Grilled Chipotle-Orange Salmon is sweet and smoky and beautifully spiced. This easy grilled salmon recipe promises to become a grilling season obsession!
I’ve already told you what an awesome job my husband does with a fillet of salmon on the grill. His sweet and smoky grilled salmon is one of the grilling requests he hears most often from me. The salmon’s smoky flavor, gorgeously thin crust of caramelized sugars, and ease of preparation make this a stand-out recipe.
If you haven’t yet tried that salmon recipe, I encourage you to do so. The recipe has even convinced non-fish lovers (our daughters), to add some to their plates. I’m not even kidding.
Another recipe I want you to try is this Grilled Chipotle-Orange Salmon.
First of all, isn’t this grilled salmon gorgeous?! We eat with our eyes first, and this dish is most certainly a looker.
It’s also big on flavor. And for those who don’t particularly enjoy the heat of chipotle pepper, the recipe can easily be altered.
*Here are a few more seafood grilling recipes I’m loving right now: Grilled Shrimp Ceviche and Cheesy Grilled Crab Quesadillas are both very fun recipes. And for a special treat, you just can’t go wrong with Grilled Lobster Tails with Sriracha Butter. For those who aren’t keen on fish and seafood (our daughters!), give this ultra tender and flavorful Beer Can Chicken a try!
grilled salmon recipe inspiration
Years ago, our friend Annmarie shared her favorite lemon salmon recipe with me, one that she bakes in the oven. Blake and I liked the recipe, and then proceeded to play around with it, adapting it for the grill.
We like to use cedar planks when we grill, especially when it comes to fish. (Stuffed mushrooms are also a favorite for grilling on a plank, check out this recipe!) It didn’t take us long to fall in love with the combination of smoky salmon with citrus.
And that was our jumping-off point, our inspiration, to creating this gorgeous meal of grilled salmon with orange.
How to grill salmon
When we grill salmon, we ultimately prefer to let it cook on a cedar plank that we’ve soaked in beer and/or water for a few hours. The plank not only makes itself useful by providing a pan-like flat surface on the grill grates, but it also imparts wonderful smokiness into the fish.
For a thicker piece of salmon, it takes about 25 minutes or so to grill the salmon to perfect doneness. And there’s no need to flip the fish. Just let it cook skin-side down on the plank. Transfer the cooked salmon on the plank to a pan, and serve it right from the plank. It makes for a fun presentation.
I must also mention what the cedar plank does for the orange slices on this salmon. The grill’s heat infuses that wonderful cedar smokiness right into the citrus. It’s like the best kind of dinner candy. When I’m done eating this meal, all you’ll see are thin, charred orange rinds left on my plate.
Smoked citrus is downright addictive, and this grilled chipotle-orange salmon recipe will make a believer out of you!
This orange salmon recipe is simple but powerful
Do you save the very best bites for last?
I do.
And in the case of this orange salmon recipe, I’d be saving the crispy outer edges of the salmon for my last bites. The salmon is flavored simply but powerfully, with chipotle, cumin, orange, and brown sugar. And the heat from the grill makes that sugar caramelize and crispify, creating the most magical edges.
You’re going to love this recipe, I just know it!
What to serve with orange salmon
I like to serve fresh veggies or a salad with this grilled orange salmon recipe. Whether it’s a simple salad using my mom’s Sweet Onion Coleslaw Dressing or this Summer Quinoa and Veggies Salad with Honey-Shallot Vinaigrette, you simply cannot go wrong. If you feel like grilling some vegetables, these Grilled Mini Sweet Peppers with Goat Cheese are a family favorite.
If you like this grilled chipotle-orange salmon, you might like:
*Here are a few more grilled fish and seafood recipes I’d like to try: Grilled Pesto Salmon in Foil from Cookin’ Canuck, Prosciutto Wrapped Grilled Shrimp Skewers from foodie crush, and Grilled Shrimp and Sausage Kabobs from Taste and Tell.
Like this grilled salmon? Save it to Pinterest!
Grilled Chipotle-Orange Salmon
Equipment
- 1 cedar grilling plank (we use 6" x 12" size)
- 1 spray bottle of water
Ingredients
- 1¾ pounds salmon fillet, with skin on and about 1" thick at the thickest area of the fillet
- 2 teaspoons finely-zested fresh orange zest (use a microplane zester)
- 1 teaspoon freshly squeezed orange juice
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
- ¼ teaspoon chipotle chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon cumin
- kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 6 ¼"-thick orange slices
- 4 orange wedges
Instructions
- 2 hours (or more) prior to grilling: Place cedar grilling plank in a 9'' x 13'' rimmed pan and add enough water to cover the plank by 1". Set a heavy mug or two on top of the plank to keep it submerged. Set aside.
- 30 minutes prior to grilling: Move plank to a large rimmed baking sheet. If needed, cut off ends of salmon fillet to allow about ½" bare space at each end of the plank. Place salmon on plank and, if needed, tuck the thinnest side flesh underneath the fillet a bit, to fit on the plank.
- In a small bowl, stir together orange zest and juice, olive oil, chipotle powder, and cumin. Then rub or brush all of this mixture over the top and sides of the salmon flesh. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to your liking. Top with orange slices.
- Preheat grill to medium-high, about 435° F.
- Once grill is hot, set plank with salmon directly onto the grill grates and shut grill. Cook for 20 minutes without opening the grill lid, to keep the cedar smoke inside the grill. Depending on your grill plank and grill heat, the plank will smoke and smolder, and possibly char and burn. We like to keep a spray bottle of water on hand if the plank wants to char/burn excessively – just give a few squirts to the plank (do not directly spray the salmon) if you need to tame some flame – or turn the heat down a bit – or move the plank to less direct heat.
- Depending on the size and thickness of the salmon, cook for roughly 30-35 minutes total, checking every 3-5 minutes after the initial 20-minute cook time. The salmon is done when the flesh is beautifully caramelized, and flakes easily when you insert a fork into the thickest part of the fillet. We find that it's difficult to over-cook salmon when grilling skin-on fillets, on a cedar plank – our goal is always caramelized flesh that yields delicious smoky flavor; we are rarely concerned about overcooked/dry salmon using this method.
- Use a large grilling spatula to carefully transfer the plank of salmon to a clean rimmed pan or platter, and serve the salmon straight from the plank – this makes for a fuss-free presentation and fun conversation piece at the table. Offer fresh orange wedges on the side, for squeezing over the top of individual portions.
Nutrition Information:
(This post was originally published in 2015, and remains one of my favorite grilling recipes. Photos and some of the text were updated in 2018.)
I’ve made this salmon so many times now! It’s truly my favorite recipe ever for salmon (and that’s saying a lot because I eat it 2-3x week!).
I love to hear this, Karen! Thank you so much for coming back here to let me know + rate the recipe. Happy New Year!
So delicious! Prepared the other night and May now be my favorite way to prepare/serve salmon.
So glad you like this, Patricia! Thank you for coming back to let me know! :)
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By the way, when I say “the salmon cooked beautifully,” mind you, it still didn’t carmelize and the oranges didn’t blacken or carmelize. However, the salmon was cooked through.
I made this camping last weekend over a wood fire. It didn’t turn out well. We soaked the plank over night with the beer and water. We had excellent salmon, all organic ingredients, high quality spices and followed the directions. Mine didn’t look anything like this. The salmon cooked beautifully, but the flavors just didn’t pop at all. Also, the “chipotle orange mixture” was very watery. I want to try it again for a special bachelorette weekend in a couple of weeks. Should I reduce the chipotle orange mixture down so it’s more like a glaze?
Hi Kate – I just had a conversation with my husband about this, as he usually does the grilling for this salmon. He suggested to soak the plank for less time, so it’s a bit drier and will smoke more on the grill. Also, were you cooking it at a high enough temp? Cooking over a wood fire would more than likely bring out some altered instructions from us – we have always used a gas grill for this recipe. As far as the chipotle orange mixture being watery, I would say to use less of the orange juice. I’d never describe it as “watery” when we make it, and I always think there’s a very nice amount of flavor. You could always add a bit more chipotle and cumin if you want those flavors more pronounced. Good luck!!