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Three pieces of baked salmon fillet garnished with chopped herbs, served on a plate with lemon wedges and fresh greens.
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Tandoori Salmon Recipe

This is the salmon that transports you somewhere far away and exotic. Bold spice, yogurt marinade, and a broiler finish that earns the word tandoori.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Rest2 minutes
Total Time27 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Indian
Servings: 4 servings (1 fillet per person)
Calories: 265kcal
Author: Abi Gunasekaran

Ingredients

For the Marinade

  • 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
  • 1 teaspoon garlic, grated
  • 1 tablespoon Kashmiri chili powder (or smoked paprika)
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
  • 1 teaspoon garam masala
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil

For the Salmon

  • 4 salmon fillets (5-6 oz each, skin-on)
  • Lemon wedges to serve
  • Fresh cilantro, chopped to garnish

Instructions

Dry the Salmon

  • Pat fillets thoroughly dry with paper towels. Dry fish browns; wet fish steams.

Make the Marinade

  • Whisk yogurt, lemon juice, ginger, garlic, Kashmiri chili, coriander, garam masala, salt, cumin, turmeric, and oil until smooth and uniformly colored.
    A bowl of creamy, light brown tandoori sauce with a spoon, surrounded by lemon halves, a bottle of oil, cilantro, and a green cloth.

Marinate

  • Coat salmon in marinade, pressing into top and sides. Avoid thick coating on skin. Marinate 15-30 minutes at room temperature or up to 4 hours refrigerated.
    A plate with four pieces of salmon coated in a spiced marinade, next to a halved lemon, a glass container of oil, fresh cilantro, and a green cloth.

Prep the Oven

  • Heat oven to 425°F. Line baking sheet with foil, set a lightly greased wire rack on top.

Bake

  • Place salmon skin-side down on rack. Bake 10-12 minutes until just opaque (125-130°F for medium, 135-145°F for well-done).
    Four salmon fillets coated with a tandoori marinade mixture are placed on a wire rack over a foil-lined baking sheet, with halves of lemon, parsley, and a glass of oil nearby.

Broil for Char

  • Switch to broil (high). Move rack to second-highest position. Broil 3-4 minutes until marinade blisters and edges char. Watch closely.
    Four cooked salmon fillets on a wire rack over a foil-lined baking sheet, with lemon halves and fresh herbs nearby.

Rest and Serve

  • Rest 2 minutes. Finish with fresh lemon and cilantro.

Notes

  • Do not marinate beyond 4 hours: acid softens the fish texture.
  • Pull at 125-130°F: carryover brings it up 3-5°F during rest.
  • A wire rack is essential for char - don't skip it.

How to Grill Tandoori Salmon 

Gas Grill Preheat all burners to high for 10 minutes, then drop to medium-high. Oil the grates well - the yogurt marinade will stick to anything less than a properly seasoned, screaming-hot grate. Place salmon skin-side down over direct heat, close the lid, and cook 4-5 minutes. Flip once, then cook for 2-3 minutes on the flesh side until it reaches 125-130°F internal. The closed lid creates radiant heat from above and below  (that's your tandoor effect on gas grills). Don't move the fish until it releases cleanly on its own.
Charcoal Grill Build a two-zone fire with a full chimney of lump charcoal banked to one side. Let it ash over fully before the salmon goes on — you want glowing coals, not flames, or the marinade burns before the fish cooks through. Add a chunk of apple or cherry wood directly on the coals for smoke that the oven version can't touch. Cook skin-side down over direct heat 4-5 minutes with the lid on, flip, 2-3 minutes. The char will be more aggressive than the broiler version. That's the point. Pull at 125-130°F.
Kamado (Big Green Egg, Kamado Joe, etc.) Run your grill hot - around 500°F with the direct heat setup and cast iron grates if you have them. The ceramic holds heat so evenly that the cook is faster than it feels: 3-4 minutes skin-side down, flip, 2-3 minutes. Don't lift the lid to check until the 3-minute mark, or you'll bleed the heat. The kamado runs moister than a standard charcoal setup, which keeps the interior silky even at high heat. A single chunk of fruitwood on the lump is enough — the spice marinade is doing most of the flavor work and you don't want smoke competing with Kashmiri chili.
All grill methods: marinate the same way (15-30 min, max 4 hours), pat dry before coating, skip the wire rack. The grates are doing that job. Cilantro yogurt sauce still goes on cold right after the rest - the contrast is even more important when the char is this aggressive.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 265kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Protein: 37g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.003g | Cholesterol: 95mg | Sodium: 667mg | Potassium: 899mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 76IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 59mg | Iron: 2mg