Black Lime Salmon
Updated June 21, 2024
- Total Time
- 35 minutes
- Prep Time
- 5 minutes
- Cook Time
- 30 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:4 servings
- 3dried black limes (or 5 teaspoons black lime powder; see Tip)
- 2½teaspoons light brown sugar
- 1teaspoon ground cumin
- ½teaspoon cayenne powder
- 1½teaspoons sweet paprika
- Fine sea salt
- 4tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1whole (1½- to 2-pound) salmon fillet (skin on or off)
- 3plum tomatoes
- 1small garlic clove, minced
- ⅓cup/80 grams sour cream, plus extra to serve
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
401 calories; 31 grams fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 15 grams monounsaturated fat; 6 grams polyunsaturated fat; 11 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 5 grams sugars; 22 grams protein; 543 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered byPreparation
- Step 1
Heat the oven to 475 degrees.
- Step 2
Place the limes, sugar, cumin, cayenne, 1 teaspoon of the paprika and 1 teaspoon of salt in a spice grinder and grind to a fine powder. Transfer to a small bowl and mix with the oil.
- Step 3
Place the salmon in a large roasting pan, skin-side down if using a skin-on fillet, and cover the salmon with all of the oil mixture. Roast until the salmon is just cooked through and flaky, about 12 minutes, then let rest for 2 minutes before serving.
- Step 4
While the salmon roasts, grate the tomatoes on the coarse side of a box grater, discarding the spent skins. Transfer into a fine sieve set over a bowl and stir a few times, then discard the strained liquid. Transfer the tomato pulp into the bowl, and season with the remaining ½ teaspoon paprika, the garlic and ¼ teaspoon salt.
- Step 5
To serve, carefully transfer the salmon to a serving platter, then dollop the sour cream over the salmon followed by half of the tomato mixture. Spoon the roasting oil back over the salmon and serve with the extra sour cream and tomato on the side to taste.
Tip
- Black limes can be a little hard to find, but they are worth searching for. Try a specialty Middle Eastern supermarket, if you have access to one, or order them online. A spice or coffee grinder is essential to turn them into a fine powder, but a powerful blender can also be used; just pass the coarse powder through a fine sieve after blending. If needed, crush them by pressing down on them with your palm before grinding. Rather than pulverizing whole black limes, you could substitute 5 teaspoons black lime powder.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Jo
I would use hot lime pickle, sold in Indian food stores. Both Swad and Atak brands are good. The pickle contains all of the spices listed, plus mustardseed, which is always good with salmon.
pardeegirl
From one of Yotam’s cookbooks, 1/2 oz / 15g dried black limes equals about 3 large ones.
Sandra Kistner
Photo shown is deceptive. Recipe specifies cook with skin down and place toppings on salmon flesh. One would need to scrape the off to get at the flesh is the picture we’re followed.
Ted
Burlap & Barrel sells a ground black lime, which you can purchase on Amazon. Since it’s going to be ground up anyways I would think this would work. Anybody know how much ground to substitute for the whole limes?
Rob
I thought that also but magnifying picture makes me think that's not skin, its the black lime coating.
marie-claude garneau
You can buy lime powder, thus eliminating the need to grind it. Iranian épiceries have it and my Indian épicerie has it as well. I'm sure it can be purchased online as well. It also makes a wonderful ingredient in kebab marinades.
Emily F
I think that the black you're seeing in the photo is the black lime marinade and not the skin.
pardeegirl
This is incredible! Prepared exactly as written, cooking 12 minutes at 475, delicious. Served w roasted zucchini spears. Only change I would suggest is less oil in the marinade and also less salt. SO GOOD.
Bob
Burlap & Barrel sells ground black lime which might work in this dish. They’re an online spice and herb company. (Full disclosure: the company’s founder is my cousin.)
Really Good And Easy
Dried limes can be easily ordered on Amazon and delivered within a day or two. Once you have them, Google recipes for them. Worthwhile to be adventuresome.
Rob
I thought also but magnifying picture makes me think that's not skin, its the black lime coating.
Tim
Hi! Photo is pretty accurate. The black lime paste is definitely black. It does look like skin in the picture, but it’s the glaze. Went to a Middle Eastern market to find black limes and couldn’t resist the most gorgeous flat bread-still warm! This one should be fun.
Yoda Naman
For this recipe, you'd be safe with two tablespoons. You can actually add more if you're not getting the desired citrus kick.
jdonahue
Tried this. Not my favorite taste. I thought it a bit too bitter. But, that's me.
Kate
Sandra, I thought the same thing but after looking closely at the photo, realized the black is the black lime marinade, not the skin.
Paul
This recipe works best with a thick fillet. And shorten the cooking time IMO. I hate overcooked salmon.
Martine
Added the juice from the tomatoes to the sour cream to loosen it up a bit along with salt and pepper. Minced jalapeño added to garlic tomato mixture. The more limes, the better.
VMay
Heray Spice has black lime powder.
Melissa
Mmmmm! Delicious! I will make this again.
AliceG
I made this recipe exactly as written using the ground black lime powder from Burlap & Barrel that others noted is available on Amazon. Wow! Loved the flavors, very complex. The cumin mixes nicely with the paprika and black lime powder. It was fast and simple. I served it with long grain wild rice and steamed broccoli and had it for a regular Sunday evening meal but this would be a great dinner party recipe.
Malia
Added maple syrup to the spice/oil mixture to correct bitterness. Everyone finished the salmon dish and really liked it, though it this is a strong flavor (similar to li hing mui if you grew up in Hawaii) so you may want to glaze the salmon sparingly the first time you try the recipe. Made a salad dressing the next day with the remaining oil mixture by adding lemon juice and more olive oil and that was really good.
KPC
On my list to make again this summer. I smashed the limes using my meat pounder on a cutting board and scraped it into my spice grinder; doubled the cumin and cayenne. Did not have any labne or sour cream which would definitely have balanced the strong citrus flavors. I used wild salmon which could have used the richness as well.
CarolB
Phoenician Lebanese market in North Brunseick, NJ. sells both dried black limes (Adonis spices) and dried lemons (Ziyad brand). The salmon is fabulous!
CarolB
Easy and delicious!subbed dried lemons, greek yogurt and omitted sugar. Baked in airfryer at 450F for 12 minutes, perfect and succulent. Served with rice and chopped salad.
Michael Meneer
I would modify to: 1 SUSTAINABLY HARVESTED WILD salmon. (Farmed salmon don’t make the journey referenced in the article, and those raised in open net pens in the ocean are far from sustainable for the environment and wild stocks.)
Clair
I bought dried Persian limes. The smell is gorgeous and they are great to throw in while cooking rice. But they are hard as a rock! How the heck to you grind them? It would break the blades on any grinder! I know you can buy it already ground (I have some) but I would really like to understand the trick here.
Kiki
Try grating them.
CarolB
Put the dried limes on a cutting board and bash them with a heavy pan. Then put the pieces in with the rest of the spice mix in a blender and you'll have a wonderfully fragrant spice mix easily. Fabulous recipe!
Jen
I found pre ground dried black limes on Amazon. Can you provide the equivalent measures for three limes?
Chris
Made last night. I would cut the oil in half, as it was very thin - not like a paste, which is what you want if you are putting it on immediately before cooking. I used black limes from my Shaheen Roastery (Jordan) Kabsah Spice Blend (whole).
pardeegirl
This is incredible! Prepared exactly as written, cooking 12 minutes at 475, delicious. Served w roasted zucchini spears. Only change I would suggest is less oil in the marinade and also less salt. SO GOOD.
Me
Super easy and yummy. Skin side down. The black on top in the picture is the ground black lime mixture.
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