This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
This oven baked salmon is drizzled generously in a simple and delicious lemon cream sauce (classically known as lemon beurre blanc). The sauce will become your secret weapon for seafood recipes. It’s great with salmon, scallops, crab cakes and all kinds of fish. It is easy to make and brings so much amazing flavor.
We enjoyed salmon with lemon beurre blanc at our favorite fancy restaurant while celebrating the sale of our house. I knew at first bite that I had to recreate the recipe. For the $25.00 menu price of 1 serving, I could buy a whole salmon filet and feed the entire family!
Traditional beurre blanc recipes can be finicky if they aren’t done right but we found that using heavy cream makes it much more forgiving. It keeps the sauce from separating and allows for gentle reheating if you have leftovers.
As with any cream or butter based sauce, we recommend reheating over low heat, stirring frequently, just until hot and ready.
Notes: 2 lb of salmon serves 4 to 6 and 3 lb of salmon serves 6 to 8, depending on how you portion.
For Oven Roasted Salmon with Lemon Cream Sauce:
2 to 3 lb salmon fillet
salt and black pepper to taste
1 Tbsp olive oil for drizzling salmon
1 Tbsp parsley, finely chopped, to garnish
Ingredients for Sauce (Lemon Beurre Blanc)
1 small onion or 2 medium shallots, super finely diced (about 1/4 cup diced)
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (from 2 medium or 1 large lemons)
1/4 cup dry white wine (such as chardonnay or pino grigio)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup (8 Tbsp) cold unsalted butter cut into 8 pieces
How to Make Oven Baked Salmon with Lemon Cream Sauce:
1. Line rimmed baking sheet with foil or parchment paper. Arrange salmon skin-side-down, season with salt and pepper and drizzle the tops with oil. Bake uncovered at 425 for 10-15 min (depending on thickness of salmon) or until salmon is cooked through. My thick wild caught salmon took about 14 minutes.
2. In a small sauce pan, combine 1/4 cup finely diced onion, 1/4 cup lemon juice, 1/4 cup wine and simmer over medium heat until reduced to a thick mixture (7-8 min).
3. Whisk in 1/2 cup cream and as soon as it comes to a simmer, reduce to low heat and slowly whisk in the 8 Tbsp butter, one tablespoon at a time (whisking constantly). Add 1/4 tsp salt or to taste and remove from heat. Cover with a lid to keep warm until ready to serve.
Plate salmon and drizzle generously with the lemon sauce, garnish with freshly chopped parsley then serve your hungry dinner guests 🙂
This oven baked salmon pairs really well with fluffy white rice and asparagus. Now that’s one classy dinner!
Oven Baked Salmon with Lemon Cream Sauce

Ingredients
For Oven Baked Salmon with Lemon Cream Sauce:
- 2 to 3 lb salmon fillet
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 Tbsp olive oil for drizzling salmon
- 1 Tbsp parsley, finely chopped, to garnish
For the Lemon Cream Sauce:
- 1 small onion or 2 medium shallots, super finely diced (about 1/4 cup diced)
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice, from 2 medium or 1 large lemons
- 1/4 cup dry white wine, such as chardonnay or pino grigio
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 cup 8 Tbsp cold unsalted butter cut into 8 pieces
Instructions
- Line baking sheet with foil or parchment. Arrange salmon skin-side-down, season with salt and pepper and drizzle the tops with oil. Bake uncovered at 425 for 10-15 min (depending on thickness of salmon) or until salmon is cooked through. My thick wild caught salmon took 14 min.
- In a small sauce pan, combine 1/4 cup finely diced onion, 1/4 cup lemon juice, 1/4 cup wine and simmer over medium heat until reduced to a thick mixture (7-8 min).
- Whisk in 1/2 cup cream and as soon as it comes to a simmer, reduce to low heat and slowly whisk in the 8 Tbsp butter, one tablespoon at a time (whisking constantly). Add 1/4 tsp salt or to taste and remove from heat. Cover with a lid to keep warm until ready to serve.
- Plate salmon and drizzle generously with the lemon sauce, garnish with freshly chopped parsley then serve.
Notes
A 2 lb salmon serves 4 to 6 and a 3 lb salmon serves 6 to 8
Filed Under
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
Do you have a go-to recipe for dinner guests? Let me know in a comment below!
You CAN NOT put heavy cream into a mixture that has been on medium heat for nearly 10 minutes, or until it comes to a thick mixture, your cream will curdle. You will need to make sure your mixture is on low heat, or cooled down considerably. Other than the unclear directions, if you make it to this step the sauce is good.
Hi, I haven’t had any issues with curdling as adding the cream cools down the entire mixture so it wouldn’t curdle unless you brought it to a boil afterwards. Be sure just to bring it to a simmer.
I made this and it was EXCELLENT! No curdle problem at all. Best lemon cream sauce recipe that I’ve tried.
Thank you!!!
That’s just awesome, Julie!! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review 🙂
This was excellent. Also no curdling issues here. I thought the directions were super clear as all of your recipes always are. Thanks for the wonderful recipe Natasha
That’s so great, Lin!
I just used this for the sauce! A perfect walk-through for a perfect result. Thank you very much.
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it
The sauce curdled when I added in the cream as directed. I know that’s always a risk with dairy and lemon, but a note about the risk/some advice on how to avoid that would help! Was so sad to have to throw out the sauce.
Hi Vicky, it really helps if you make sure to simmer the sauce for the recommended time and whisk while adding the cream then be sure not to boil the cream but just bring it to a simmer. I hope that helps to troubleshoot!
This recipe is such a hit in our home. The sauce with shallots and white wine is beyond delicious. We were getting a little tired of salmon lately, but have been craving it more because of the sauce. Pairs perfectly with garlic Yukon gold potatoes. Thanks for making me seem like a good cook!
Sounds like you are a great cook! Thank you for sharing this awesome review with us!
Way too much lemon juice for the sauce. 2 or 3 tablespoons is plenty.
Hi David, when using fresh lemon juice and without any modifications, we didn’t find it to be overpowering, but you can add it to taste.
Question: how could this be made for a lactose intolerant person? ☹️
Hi Millicent, I honestly haven’t tried any substitutions like that – I’m not sure if something like ghee would work instead of butter but the consistency probably won’t be the same. If anyone else has tried, please let us know. In the mean time, I would highly highly recommend our most popular salmon recipe here.
I made this tonight. It was amazingly delicious!! The salmon was perfectly cooked and the sauce was divine. This recipe is definitely a keeper!!
YAY! I’m happy to hear you enjoy the recipe as much as I do. Thanks for sharing your excellent review Heather!
What can I use instead of wine?
Thank you.
Hi Kendra, I haven’t tried anything else but I do think white wine is important to get the right flavors in this recipe. I suppose the next best thing would be broth.
A family favorite meal! I have a picky eater that does not like salmon or asparagus, but he devours this ❤️
I’m glad the recipe is “picky eater” approved! Thanks for sharing your great review Juli!
I have been meaning to send a message to you about this recipe for the last several weeks to say THANK YOU 🙂 It is easy & SO good! I literally make this EVERY Saturday night (when we’re home) for my husband & me. FYI, I bake the salmon fillets at about 400 for 15 minutes, which turns out perfectly. I’ve tried other recipes of yours, too. You’re awesome ~ Thank you so much!
I’m happy to hear you both love the recipe Cindi! Thanks for following and sharing your excellent review!
I just rec’d the email with your Easy Chicken Kiev Video! Oo-la-la…looks so good 🙂 I cannot wait to try it! Btw, you are just adorable on your videos, too. Your sunny personality is inspiring ☼
I hope you love that recipe Cindi! Thanks for following and sharing your sweet comments!
I love this sauce. It smells so good when it’s cooking. I have made it several times and have tried adjusting cooking times and amounts of ingredients, but I can never get it to thicken up. On the picture above it looks more like a glaze, like there is a thickness to it, but mine looks like a sauce and is runny. Is there anything I can do? As I stated I have tried to use less heavy cream, half the amount of butter, longer reduction times on the wine, but I can’t get it to thicken to the consistency that it looks like in the above photo. Any tips would be great!
Hi Matt, I’m so glad you love the sauce! The cristical step for the consistency is step 3. “Whisk in 1/2 cup cream and as soon as it comes to a simmer, reduce to low heat and slowly whisk in the 8 Tbsp butter, one tablespoon at a time (whisking constantly). Add 1/4 tsp salt or to taste and remove from heat.” When you are adding the butter, reduce the heat to the lowest setting and patiently whisk in the butter. If the butter goes in at too high of heat, it will be runny but if the butter dissolves slowly into the sauce rather than melting quickly, it will be thicker and richer 🙂
Made this last night.. the sauce was wonderful! Creamy and lemony. The salmon was PERFECT at 14 minutes. Thanks for the recipe!
You’re welcome Staci! I’m glad you love the recipe. Thanks for sharing your excellent review!
I used wild salmon steaks for this recipe but it turned out hard and chewy not soft ((
Hi Olga, that could occur with over-baking. Often wild salmon stakes are thinner than farmed salmon so they require less baking time. Also, make sure you are using a conventional oven bake mode (not convection). I hope that helps for next time!
I’ve tried your recipes with farmed sallmon and they turned out delucious but they seem not work for wild ones….and they weren’t thin.
Hi Olga, from what I’ve read, wild salmon is less fattier than farmed salmon so it is not as forgiving if it is overcooked. Here is a helpful article on cooking farmed vs wild caught salmon.
I made this tonight with asparagus and white rice — I loved it! You’re the best
Thank you Fatima! I’m so happy you enjoyed that!
would this sauce this good with sable fish or halibut?
Hi Margriet, I haven’t tried it on those types of fish but I do think it would work for a variety of fish. I hope you love it! 🙂
Love this recipe!
I’m glad to hear that Eleni! Thanks for sharing!
Do you have any tips on selecting chards? Should I select a chard that expressly mentions lemon or citrus on the back label? Should these be the first flavors mentioned or is it enough that the description ends with “hint of lemon/citrus?” What if the label doesn’t mention lemon or citrus at all but notes like apple, vanilla, pineapple, peach, pear and other non-lemon/citrus flavors? May I use an unoaked chard? I am so confused. Am I over-thinking this? Should I simply close my eyes and randomly pick any old $6 to $10 chard? Please, help.
Hi Emily, I’m not sure where the chard question is coming from or your reference to a label with citrus? Did I miss something? I would suggest googling or doing a youtube search so you can have a visual of how to select chard.
Hi Natasha, I was referring to the labels on wine bottles, which describe each wine’s flavor profile. Some of the flavors mentioned, like apple, vanilla, pear, peach, etc., seem like they would conflict with the lemon flavor we are trying to achieve with the sauce. The bottle of chard pictured in this blog lists apple and vanilla notes on its back label — I checked its website — so I think I’ll go with that and hope those flavors somehow enhance the lemon flavor of the sauce.
Oh my goodness I thought you were asking about chard, like the vegetable greens so I was completely confused!! LOL. It’s been a busy day! 😉 I haven’t tested them all but I think pretty much any drinkable chardonnay would work here :).
I want to make this ahead. Would it work to reheat after being refrigerated?
Adriana, I think this recipe is best fresh. If reheating, heat the sauce slowly so the consistency won’t break.
May I substitute another liquid (e.g., low sodium chicken broth or water) for the white wine? I too am a novice that has never cooked with white wine. I am a bit nervous about trying.
Hi Emily, I haven’t tested it that way so it is difficult to guess, but if you wanted to omit the white wine, you could probably use broth and cook it down the same way you would the wine. I probably would not double the lemon juice or it would overwhelm the sauce.
I am a very novice cook, but this turned out great. The first time I reduced in a recipe! Thanks.
You’re welcome Tim! I’m glad to hear the recipe is a success! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Just finished this fabulous recipe!
Everything about it is wonderful.
Added a little bit of minced garlic with the onion and sautéed both before adding lemon and wine.
Just fantastic. Thank you, Natasha!
You are very welcome Jan and thank you for the nice review! 😬