There aren’t many things more simple than a foil packet dinner. Fill it up, fold it over and pop it in the oven. All the magic happens inside as the heat and steam create a delicious meal with very little work.
And this Asian Glazed Salmon and Bok Choy is a triple threat — it’s super easy to make, it’s healthy, and it’s deliciously filling while not being super heavy. This is exactly what you want after a long day at work, or a big, filling lunch.
This recipe comes together in three simple steps to create a filling and delicious dinner for two. The sauce is mixed in a bowl and used both in the oven to marinate the salmon, as well as to create a thick glaze to coat the bok choy and spoon over the cooked fish.
This meal works great on its own, or as part of a rice bowl or salad. It’s also very easy to multiply this recipe to feed more than just two people.
Making Asian Glazed Salmon and Bok Choy
This recipe starts and ends with the glorious, sweet, salty, spicy, tangy glaze. It’s the star of the dish and it tastes sooooo yummy.
Start with 2 cloves of minced garlic, and about a quarter of a cup of soy sauce, the largest component of the glaze. To that, add some sesame oil, but be careful because it’s super strong and little goes a long way. Also add some rice wine vinegar and some sriracha. I use a tablespoon in the recipe, but you can scale that back if you want your sauce to be less spicy. Next, throw in some brown sugar, ground mustard, ground ginger and red pepper flakes. Finish it off with the juice of a lime. Whisk all those ingredients together in a bowl and your glaze is done.
Next, prep your salmon. I like to get fillets at the store, either fresh or frozen, because they are pre-cut and the bones are removed. It doesn’t matter if the skin is on the salmon for this recipe. It will cook down enough in the oven that you can eat the skin right along with the salmon. So whatever you have, or whatever you prefer will do just fine.
Lay the salmon out in the center of a large piece of foil. You want to make sure you have several inches of space on all sides of the salmon. Drizzle a little bit of vegetable oil, salt and pepper all over the salmon.
Then, start folding up all four sides of the foil around the salmon to make a little boat. Pour about a third of the sauce mixture on each piece of salmon, saving the remaining third for later. Pinch the foil packs to close them up, leaving only a little slit or corner open to vent steam.
Bake the salmon at 400F for 20 minutes.
While the salmon is cooking, prep the bok choy. I use 2 bunches for this recipe and it’s just enough for 2 people. Chop up all parts of the bok choy, including the bulb and the leaves. Get them in a skillet with a litle bit of vegetable oil to start wilting down.
Meanwhile, grab your bowl of leftover sauce and add a teaspoon of cornstarch to it. Whisk well to combine. The cornstarch will actually thicken the glaze once it all hits the heat of the skillet.
After the white pieces of bok choy are soft in the pan (which should only take a few minutes), pour the remainder of the sauce mix in to the skillet. Lower the heat on the stove and simmer the sauce for a few minutes while it thickens up. Be sure to stir it frequently.
Once the salmon are finished cooking, remove them from the oven and discard the foil packs and sauce.
To build your plate, start with a piece of salmon, and pile on a heaping portion of bok choy. Make sure to spoon as much of the thick, spicy glaze all over everything.
This dish is perfect all by itself, but it would also work so well over a bed of rice, which helps soak up all that flavorful sauce.
Let me know if you give this Asian Glazed Salmon and Bok Choy a try! I love to hear from you in the comments, or tag me on instagram @eat.think.live and let me see your creation! Plus, you can check out the rest of my recipes HERE.
Asian Glazed Salmon and Bok Choy
Ingredients
- 2 Pieces salmon fillet*
- 3 Tsp Vegetable oil Divided
- salt & pepper to taste
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp Sriracha
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground mustard
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1 tbsp lime juice (about the juice of 1 lime is fine)
- 1 tsp corn starch
- 2 Cups bok choy (about 2 bunches)
- 1 tsp sesame seeds for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F.
- Place each of the salmon fillets in the center of a sheet of foil. Drizzle about 1 tsp of vegetable oil over the pieces and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- In a bowl, combine the garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, sriracha, brown sugar, ground ginger, ground mustard, red pepper flakes and lime juice, and whisk together well.
- Fold up the sides of the foil to create a little bowl around the salmon. Divide the sauce mixture and pour about 2/3 of it over the salmon fillets. Pinch the tops of the packets together and fold over to make little packets (that have room for air and steam).
- Place the foil packets on a sheet pan (to catch any leaks) and bake for 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, add the last 2 tsp of olive oil to a pan over medium-high heat. Sauté the bok choy until soft, about 3-4 minutes.
- Whisk in the cornstarch to the remaining sauce mixture, then add to the hot pan of bok choy. Lower the heat and simmer, stirring frequently, for another 5 minutes or so until the sauce thickens.
- When the salmon is done, remove from oven and foil packets. Serve with the boy choy and more sauce spooned over the top.
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