Indian Spiced Salmon with Cucumber Raita

A simple recipe for Indian spice-rubbed salmon with creamy cucumber raita – serve with basmati rice for a quick 30-minute weeknight dinner.

My husband puts hot sauce on EVERYTHING, but I prefer richly spiced and flavored foods. Bold flavors in recipes like this curry seitan with pineapple rice and the rich soy chorizo in these chorizo stuffed sweet potatoes make me excited to eat dinner every night. So when I was thinking up a new way to make salmon, I turned to spices.

I’ve made a simple roasted salmon with a cucumber yogurt sauce or raita dozens of times in the past. This time I pulled in some classic Indian spices to rub into the salmon and also tie into the raita to “kick it up a notch” as Emeril would say. The result is a boldly spiced salmon with creamy, cooling cucumber raita. Serve it over basmati rice and you have an easy, flavorful weeknight dinner.

How to make Indian Spiced Salmon with Cucumber Raita

Start by preheating the oven to 425 degrees F. Then place the salmon fillets onto a foil-lined baking sheet, skin side down. Mix all of the spices, including cumin, garam masala, cardamom, and turmeric together and add ginger paste, garlic paste, vegetable oil, and salt.

I love to use prepared ginger and garlic paste to make recipes even easier. They’re generally found near the fresh herbs in most supermarkets. If you happen to have fresh ginger and garlic on hand, then just mince the garlic and grate the ginger to make your own paste.

When the spices are all mixed together, spread the mixture on top of the salmon and bake for 12 to 24 minutes, or until cooked through. The baking time really depends on the thickness of your salmon fillets. While the salmon is baking, mix together the raita ingredients: diced cucumber, Greek yogurt, garam masala, salt, and some lemon juice. Serve the salmon with the raita and basmati rice or naan.

Looking for other salmon recipes? Try this maple mustard salmon or miso salmon with coconut rice. If you tried this recipe for Indian Spiced Salmon with Cucumber Raita, leave a comment and a review below and let me know what you think!

Print Recipe

5 from 6 votes

Indian Spiced Salmon with Cucumber Raita

A simple recipe for Indian spice-rubbed salmon with creamy cucumber raita – serve with basmati rice for a quick 30-minute weeknight dinner.

Prep Time5 mins

Cook Time25 mins

Total Time30 mins

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Indian

Servings: 4 servings

Author: Danielle Howard

Ingredients

Salmon

• 4 6-oz salmon fillets
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon garam masala
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 tablespoon ginger paste
• 2 teaspoons garlic paste
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon salt

Cucumber Raita

• 1 cup English cucumber (finely diced)
• 8 oz plain Greek yogurt
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon garam masala
• 1/2 teaspoon salt to taste
• basmati rice for serving

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
• Line a baking sheet with foil. Place the salmon pieces on the foil, skin side down.
• Combine the spices, ginger paste, garlic paste, vegetable oil, and salt. Rub the mixture over the fillets.
• Bake for 12 to 24 minutes until cooked through. Bake time depends on the thickness of the fillets.
• While the salmon is baking, combine the diced cucumber, Greek yogurt, lemon juice, garam masala, and salt.
• Serve the salmon with the cucumber raita and basmati rice.