Mediterranean Baked Salmon with Lemon Orzo

A baking dish of salmon coated in breadcrumbs with tomatoes and olives.

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Mediterranean Baked Salmon with Lemon Orzo

Fresh salmon fillet coated in crispy panko breadcrumbs, feta cheese, cherry tomatoes, garlic, and kalamata olives is baked until golden and served over an herby lemon orzo, ready in 30 minutes! This Mediterranean Baked Salmon is a great variation to our basic salmon dinner, quick and easy to throw together, and the whole family loved it!

Prep Time10

Cook Time20

Total Time30

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: American, Mediterranean

Servings:

Calories: 521kcal

Author: Meryl Downing

Ingredients

For the Salmon

1 pound salmon
1 teaspoon kosher salt divided
8 grinds fresh black pepper divided
½ cup panko bread crumbs
½ cup feta cheese crumbled
¼ cup kalamata olives (pits removed)
¾ cup cherry tomato
4 cloves garlic minced
⅛ cup fresh herbs (basil, chives, parsley, oregano, thyme, or scallions)
2 Tablespoons olive oil

For the Lemon Orzo

1 cup orzo pasta
2 Tablespoons butter
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
⅛ cup fresh herbs (basil, chives, parsley, oregano, thyme, or scallions)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400℉ and set a pot of water to boil for the pasta.
Add the salmon filet, skin side down, to a baking dish. Season by sprinkling with half the salt and pepper.
Add all remaining ingredients for the salmon topping to a bowl, including the rest of the salt and pepper and toss well with a spoon.
Pour the topping over the salmon in the dish. Try to pat it onto the salmon but some spilling to the sides in the dish is fine. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes.

For the Orzo

Meanwhile, cook the orzo in boiling salted water for 10 minutes. Drain and return to the hot pot.
Add butter, lemon juice, and herbs to the orzo and stir well until melted and combined.
Use a fish spatula to pull a serving of the salmon away from the skin, leaving the skin behind in the dish. Serve the salmon on a bed of the orzo, garnished with a squeeze of lemon juice and more fresh herbs.

Notes

Check the Salmon for Doneness - Salmon thickness varies a lot. Start checking at 15 minutes, but it could take 20 to 25 minutes. Use a fork at the thickest part to pull back a bit of flesh to see if the color has changed from deep pink to a lighter, opaque pink throughout.
Removing the Skin - You will bake the salmon with the skin on, then use a fish spatula (or other spatula) when serving to just pull the fish from the skin, leaving it behind stuck to the baking dish. It's easy to scrape off with a rubber spatula when doing dishes, toss the skin in the trash, not down the drain!
Adjusting the Amounts - I used 1 pound of salmon and 1 cup of orzo to feed by family of 4. You could go up to 1.5 pounds of salmon (the whole filet) while keeping the same amount of topping (the topping doesn't need to be exact, add a few extra tomatoes or less olives, whatever you like). To stretch the orzo, just do 1.5 cups. Or get a smaller piece of salmon if serving less people and cut back on the topping.

Nutrition