Creamy Salmon Piccata and Pasta

If you're a pasta-lover like I am, then you are going to love this dish! This creamy salmon piccata may sound fancy, but that doesn't make it complicated. It's a quick 30-minute meal, and it's absolutely delicious!

If you're looking for some other 30-minute pasta dinners, check out this creamy sun dried tomato chicken pasta, or this creamy tuscan salmon and pasta!

How to Make Salmon Piccata

1. Prep the salmon: Pat the salmon filets dry with a paper towel, and season each side with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Then coat the filets with flour, shaking off any excess.
2. Cook the salmon: Next, melt some butter in a frying pan on medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot, add the salmon filets and cover the pan with a lid. Cook for about 4 minutes (or until golden), and flip to cook on the other side for 3-4 minutes. Then, remove the salmon from the pan and cover it with tin foil. Salmon should reach an internal temperature of 145° Fahrenheit, so it's helpful to use a meat thermometer if you have one!
3. Make the noodles: You can make the fettuccine at any point while cooking this meal, just follow the instructions on the packaging. It should only take about 15 minutes to make start-to-finish, so I usually let the noodles cook while making the sauce. (I don't mention cooking the noodles in the instructions, so just make them whenever is most convenient for you.)
4. Make the sauce: Using the same pan that you used for the salmon, melt the butter. Then add some minced garlic, salt, pepper, thyme, and oregano. Mix all the seasonings well, but only let them cook for about a minute--you don't want to burn them, and butter burns easily. Then add the chicken broth, white wine vinegar, and lemon juice, and bring the liquid to a boil. Next, make a cornstarch slurry and add it to the liquid to thicken. Don't worry if it gets a little lumpy. Then, turn the heat down to low and add the heavy cream (mixing in the cream will smooth out any lumps). Once the sauce is smooth and creamy, mix in the capers and fresh parsley.
5. Assembly: Mix the noodles in with the sauce. Serve the noodles with the salmon filets on top. I love squeezing some extra lemon juice on top for some extra flavor, but that's optional!

This recipe is fairly simple, but the flavors are deliciously complex. Try this creamy salmon piccata out and let me know how it goes in the comments below!

Print Recipe

Creamy Salmon Piccata and Pasta

Prep Time5 minutes mins

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Course: Main Dishes

Servings: 4 servings

Calories: 619kcal

Ingredients

• 4 4 oz Atlantic* salmon fillets, skinless
• fine sea salt
• ground black pepper
• garlic powder
• ¼ cup all purpose flour
• 3 tablespoon unsalted butter, divided
• 2 teaspoon minced garlic
• ½ teaspoon dried thyme
• ½ teaspoon dried oregano
• ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
• ⅛ teaspoon ground black pepper
• ¾ cup low sodium chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 2 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 cup heavy cream
• ¼ cup capers, rinsed
• 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
• 8 oz fettuccine, cooked according to instructions
• fresh lemon slices, for serving

Instructions

• Pat the salmon filets dry with paper towels, and then sprinkle each side with salt, black pepper, and garlic powder. Put the flour in a shallow bowl, then dredge the salmon filets in it. Shake off the excess flour.
• In a large frying pan, melt one tablespoon of butter on medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot, add the salmon filets and cover with a lid. Cook for about 4 minutes (until golden), then flip the salmon filets and cook covered for another 3-4 minutes (until golden and cooked through**). Move the salmon to a plate and cover with tin foil.
• In the same warm frying pan (heat off), melt two tablespoons of butter. Add the minced garlic, thyme, oregano, salt, and black pepper, and saute on low heat and stir for one minute.
• Add the chicken broth, white wine vinegar, and lemon juice. Mix well, then turn the heat to high and bring to a boil.
• Mix the two tablespoons of cornstarch with two tablespoons of cold water in a small bowl. Add the mixture to the frying pan, and whisk well. It may get a little bit clumpy, but don't worry about that.
• Turn the heat down to low, and whisk in the heavy cream until smooth. Then, mix in the capers and fresh parsley.
• Mix in the cooked fettuccine and serve, topped with the cooked salmon. Squeeze some fresh lemon juice on top (optional), and enjoy!

Notes

*I recommend using Atlantic salmon because it has a milder flavor and is less fishy than most salmon. However, use whatever kind of salmon you prefer!

**If the pan is hot enough, this should be plenty of time to cook the salmon through. If you have a meat thermometer on hand, salmon should reach an internal temperature of 145° F.