Sweet, flaky salmon coated in a luscious homemade teriyaki sauce is an easy restaurant-quality meal that’ll make you a hero at dinner time! Air fryer teriyaki salmon is so good and easy that everyone will want seconds. Is this the best air fryer salmon recipe? You bet!
Sweet and savory teriyaki sauce pairs well with salmon. The syrupy sauce coats the salmon and gets all nice and caramelized in the air fryer, making this a show-stopping meal that’s incredibly easy to make. And best of all, cooking time is only 10 minutes!
I love making salmon in the air fryer, and it’s so easy! You can use a basket or oven-style air fryer for this recipe, and as long as you don’t overcrowd it, it’ll cook up perfectly and be delicious every time.
What is Teriyaki Sauce?
Thanks to the influence of Japanese immigrants in Hawaii, teriyaki sauce is the base of many popular Hawaiian recipes. The word Teriyaki in Japanese refers to a specific cooking method:
- Teri = glazed or shiny
- Yaki = to roast or grill
Teriyaki sauce is a staple ingredient in many delicious Hawaiian recipes, and salmon is the perfect fish to pair it with. Air Fryer Teriyaki Salmon is one of those easy to prepare dinners (hopefully you still have a stash of Homemade Teriyaki Sauce in your refrigerator) that doesn’t take too long, and can tempt even the pickiest of eaters. Don’t worry, it’s a simple recipe. And there’s no easier way to prepare this mouth-watering dish than in the air fryer.
Teriyaki sauce is also great for dipping, marinating, and glazing. It is fabulous with chicken, shrimp, beef, and in this case, salmon.
What You’ll Need To Make Teriyaki Salmon in the Air Fryer
(Full recipe instructions and ingredient amounts are in the recipe card at the bottom of this post)
- Teriyaki Sauce – Homemade teriyaki marinade or use your favorite store brand.
- Garlic cloves – Fresh garlic is best in this recipe, and mince it finely to infuse the sauce with the flavor.
- Ginger – Fresh ginger, finely minced. Or, grate it on a microplane.
- Salmon fillets – About 6 ounces for each fresh salmon fillet. See my notes below for buying salmon.
- Slurry – You’ll combine cornstarch and water to make a slurry to thicken the sauce a bit.
- Green onions – Thinly sliced green onions make a delish and pretty garnish.
- Sesame seeds – Another pretty and optional garnish.
You’ll also need an air fryer. There are lots of great, inexpensive options out there. I have a NuWave. The Cosori air fryer is also a good option.
What Kind of Salmon Do You Need for Teriyaki Salmon?
Salmon is readily available in most grocery stores, and you can use any salmon for this dish. Here are some tips to help you get salmon for the best air fryer Teriyaki Salmon.
- For this recipe, look for salmon with the pin bones removed.
- The fish counter can cut the fillets for you – ask for them from the head end of the fish so that it’s more evenly sized.
- Wild-caught salmon is my first pick but get what you can afford.
- Buy fresh, never frozen fish for the best quality.
- Look for it on sale to save some money.
What is a Slurry?
Slurry is a fancy culinary term for a mixture of water and cornstarch. The cornstarch dissolves in the water, and when added to a sauce and heated, the cornstarch will make a thicker glaze.
A cornstarch slurry is much like a flour slurry, but cornstarch makes a sauce that is more translucent and glossy than a flour slurry. Most Asian recipes use a cornstarch slurry as a thickener.
How To Make Air Fryer Teriyaki Salmon?
- Add the teriyaki sauce, garlic, and ginger in a small bowl and mix well.
- Lay the salmon fillets in a shallow dish or a zipper-top bag skin side down, pour half of the teriyaki marinade over them, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or overnight.
- Preheat the air fryer to 400F. Spray the air fryer basket with non-stick cooking spray to prevent sticking.
- Let the excess marinade drip off the fillets or dab with paper towels. Place salmon into the air fryer basket (or on the tray) and cook for 7-10 minutes or until the internal temperature is at least 125F. Measure the temperature in the thickest part of the salmon. Keep the remaining marinade.
- Add the remaining sauce to a small saucepan over medium heat, whisk the cornstarch slurry into it, and bring it to a gentle simmer for a couple of minutes or until thickened. Keep this teriyaki glaze to add over the salmon.
- Glaze the cooked salmon with the teriyaki sauce and garnish with toasted sesame seeds and sliced green onions. ENJOY!
Tips for the best air fryer teriyaki salmon
- Salmon shrinks in the air fryer, so make sure you start with a good portion for each person for this teriyaki salmon air fryer recipe.
- Save some extra teriyaki sauce for adding at the table.
- Preheat your air fryer – always – so that you’ve got the most accurate cooking times and temps.
- All air fryers are different – use a digital meat thermometer and pull the salmon out when it hits about 125F.
Storage Instructions
You can keep any leftover air fryer salmon teriyaki in the fridge for 2-3 days in an airtight container, covered with plastic wrap or in a zip lock bag, but seafood is highly perishable, so don’t keep it any longer than that.
This air fryer teriyaki salmon recipe will not freeze well, so try to eat it fresh.
What To Serve With Teriyaki Salmon?
I love serving this easy air fryer teriyaki salmon recipe on a bed of rice, sticky white rice to be exact. You can use brown rice, jasmine rice, or any other rice as well to soak up all that sauce and to make this a complete and delicious meal. Instant Pot mashed potatoes would also be great with this.
Steamed broccoli, green beans, asparagus, or another green veggie would be a tasty and easy vegetable side dish with air-fried salmon.
Frequently Asked Questions
There is no need to flip the salmon while it cooks in the air fryer. The air fryer circulates heat rapidly and much more evenly than an oven while the salmon rests in a basket.
I like cooking salmon at 400F. You can cook it at a lower temperature, however cook time will increase.
Salmon should be cooked to a minimum internal temperature of 125F. If you do not have a thermometer, you can check doneness with a fork. Fully cooked salmon will easily flake when fork is inserted and twisted.
More Delicious Air Fryer Recipes
- Air fryer chicken katsu
- Air fryer steak bites
- Air fryer crispy tofu
- Air fryer crispy pork belly
- Air fryer coconut shrimp
Air Fryer Teriyaki Salmon
Equipment
- NuWave Brio 6-Quart Air Fryer with App Recipes (Black) Includes Basket Divider, One-Touch Digital Controls, 6 Easy Presets, Wattage Control, and Advanced Functions like SEAR, PREHEAT, DELAY, WARM and More (NEW UPDATED MODEL)
Ingredients
- ½ cup teriyaki sauce
- 3 cloves garlic finely minced
- 1 teaspoon finely minced ginger
- 4 salmon fillets 6 ounces each
- 2 teaspoons water
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
Instructions
- Add teriyaki sauce, garlic, and ginger to a bowl. Mix to combine.
- Lay salmon filets in a shallow dish or zip top bag. Pour half of the teriyaki marinade over the salmon. Place in the refrigerator and allow to marinate for at least 30 minutes and up to over night.
- Preheat in the air fryer to 400F. Spray the air fryer basket with non-stick cooking spray to prevent sticking.
- Remove salmon from the marinade and place in the air fryer being sure to shake off the excess marinade. Cook for 7-10 minutes or until an internal temperature of at least 125F.
- While the salmon is cooking, pour the remainder of the teriyaki sauce into a saucepan over medium high heat.
- Add water and cornstarch to a small bowl. Mix to combine. Pour the cornstarch slurry into the teriyaki sauce and cook until thickened or about 3-5 minutes.
- Transfer fish to a platter and glaze with teriyaki sauce. Optionally top with toasted sesame seeds and sliced green onions. ENJOY!
Notes
Nutrition
© Relle Lum for Keeping It Relle. Please do not copy and paste or screenshot recipes online or on social media. I’d love it if you share a link with a photo instead. Mahalo!
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This looks so delicious!
delicious and so easy!
Great salmon recipe, I love fish in the air fryer.
I made this recipe using fresh caught Alaskan halibut and it was amazing! Thank you!
Ooh yum. Thanks for sharing.