A simple plate of grilled salmon and veggies gets smothered in a creamy green sauce that’s packed with fresh herbs and spiked with tangy pickled jalapeños. The beauty of this recipe is that you can use any protein and veggies. It’s all about the sauce!
Ingredient highlight
Salmon! the fish we all love because it’s flaky, fatty and a lot harder to overcook/mess up than other fish. It also happens to be packed with more nutrients than I have space to talk about here. It’s one of the most nutritious fish because of it’s super high omega-3 fat content (DHA and EPA). It’s also a great source of protein, potassium, selenium, and vitamin B12.
Servings 4
Prep Time 15 minutes 
Cook Time 10 minutes Ingredients
- 2 zucchini (1.5-2 lbs), sliced into ½-inch thick slabs*
- 2 bell peppers , cut into slabs
- 1 tbsp olive oil + more for the salmon
- 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt, divided
- 16-24 oz salmon, cut into 4 fillets
- Black pepper
- Lemon wedges
For the sauce:
- 2 cups loosely packed cilantro (from about ½ large bunch)**
- ¼ cup toasted (or sprouted) pumpkin seeds
- ¼ cup olive oil
- ¼ cup pickled jalapenos (about 10)***
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 clove garlic
- *Or use just one zucchini or one bell pepper and add in some asparagus. Remove the asparagus from the grill after 2-3 minutes.
- **If you have a bunch of random herbs you need to use up, throw them in the sauce. You can use parsley, dill, mint, basil, etc…
- ***You can leave these out if you’d like or you could even replace them with dill pickle slices. If you do leave them out, you may want to add a little bit more vinegar (taste and add it if you think it needs more acidity).
- Bulk it up! ~ Serve with cooked grains or buttered toast.
- No grill? ~ Cook the salmon and veggies however you want to! Bake veggies in a 425F oven for 20-30 minutes – add the salmon during the last 7-10 minutes of bake time.
Instructions
- Heat your grill on high for at least 10 minutes.
- Toss the veggies with 1 tablespoon olive oil and ½ teaspoon salt. Season the salmon flesh with 1 teaspoon salt, pepper, and a light drizzle of olive oil. Use your hands to rub the oil all over the flesh.
- Place the veggies on one side of the grill and the salmon (skin-side-down) on the other side. Cover and grill for 3-5 minutes or until you have nice grill marks on the veggies, then flip the veggies over and repeat. Transfer to a cutting board.
- The salmon will take anywhere from 6-12 minutes, depending on the thickness and how hot your grill is. Once the salmon flakes easily with a fork, transfer the fillets to a cutting board or large plate.
- Cut up the veggies and add them back to whatever bowl or vessel you tossed them in. Remove the skin from the salmon and keep the fillets whole or flake into chunks.
- To make the sauce, add all ingredients to a high-speed blender and blend on high until smooth. If it’s not blending easily and needs more liquid, add a tablespoon or two of water and blend again. Taste and add more salt, or vinegar if needed.
- To the bowl/vessel with the veggies, add about 2 tablespoons of the sauce and toss to coat.
- Serve the veggies with the salmon and drizzle remaining sauce over the salmon and veggies. If the sauce is too thick, just stir in a splash of water. Top with feta cheese, black pepper, and squeeze of lemon.
Items you can prep ahead (optional)
- Make the sauce
- Slice 2 zucchini into ½-inch thick slabs
- Cut 2 bell peppers into slabs
Substitutions:
- To make vegetarian/vegan, use any protein you want. You could grill tofu planks or vegetarian sausages, etc…
- Use any protein in place of salmon – another fish you like to grill, chicken, steak, etc…
- Use any veggies you like to grill!
- See recipe notes for other substitutions
Storage:
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge:
- Salmon: up to 4 days
- Veggies: up to 6 days
- Sauce: up to 6 days
Leftovers + Repurposing:
- Warm up leftover salmon and veggies in the microwave until just barely warm. Top with sauce, cheese, etc…
- Thin the sauce out with some water, if needed.
- Make it a salad – toss some lettuce in a little bit of lemon or vinegar and salt. Top with the gently warmed veggies, salmon, and drizzle with that sauce, etc…
Another easy delicious recipe. Thanks so much.