Salmon with Spinach Poblano Cream Sauce

Perfectly seared salmon with spinach cream sauce is a restaurant quality seafood entree that can be easily made at home in just one skillet.

With perfectly seared salmon fillets nestled in a bed of creamy poblano spinach sauce, you might think this recipe is deliciously decadent and rich. But surprisingly, it’s not that decadent at all because the creamy sauce is made with milk, not heavy cream. And it’s a seriously easy recipe to make!

You’ll love how flavorful the sauce is with chopped poblanos, onions, fresh cilantro, and spinach. We’ve found that poblano peppers vary a lot; they can be sweet with very little heat or quite spicy. They’re so good roasted, too, especially in this poblano queso dip or this southwestern farro salad! You won’t have to roast the poblanos for this salmon recipe, though, the peppers are simply sauteéd with onions and garlic. 

Serve the salmon and spinach sauce simply with warm crusty bread and dipping sauce, or with pasta, jasmine rice, or mashed potatoes. It has plenty of vegetables so you really don’t need a veggie side. Get ready for oohs and aahs because it’s a pretty amazing dinner! 

Ingredients You’ll Need

• Salmon Fillets: Both skinless or skin-on fillets are fine. A single serving of salmon is 4 oz. so you’ll need at least 16 oz. to serve 4 people.
• Oil and Butter: Combining oil and butter for sautéing gives you all the flavor of butter but the addition of oil prevents it from burning.
• Poblano Peppers, Onions, Garlic: This trio of aromatics is a flavor powerhouse. I’ve found that poblanos can range from mild to slightly spicy. If you’d prefer something without heat, try using sweet bell peppers.
• Spinach: Lots of it! We recommend fresh baby spinach because it has the best flavor. If you’re in a pinch, you can use frozen spinach but make sure to drain and press all the liquid out of it.
• Fresh Cilantro: We love the fresh flavor of cilantro, but if you have family members who think it tastes like soap, you can skip it.
• Milk & Flour: This sauce is milk-based and the flour thickens it. Skim milk isn’t the best choice in this recipe as it has a higher tendency to curdle. Opt for 2% or whole milk if you can.
• Lemon Wedges: A squeeze of lemon juice brightens up the flavor.

How To Make This Recipe

Prep ingredients: Select a good sized heavy skillet to prepare this salmon dish. You’ll need about 15 minutes to prep and 30 minutes to cook this recipe.

Rinse the salmon fillets, pat them dry, and season liberally with salt and pepper, or a seasoning of your choice. Prep the onions, peppers, spinach, and cilantro, and measure out the milk and flour so that once you get started cooking, you can quickly move along.

Sear salmon: Get the skillet good and hot! Add oil and sear the salmon, skin side up, until the surface is browned and crispy, about four minutes. The salmon should release from the pan fairly easily. If not, cook it an additional minute before flipping it. Brown the skin side and remove the salmon to a plate. Cooking time will depend on the thickness of your fillets.

Let the salmon rest, lightly covered with foil, while you make the sauce. Don’t cover it tightly because steam will form on the underside of the foil, and the salmon will lose that nice crisp exterior.

Sauté the peppers, onions, and garlic. Wipe out the skillet with paper towels. Sauté the veggies until they begin to soften, throw in a little garlic, and then add a couple tablespoons of flour. Stir it around a minute so it coats the vegetables and cooks a little bit. The flour will act as a thickener for the sauce. 

Finish up. Add the milk, bringing it to a simmer. It won’t take long, just a minute or so. Add handfuls of spinach and chopped fresh cilantro and cook, stirring, until the spinach wilts, and dinner is ready! Really, wasn’t that easy? Hope you have the table set because dinner’s on. 

Serve. Spoon the creamy spinach into four shallow bowls or plates. Nestle a salmon fillet in each, and garnish with a wedge of lemon. A squeeze of lemon over the salmon really enhances the flavor, with just a bit of acidity to offset the richness. So good!

Change It Up

• Substitute bell peppers or mushrooms. Don’t care for poblanos? This recipe is great with red or green bell peppers, too. Or leave the peppers out and use mushrooms instead.
• Make it paleo/low carb: Simply replace flour with an alternative thickener such as arrowroot or tapioca flour. You’ll need 3 to 4 teaspoons. 
• Add a splash of dry white wine. Add ⅓ cup of white wine to the skillet after sautéing the onions, peppers, and garlic. Cook over medium high heat for a couple of minutes, until the wine is reduced by at least half. Enjoy a glass of wine with dinner!
• Looking for more of a Tuscan style with creamy spinach and tomatoes? Try Creamy Garlic Tuscan Salmon from Eat Well 101. It looks delicious!
• Like the idea of lemon and spinach in a creamy dish? Be sure to try my creamy lemon orzo recipe. It’s amazing!

Storage & Reheating Tips

• Refrigerate: This salmon recipe is best served immediately but leftover salmon isn’t bad either. Store, tightly covered, in the fridge for up to 2 days. I don’t recommend freezing leftovers because the sauce is likely to separate when thawed.
• Reheat: Individual portions can be reheated in the microwave for 30 to 60 seconds until warmed through. Don’t overheat or the salmon will become tough and dry. Alternatively, cut the salmon into chunks and mix it into the sauce for more even heat distribution.

Interested in a weekly meal plan (it’s free!) that includes this salmon recipe? Take a look at my Meal Plan #31. You’ll find a wholesome recipe for each weekday plus a categorized grocery list. Let me do the planning for you this week! 

We’ll be adding a new meal plan weekly. If you’re interested, browse all of our meal plans.

More salmon recipes

I’d have to say that salmon is my favorite seafood. It’s quite affordable and so versatile: it can be baked, roasted, grilled, sauteéd, or even air fried. Try:

• Parmesan and Almond Crusted Salmon
• Air Fryer Salmon (this is one of my favorite ways to prepare salmon!)
• Salmon with Tomatoes & Fennel —  a sheet pan meal
• Slow Roasted Salmon with Lemon Pepper — you won’t believe how easy and good this baked salmon is!
• Grilled Salmon in Foil with Garlic Butter
• Soy Glazed Salmon Recipe
• Baked Salmon with Maple Mustard Glaze (5 ingredient recipe that’s one of my most popular recipes)
• Best Grilled Salmon Recipe and Marinade
• Salmon and Asparagus Sheet Pan Dinner with Potatoes — a one pan dinner.
• Salmon with Thai Curry Peanut Sauce from How Sweet Eats sounds really fabulous, too, if we could have peanuts in our house. 
• Salmon and Vegetable Stir Fry from Busy Cooks is another great combo of salmon and veggies!

Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @rachelcooksblog on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!

Recipe

Get the Recipe: Salmon with Spinach Cream Sauce Recipe

4.89 from 9 votes

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Cook Time: 30 minutes mins

Total Time: 45 minutes mins

4 servings

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Perfectly seared salmon with spinach cream sauce is a restaurant quality seafood entree that can be easily made at home in just one skillet.

Ingredients

Salmon

• ▢ 4 salmon fillets (4 oz. each)
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
• ▢ Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• ▢ 2 tablespoons grapeseed or avocado oil (high smoke point)

Sauce

• ▢ 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ▢ 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• ▢ 2 poblano peppers, diced (about 1 ½ cups)
• ▢ ½ large onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
• ▢ ½ teaspoon salt
• ▢ 2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
• ▢ 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• ▢ 1 ½ cups milk (use either whole milk or 2%)
• ▢ 5 oz. spinach, roughly chopped
• ▢ ½ cup roughly chopped cilantro leaves and stems
• ▢ Lemon wedges, for serving

Instructions

For salmon:

• Rinse and dry salmon fillets. Season with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. When pan is hot, add salmon skin side up. Sear for 4 to 5 minutes, flip, and sear 2 to 4 minutes or until salmon reaches internal temperature of 135°F.
• Turn off heat, remove salmon from pan to a clean plate, and cover lightly with foil. Using paper towels, wipe pan clean.

For sauce:

• Heat same skillet over medium heat; add olive oil and butter. When butter is melted, add poblanos, onions, and ¼ teaspoon salt. Sauté 10 minutes, or until softened. 
• Add garlic, sauté, stirring constantly, for 1 minute or until garlic is fragrant.
• Add flour, stir and cook for one minute. Vegetables will be coated with flour.
• Slowly whisk in milk, stirring constantly. Bring to a simmer; cook and stir for 1 minute, or until thickened.
• Add spinach and cilantro, stirring constantly until spinach is wilted.
• To serve, divide creamy spinach mixture onto 4 plates or shallow bowls, and nestle one salmon fillet in each serving. Serve immediately, garnished with a wedge of lemon.

Notes

• Substitute bell peppers or mushrooms for the poblanos, if desired.
• Leftovers can be gently reheated in the microwave. Overheating may cause the salmon to become dry and the sauce may separate.

Nutrition Information

Calories: 445kcal, Carbohydrates: 13g, Protein: 39g, Fat: 26g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 10g, Monounsaturated Fat: 9g, Trans Fat: 0.2g, Cholesterol: 108mg, Sodium: 584mg, Potassium: 1300mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 7g, Vitamin A: 3924IU, Vitamin C: 60mg, Calcium: 177mg, Iron: 3mg

This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.

© Author: Rachel Gurk

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