Hello and Welcome! This is not your average rice bowl. Dressed with a creamy, lemon and dill crème fraîche, this Simple Baked Salmon Rice Bowl is light and refreshing, perfect for lunch or dinner – it’s good hot or cold, too. A fresh salad of greens and red onions, with rice and caperberries is topped with a perfectly baked Wild Alaskan Salmon fillet. After Monday’s super rich Chicken and Broccoli Casserole, this feels just right. So, let’s get to it!
Start with the rice. The rice will take longer than everything else, so get that going. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees for the salmon.
Crème Fraîche Dressing
Next we will make the crème fraîche dressing. I have 6 ounces of store bought crème fraîche. Pour that in a bowl, then add the zest of one lemon, the juice of half that lemon and a tablespoon of fresh chopped dill. Stir to combine. The dressing should be loose; we want it creamy, but not as thick as say, Ranch dressing.
Crème fraîche, lemon zest, juice and dill. 
Stir to combine.
Wild Alaskan Salmon Fillets
I have two Wild Alaskan Salmon fillets that are vastly different in size. But that’s OK. We are oven baking these salmon fillets at a high heat, and they will cook for 4-6 minutes per 1/2-inch of thickness. Four minutes for medium rare, 6 minutes for medium to well done. The larger fillet is about 1-inch thick in its middle section. The smaller one is about 1/2-inch thick in its middle section.
Prep the salmon by patting it dry and drizzle a generous amount of olive oil over the fillets. Brush the olive oil over the entire fillet (meat side and skin side) and place on a parchment-lined sheet tray. Then sprinkle the meat sides with about 1/8-1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt and a few cranks of fresh black pepper.
Brush olive oil on all sides of fillets. 
Sprinkle with Kosher Salt. 
And black pepper.
Place the sheet tray with the fillets on the center rack in the preheated oven and set the timer for 4 minutes. Pictured below are both the fillets at the four minute mark. The little one is just about there. I am going to let it go another 90 seconds, because I like my salmon to be medium-cooked. The larger one will go another 2-3 minutes.
Salmon Fillets at the 4-minute mark
I pulled the smaller fillet out after another 90 seconds.
You can see the smaller fillet is a little more opaque after the additional 90 seconds. It is moist, yet flaky, retaining its gorgeous pink color. I am not a fan of fish skin. So I let the little fillet cool for about a minute. Then, very carefully flip the fillet over, and the skin (once cooked) should peel off very easily. Use the tip of a sharp knife to gently lift a corner of the skin from the meat and then it should peel off easily in one or two pieces, just using your fingers.
Simple Baked Salmon Rice Bowl Assembly
I have my little fillet ready to plate, so I set that aside while I assemble the rice bowl. Place one or two handfuls of salad greens and more chopped fresh dill in a shallow bowl. Top with slices of red onion. Drizzle on some of the crème fraîche dressing. Then drizzle olive oil over the dressed salad and give it all a good squeeze of lemon juice.
Top greens, onion slices and dill with dressing. 
Drizzle olive oil over the dressed salad.
Then, sprinkle flaky finishing salt and black pepper on the dressed salad. Add the rice, use as much as you like. Top the rice with another drizzle of olive oil and squeeze of lemon juice.
Sprinkle with flaky salt and black pepper. 
Add rice and a drizzle of olive oil and lemon juice.
Now for the salmon. Lay the salmon fillet over the rice.
Simple Baked Salmon Rice Bowl
Top the salmon with more crème fraîche dressing and sprinkle on more fresh dill. Add capers, or caperberries, if you like.
Simple Baked Salmon Rice Bowl is quick and easy to make, and so delicious I could eat it every single day. It’s light and refreshing – a flavorful savory meal you can feel really good about eating. Take it one further and go with brown rice, if you like. If you stick to the rule of baking salmon for 4-6 minutes (in a 425 degree oven) per 1/2-inch of thickness, you’ll get perfect salmon every time. Don’t be afraid to pull out a ruler to measure the thickness of your fillets! That does it for today, take care and be well everyone! xo Kelly
Kitchen Tools and Equipment Used in this Recipe
Simple Baked Salmon Rice Bowl
(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
Loading...A Simple Baked Salmon Rice Bowl with greens, red onions and rice, topped with a baked Wild Alaskan Salmon fillet, dressed with lemon dill crème fraîche.
Ingredients
- 1 cup Uncooked Rice, cooked to package directions
- 4-6 oz. Crème Fraîche
- 1/2-1 bunch Fresh Dill, chopped
- Zest of 1 Lemon
- Juice of Half Lemon, plus more foe squeezing over the salad
- Kosher Salt and Black Pepper
- 2 Wild Alaskan Salmon Fillets, 1/2-1.5-inch thick in the center
- Olive Oil
- 3-5 oz. Salad Greens (like Organic Girl Super Greens)
- 1/4-1/2 Red Onion, thinly sliced into rounds
- Flaky Finishing Sea Salt
- Capers or Caperberries, for garnish
Instructions
Start with cooking the rice. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees for the salmon.
Pour the crème fraîche in a small bowl, then add the zest of one lemon, the juice of half that lemon, a tablespoon of fresh chopped dill and a pinch of Kosher salt. Stir to combine and set the dressing aside.
Prep the salmon by patting it dry and drizzle a generous amount of olive oil over the fillets. Brush the olive oil over the entire fillet (meat side and skin side) and place on a parchment-lined sheet tray. Then sprinkle the meat sides with about 1/8-1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt and a few cranks of fresh black pepper.
Bake the salmon for 4-6 minutes per 1/2-inch of thickness. Four minutes for medium rare, 6 minutes for medium to well done.
Place one or two handfuls of salad greens and more chopped fresh dill in a shallow bowl.
Top with slices of red onion.
Drizzle on some of the crème fraîche dressing.
Then drizzle olive oil over the dressed salad and give it all a good squeeze of lemon juice.
Sprinkle flaky finishing salt and black pepper on the dressed salad.
Top the salad with rice.
Top the rice with another drizzle of olive oil and squeeze of lemon juice.
Lay the salmon fillet over the rice.
Top the salmon with more crème fraîche dressing and sprinkle on more fresh dill. Add capers, or caper berries, if you like.
Mari
January 5, 2022 at 11:16 amI love these easy to prepare and fantastic recipes. My daughter and I are the only ones that can eat and enjoy salmon. My two sons and son-in-law are unable to eat it, and with two of them, even the smell makes them ill, which makes it difficult to make and enjoy salmon for those of us that do like it. It’s Ike planning a military campaign. We have to work around people, and then open a lot of windows, and if enough time has elapsed, the salmon-adverse people are okay. It works best when my son-in-law can be persuaded to take a camping trip and be gone a day or two. In other words we don’t do it often! Certainly not in January. I will save this recipe and hopefully at some point we will enjoy it. In the meantime, I will try another kind of fish.. The recipe reads like a dream, and I think it’s possible to make it successfully with something else. What would you use in place of salmon?
The winter assault seems to be clearing up for now, and I wish I hadn’t said that, because it’s asking for trouble. Then again, in Maryland, we don’t typically see a lot of winter. We certainly get some cold temperatures, but the rest of it usually passes us by. My kids like to tease me that I only moved here because it has my name. It is a great location because my kids all live within one to two hours away, but I didn’t move here for the name. If it had involved my middle name, I would never have moved here at all!
Happy Wednesday and hugs to Kelly, Alex, Terry and the canine crew. Happy Wednesday to the blog sisters. Stay warm and stay safe, and remember that spring is coming. ????. Eventually.
Kelly Djalali
January 5, 2022 at 11:48 amHi Mari, I would say any other kind of fish will work out fine for this recipe – it’s such a simple preparation of the fish, you can’t go wrong with whatever fish your family prefers.
Our unseasonably warm temperatures have given way to chillier winter-appropriate temps, which is fine with us. As long as the sun is out, I am ok with the chill. The sun is setting a few minutes later each day. Two minutes and seven seconds of extra daylight each day might not seem like much but I most definitely notice it – and am grateful for it! Have a wonderful Wednesday! xo Kelly
Kenzie
January 5, 2022 at 3:47 pmI’ve found a very easy way to cook salmon which pretty much does away with the smell. Use whatever seasoning you like – we like a mixture of crushed garlic, grated fresh ginger, soya sauce and rice vinegar. Place the salmon in a microwave dish with a tight fitting lid, spoon over seasoning, cover and place into microwave. Cook on high for 2-3 minutes depending on thickness of salmon. Leave to rest for a couple of minutes and you will have lovely moist salmon. Another way is to cook it in a baking paper lined steaming basket in a rice cooker as you cook the rice. Very easy!
Kelly Djalali
January 5, 2022 at 4:51 pmHi Kenzie, Very helpful tips! I know a lot of folks who like the taste of fish, but often don’t want to cook it because of the lingering cooking smell. I love the steamed method – it is so easy! Have a wonderful evening! xo Kelly
Terry
January 8, 2022 at 4:22 pmI am making this tonight I’ll keep you posted. Have had salmon in a long time…I’ll keep you posted, Mari have a great Saturday…Kelly enjoy your weekend finally no rain in sight ?❤️ Mom
Kelly Djalali
January 8, 2022 at 4:32 pmI am sure you will enjoy this salmon dish, Mom. It’s light yet filling. Have a great Saturday! xo Kelly
Terry
January 8, 2022 at 9:05 pmI fixed this tonite it was great definitely will be added to the menu ❤️? mom