’s easy, indulgent, and packed with fresh herby flavor. What more could you want?

It makes a fantastic meal for extra-special weeknight dinners, date nights, or an easy but crowd-pleasing option for entertaining!

This recipe is a great canvas for flexing your creativity. Adapt it to what you have on hand, elevate it with extra seafood (scallops, anyone?), or add your own flair (like a smoked chile cream sauce).

I share a bunch of ideas towards the bottom of this post to get your gears turning!

salmon alfredo ingredients:

how to make salmon alfredo:

1. Gently simmer cream and garlic for about 20 minutes.
2. Top the salmon with lemon slices and steam.
3. Flake the salmon and remove pin bones.
4. Cook the fettuccine, drain, and reserve pasta water.
5. Toss the pasta with cream sauce, butter, parmesan, and some pasta water.
6. Fold in salmon and divide among bowls.
7. Garnish with lemon zest and herbs
8. Enjoy!

Note: True alfredo sauce does not contain cream. It’s an emulsion of starchy cooking water, good butter, and parmesan. While that authentic alfredo is delicious, I’ve decided to go the American route with a richer, cream-based sauce that goes so well with fresh salmon. It also “holds” much better than true alfredo, which makes it easier to share with friends and family. No one needs to stress about maintaining an emulsion while entertaining!

make this salmon fettuccine alfredo your own:

• Substitute half the fresh salmon for smoked salmon
• Use shellbows or other fun pasta shape in place of the fettuccine
• Add a squeeze of fresh lemon to ramp up the bright, citrusy flavor
• Blacken the salmon and grill, sear, or bake it
• Add 6 cups of baby spinach at the very end and toss until wilted
• Fold in steamed broccoli florets for extra veggies
• Replace half the salmon with 8 oz peeled, deveined shrimp (roughly chop before tossing in the pasta)
• Infuse dried chiles in the cream, along with the garlic for a smoky, spicy twist

why this is the best salmon alfredo recipe:

• Garlic cream sauce: This is a simple cream reduction that’s combined with starchy pasta water and parmesan for a silky, luscious pasta sauce. We infused it with garlic for an extra layer of flavor. It’s subtle and delicate and goes so well with the salmon, lemon, and herbs. Too much raw garlic can be overpowering; just one clove simmered in the cream is enough! 
• Steamed salmon: We steam the salmon with lemon slices to infuse freshness into the meat, concentrate the flavor, and keep it extra moist. It’s a clean and simple method to avoid overcooking. Make sure to use high-quality, super-fresh salmon for the cleanest flavor. 
• Pasta water: Never underestimate the power of pasta water! Reserve about 2 cups and add it, a little at a time, until the sauce coats the pasta to your liking. Remember that cream sauces always “tighten” and thicken up as they cool, so take it off the heat much looser than what you’d want to eat. It will thicken and cool to a beautiful, glossy consistency.
• So fresh: On its own, cream-based pasta can be heavy. I love to lighten the flavor with plenty of fresh herbs and lemon. Dill, parsley, mint, tarragon and chives are great herbs to try. If you want to freshen it up even more, squeeze some lemon juice over the pasta at the very end!

more tips:

• Feel free to serve the salmon on top of the alfredo, rather than flaked and mixed into the pasta. This is great for a group that may or may not want salmon.
• Don’t forget about the pin bones! I find them easiest to pick out when the salmon is cooked. I generally go through the meat while flaking it into chunks.
• Use any broad pasta that will hold the creamy sauce. Pappardelle, linguine, and even egg noodles will work.

how can I make this salmon alfredo recipe ahead?

Cream-based pasta dishes are best made to order. That means they don’t hold well and they don't reheat well.

While you can always toss in more pasta water to thin it out and smooth out the sauce (over low heat), it’s not ideal. They’re the silkiest, smoothest, and most luscious immediately after tossing. The cream will tighten and get gloppy as it cools.

That being said, here are a few things you can prep up to 1 day ahead of time to make the assembly that much quicker.

1 day ahead:

• Steam the salmon, pick out pin bones, and store in the refrigerator.
• Make the garlic cream sauce.
• Grate the parmesan

When you’re ready to serve: reheat the cream sauce, cook the pasta, and toss it all together!

can I reheat salmon alfredo?

Cream sauce pasta dishes don’t reheat well. The sauce will break and often they get oily and greasy.

Enjoy this salmon alfredo when you make it and accept that won’t ever be as velvety and delicious as it was straight from the pot.

more salmon recipes to try:

salmon wellington (salmon en croute)

salmon crudo

smoked salmon toast

salmon rillettes

smoked salmon crostini

miso salmon bowl

salmon poke bowl

herb-crusted salmon

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