Air Fryer Salmon
Eight minutes at 200 degrees, skin side up, and the salmon stays translucent in the middle.
- Preparation
- 5 min
- Cook/bake time
- 9 min
- Total
- 14 min
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Calories
Eight minutes at 200 degrees, skin side up, and the salmon stays translucent in the middle. Fish cooks faster in the air fryer than anywhere else, and that is exactly where the danger lies: two minutes too long turns juicy into dry. With the right timing, it is the easiest good fish dish ever.
Why this works
Fish protein coagulates between 50 and 60 degrees, which is significantly earlier than meat. From about 62 degrees, the muscle tissue contracts so strongly that it squeezes out water; this is the white coating that appears on the surface of overcooked salmon. The target range is therefore a core temperature of 50 to 55 degrees, and a two-centimeter thick fillet reaches this in the air fryer in eight minutes. The skin goes on top and not on the bottom: in the basket, the fillet lies on a perforated base, and the skin would get neither contact heat nor fat there. Lying on top, however, it protects the meat from the direct airflow and dries out less.
Step-by-step instructions
- 1
Mix the marinade
Mix the soy sauce, honey, sesame oil and garlic. Ten minutes of marinating time is perfectly sufficient, as fish absorbs flavors quickly, and after more than half an hour the salt begins to firm it up.
- 2
Pat dry and brush
Pat the fillets dry and brush them with the marinade. Being dry is important: a wet surface costs the first few minutes just to evaporate, and with an eight-minute total time, that is a good quarter of the cooking process.
- 3
Eight minutes at 200 °C
Place the fillets skin side up in the preheated basket. Cook for eight minutes at 200 °C without turning. The skin on top protects the meat from the direct airflow, and on the perforated bottom it would have no chance of getting crispy anyway.
- 4
Check for doneness
The salmon is done when it separates into flakes with light fork pressure and still has a translucent shine in the middle. If you wait until it is completely opaque, you have overcooked it. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and spring onions.
Our best tips
- Eight minutes for a thickness of two centimeters. For every half centimeter more, add two minutes to the time, as the thickness determines the time, not the weight.
