Air Fryer Teriyaki Salmon – Quick, Easy, Healthy

Air fryer teriyaki salmon is quick, easy and so flavorful. Cooks in 10 minutes, this teriyaki salmon cooked in the air fryer turns out moist and flaky and is topped with a salty, sweet, sticky teriyaki sauce. This air healthy air fryer salmon teriyaki is perfect for weeknight meals and a great way to get your kids (picky eaters) to eat fish!

Why you will love this recipe

• Quick & Easy – the air fryer makes it so easy to have seafood any night of the week. This air fryer teriyaki salmon recipe comes together in about 30 minutes (15-20 minutes to marinade the fish and 10 minutes to cook the fish) and is so simple. Great recipe if you don’t feel 100% confident with cooking seafood at home.
• Simple ingredients – you can find all the ingredients you need to make teriyaki salmon in the air fryer at your local grocery store. Coconut aminos and arrowroot powder may be the only ingredient that you cannot find easily. Coconut aminos are a gluten free, soy free alternative to soy sauce. You can use soy sauce or gluten free tamari in place of that. Arrowroot powder is a thickener that works the same as corn starch. You can easily use corn starch or tapioca powder in place of the arrowroot.
• Budget friendly – this air fryer teriyaki salmon allows you to make a restaurant quality meal at home for much less than what you would pay if you went out to eat. You can use frozen, defrosted salmon to help save money as well!
• Healthy, gluten free teriyaki salmon recipe – this air fryer teriyaki salmon recipe is gluten free, soy free, paleo and naturally sweetened. You can also make this Whole30 friendly by substituting the maple syrup for soaked dates. Make it low carb by using a low carb sweetener in place of the maple syrup.  

Ingredients

• Coconut aminos (or soy sauce or gluten free tamari) – coconut aminos provide that deep rich flavor that you are used to with teriyaki sauce. It’s salty and provides a deep umami flavor. Coconut aminos are typically a bit sweeter than soy sauce so if you are using soy sauce or gluten free tamari you may need more maple syrup (1-2 teaspoons).
• Rice wine vinegar – rice wine vinegar provides a balance to the sauce/marinade and helps to make the flavors brighter and pop. This replaces the mirin (or sake) in traditional teriyaki sauce recipes as it’s much easier to find in most grocery stores and works well.
• Maple syrup – the maple syrup naturally sweetens the teriyaki sauce and helps create the sweet balance to the salty, sticky sauce.
• Fresh ginger (or dried ginger) – fresh ginger works great in this recipe if you have it on hand (you can always keep a jar of minced ginger in the fridge). Otherwise I highly recommend this freeze dried ginger to keep in your pantry and use in place of fresh ginger. You could also use powdered dried ginger in this recipe.
• Spices: Garlic powder, salt – garlic powder provides more umami flavor without having to worry about the garlic burning when it’s cooked in the air fryer. You could also use grated fresh garlic but I would avoid using minced garlic as it can burn. The salt helps to elevate the flavors in the dish.
• Salmon – fresh salmon or defrosted frozen salmon works for this recipe. Try to get salmon filets that are the same thickness (the length doesn’t matter) so that they will cook in the same amount of time. If you have a large salmon fillet, but it down into reasonable size pieces to fit in your air fryer easily. You can use skin on or skin off salmon but the skin on does tend to stay together better when cooking in the air fryer.
• Arrowroot powder (or cornstarch or tapioca powder) – arrowroot helps to thicken the teriyaki sauce on the stove. You don’t need much to make the recipe nice and thick. Be sure to add the arrowroot to the room temperature ingredients (don’t stir it in a hot pan or it will clump immediately).

How to make teriyaki salmon in the air fryer

Top tips

• For the best flavor be sure to marinate the salmon 10-15 minutes before cooking the salmon. If you are short on time, you can skip this step, but the flavor won’t be as deep/pronounced.
• Only pour half the teriyaki sauce over the salmon. Reserve the other half to make the sticky teriyaki sauce. Since you will not be bringing the teriyaki sauce up to a boil before adding the arrowroot powder, it’s not safe to use the leftover marinade to make the sticky teriyaki sauce.
• Be sure to add the arrowroot to the room temperature ingredients (don’t stir it in a hot liquid or it will clump immediately).
• For easy clean up use silicone mat or parchment paper in the air fryer basket. I really love the silicone mat since you can reuse them and wash them in the dishwasher.
• Don’t overcrowd the air fryer. If you need to make more salmon, make a double batch. If you overcrowd the air fryer, the salmon will not cook evenly.
• If you want super crispy skin, air fry the salmon skin side up.
• Garnish the teriyaki salmon with sesame seeds or chopped green onions.
• Try to find salmon filets of similar thickness so they will cook in the same amount of time. If you have salmon of different thickness, some may be done before others, so keep an eye on the thinner pieces and remove them when necessary.
• If you want teriyaki sauce for your rice and vegetables, double the marinade and only use as much as needed to cover the fish. Add an extra teaspoon of arrowroot and follow the same instructions for the sticky marinade.

What to serve with air fryer teriyaki salmon

Jasmine rice and stir-fried veggies

Cilantro lime cauliflower rice for a low carb meal

Asian inspired broccoli and Cilantro lime quinoa for a quick and simple meal

Pineapple coleslaw or Cilantro lime slaw for a quick and easy weeknight meal

Over salad greens with creamy Asian dressing

Common questions

What is teriyaki sauce

Teriyaki sauce is a sticky sweet and salty sauce that is is said to have been created in Hawaii from Japanese immigrants. Teriyaki sauce is usually made with soy sauce, sake (or mirin) ginger and sugar.

In Japanese teriyaki comes from two separate words. “Teri” means shine and “yaki” means grill. In Japanese, teriyaki actually refers to a cooking method, not a sauce.

To make teriyaki sauce gluten free use coconut aminos or gluten free tamari sauce instead of soy sauce.

Can you use frozen salmon?

Since the salmon needs to marinate in the teriyaki sauce, it is best to defrost frozen salmon before marinating/cooking it.

If you are in a rush, you can cook the salmon in the air fryer from frozen (400F for 10-14 minutes). Pause the air fryer half way through cooking and baste the salmon with some of the marinade. Add the teriyaki glaze at the end. This method is faster if you have frozen salmon, but the fish itself won’t have as pronounced of a teriyaki flavor.

Can you use bottled teriyaki sauce to make air fryer teriyaki salmon?

Yes you can use a bottled teriyaki sauce instead of making homemade teriyaki sauce. If the bottled teriyaki sauce is thick, add 1-2 tablespoons of water to thin it out before using it as a marinade. You will need about 1/3 cup of teriyaki sauce to marinade the fish in, plus more for the top after cooking.

Can you eat the salmon skin?

Yes! Salmon skin is packed with Omega-3 fatty acids and is very healthy. If you want o eat the skin, it’s best to crisp it up by cooking the salmon skin side up.

Tip: If you choose not to eat the skin, cook the salmon with the skin on, then peel it off after cooking. It’s much easier to remove after cooking than before). If you have a dog, feed it to the dog (it’s great for their coat and skin).

Do you have to flip salmon in the air fryer?

No, you don’t need to flip the salmon or shake the basket.

How to cook teriyaki salmon in the oven

Preheat the oven to 425F and cook for 12 minutes. Check out my teriyaki salmon and vegetables sheet pan meal for a quick and easy weeknight meal!

How to tell if salmon is done cooking?

Use a instant read food thermometer to test the internal temperature of the thickest part of the salmon. For medium salmon, you will want the temperature to be around 130F. If you prefer a slightly more cooked salmon, you could go up to 135-140. The FDA recommends cooking salmon to 145F which is well- done but that salmon can taste dry and mealy. The internal temperature you will cook your salmon to depends on your preferences.

The easiest way to tell if salmon is done cooking is to press down on the top of the salmon (use your finger or a fork). If the salmon starts to flake or break apart, it’s done.

What to do with leftover ginger?

Ginger is sold in most grocery stores, usually around the garlic but sometimes in the refrigerated section. The ginger root can be big or small and is light brown in color with light-yellow flesh on the inside. It’s recommended that you peel the skin from the ginger before using it (it’s tough and dry).

Typically a recipe only calls for 1-2 tablespoons of fresh ginger, leaving you with a knob of ginger you need to do something with before it goes bad. You can easily use that leftover ginger to make your own ginger tea or freeze it for later!

To make ginger tea, simply slice the fresh ginger and add hot water.

To freeze the ginger, you simply put the knob of ginger in a freezer safe bag and freeze it. Chop or grate the frozen ginger right from the freezer, no need to defrost.

Alternatively, you can store fresh ginger in the freezer in pre-portioned cubes. To do this, peel then puree the ginger using a food processor or high speed blender. Transfer the puree to a small silicone ice cube tray (measure it out in 1 teaspoon or 1 tablespoon cubes). Once frozen solid, transfer the ginger cubes to a freezer safe bag and you will have pre-portioned ginger for any recipe for up to 6 months.  

What If I don’t have fresh ginger?

If you don’t have fresh ginger on hand, I highly recommend using freeze-dried ginger (it imparts the same flavor with none of the work). If you have air-dried ginger, you will want to use 1 tablespoon.

You can also use dried ground ginger (which is what you typically add to cookies/baked goods). This is much more potent than fresh ginger and therefore you will only need 1 teaspoon.

Storing leftovers

Fridge: Store leftover salmon in the fridge for up to 3 days. The teriyaki sauce can get quite thick as it sits, so I recommend you store that separately then thin it out with some water as you reheat it.

Reheat leftover teriyaki salmon in the air fryer at 325F for 5-7 minutes to reheat.

Freezer: Although you can freeze leftover salmon, this recipe is best eaten fresh.

Substitutions

• Coconut aminos– coconut aminos are the soy-free, gluten free alternative to soy sauce. If you cannot find coconut aminos or cannot have coconut, you can use gluten free tamari (this will not be soy free) or even soy sauce. If you use tamari or soy sauce, add 1-2 additional teaspoons of maple syrup, as coconut aminos tend to be sweeter than soy-based sauces.
• Rice wine vinegar – this helps to balance out the flavors of the sauce. You could also use mirin or sake to keep it traditional. If you cannot find either of those, you can use apple cider vinegar.
• Maple syrup – maple syrup helps to add a sweet balance to the sauce. You can also use honey or date syrup (Whole30 friendly) in place of the maple syrup. Another option would be to use 2 medjool dates, pitted and soaked in water before blending them up with the rest of the ingredients. You can also use a low carb maple syrup alternative to make this low carb friendly!
• Fresh ginger – my go-to anytime a recipe calls for fresh ginger and I don’t have it on hand is freeze-dried ginger. I always have this in my spice drawer, and it gives the same flavor as fresh but is much easier. If you are using dried ground ginger, you will only need 1 teaspoon.  
• Salmon – you can use any fatty fish for this recipe, salmon tends to be the easiest to find in most grocery stores. Trout would also be delicious here!
• Arrowroot powder – this is a corn-free thickening agent that will make the teriyaki sauce thick and sticky. You can also use tapioca powder or cornstarch to achieve the same results.

If you love this recipe, you should try

Air Fryer Salmon

Air Fryer Frozen Shrimp

Pecan Crusted Salmon

Tahini Salmon

Pesto Salmon

Air Fryer Shrimp Tacos