When it comes to stuffed salmon, my salmon stuffed with crabmeat, spinach, and cream cheese is an over-the-top delicious and restaurant-style dish you can easily make in your home kitchen. Trust me, it takes salmon to a whole new level!
Since discovering Northwest Wild Caught Salmon, I’ve been having fun finding different ways to prepare and enjoy this lovely fish. I was lucky enough to pick up some nice sockeye salmon at Sam’s Club.
*You will also find that many grocery stores now carry sustainably caught sockeye salmon.
What do you need to make Crabmeat Stuffed Salmon?
Let’s start by gathering the ingredients we need to make my Stuffed Salmon. In Chef Speak, this is called the Mise en Place, which translates into Everything in its Place.
Not only does setting your ingredients up ahead of time speed the cooking process, but it also helps ensure you have everything you need to make the dish.
*If your salmon has any skin on it, use a sharp knife or paring knife to remove the skin.
What type of salmon can you use for this recipe?
I used Sockeye my salmon recipe and always try to find Pacific Salmon for my recipes.
You can, of course, use any salmon you have available in your markets. Coho (silvers) and King (chinook) are two of my other favorites.
Atlantic salmon is more plentiful and usually less expensive and can also be used. I prefer wild-caught fish to farmed seafood.
*Farmed salmon is much higher in fat, containing slightly more omega-3s, much more omega-6 and three times the amount of saturated fat. It also has 46% more calories — mostly from fat. Conversely, wild salmon is higher in minerals, including potassium, zinc and iron.
Can I use Frozen Salmon for this dish?
You sure can. Fresh salmon is great if you can find it, but if not frozen is the next best thing. Just make sure to let the salmon fully thaw before you stuff it.
*These days, I buy Alaskan Salmon, shipped directly from the supplier in Alaska, and it’s always shipped frozen.
What type of cream cheese should I use for the stuffing?
The first time I made this recipe, I used whipped cream cheese. I found that to be a mistake as it did not hold up as well as I thought it should. I made the Stuffed Salmon again using regular cream cheese and also added in shredded mozzarella, which gave the dish a better overall appearance and taste.
In a bowl, add the cream cheese, mayonnaise, beaten egg and old bay seasoning. Mix well, but it’s okay if it has some lumps in it.
Then fold in the spinach, roasted red peppers, mozzarella, and crabmeat.
Chef Dennis Tip:
Pull the spinach apart or mix it into the cream cheese mixture first. It has a tendency to clump together.
Mix all the ingredients together as gently as possible so you don’t break up the crabmeat too much.
Refrigerate the mixture for 30 minutes to let it firm up. If for some reason the mixture is too loose, add some bread crumbs to help hold it together.
Can I use other cheese in the stuffing?
I added shredded mozzarella because of its binding properties, but cheddar, swiss or your favorite cheese could be used instead of the mozzarella.
Season the salmon fillets with sea salt and black pepper.
Add the crabmeat stuffing on top of the salmon fillet. Sprinkle the top of the stuffing with panko bread crumbs (or any bread crumbs you have on hand).
*You could also sprinkle a little parmesan cheese if you want some added flavor.
Place the salmon on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper on the center rack of a preheated 350 degrees oven for 18 – 20 minutes.
Can I use this topping with other fish?
You sure can. This topping would work well on just about any white flaky fish. Flounder, cod, and halibut would also work well. The only fish I wouldn’t try to stuff would be tuna or swordfish.
My creamy stuffed salmon is a great way to turn an ordinary night into a special occasion. It’s also the perfect dish for entertaining as it can be made up ahead of time and cooked before your guests arrive.
You may also try stuffing a whole side of salmon and roasting it for a buffet. It will look spectacular! Serve it with a squeeze of lemon juice, lemon wedges or grated lemon zest and enjoy.
Recipe FAQ’s:
Bake salmon, uncovered, 4 to 6 minutes per ½-inch thickness. It’s best to undercook salmon so always check at the minimum time to make sure the salmon isn’t overcooked.
Fresh herbs are the best way to enhance salmon without overpowering it.
A coating of breadcrumbs will add a crunchy texture and flavor.
Using compound butter on salmon will help create a delicious flavor profile.
Marinating salmon will help develop rich flavors.
A glaze (like a balsamic glaze) is another easy way to add flavor to salmon.
More Salmon Recipes You’ll Love!
Baked Stuffed Salmon with Crabmeat and Spinach
Ingredients
- 24 ounces salmon fillets four fillets 6 ounces each, skin off
- 8 ounces crabmeat drained well lump, claw or backfin
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened use regular not whipped
- 1 large egg whipped
- 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
- ½ cup cooked baby spinach with excess liquid squeezed out
- 1 tablespoon roasted red peppers diced (or fresh red pepper)
- ½ cup mozzarella cheese shredded (or your favorite cheese)
- 1 teaspoon old bay
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt adjust to taste
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper adjust to taste
- 2 tablespoons panko bread crumbs or whatever type of bread crumb you prefer
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- cook spinach in a little bit of water till fully cooked, take off the heat and allow to cool
- When spinach is cool squeeze out all of the water from the spinach (excess water will make the stuffing loose)
- in a mixing bowl add in the softened cream cheese, mayonnaise, egg and old bay seasoning. Whip together until well blended.
- fold in the spinach, roasted peppers, shredded mozzarella and crab meat (make sure crab meat has been well-drained, squeezing out any excess water). Mix gently and if the mixture is too loose you may add a little bread crumb to tighten it up.
- place salmon on a baking sheet and season with salt and pepper
- portion stuffing out and place on top of salmon fillet, then sprinkle breadcrumbs on top.
- pour a little water on the baking dish to help keep the salmon moist while it's cooking
- cook salmon at 350 degrees for 18-22 minutes. salmon should be done but not overcooked
- serve with your favorite sides
Eyvonne
Omg, this recipe is great, added extra (shrimp & mushrooms)
Billy
Could this recipe be changed for a grill. Along with actual stuffing the salmon.
Chef Dennis Littley
you could place the stuffing in a center pocket of the salmon (it won’t take as much) and cook it on the grill. It’s going to get very messy if you aren’t really careful. I would probably do it on a pan on top of the grill to make it easier to turn and keep it more stable.
Tiya
I’m going to follow this recipe for our 14thanniversary dinner
Tiffany
I love this dish, especially with the crab stuffing on top. I used wild king salmon. I was wondering if you have you ever tried making this in a puffed pastry (salmon Wellington style)?
Chef Dennis Littley
hi Tiffany
I actually just posted a Salmon Wellington type dish called a Coulibiac of Salmon -> https://www.askchefdennis.com/coulibiac-of-salmon/
I used to do a crab imperial stuffed salmon (with the stuffing in the middle of the salmon) wrapped in puff dough. It was a big hit at the restaurants I worked at.
Joe c.
Hi
I’m going to try your cream cheese crabmeat salmon
Can I stuff the actual salmon rather than place stuffing on top of it
Thanks
Also I have 2 small lobster tails I would like to stuff any special trick to it
Joe
Chef Dennis Littley
hi Joe
yes you can definitely make a pocket and stuff the salmon. You probably won’t get as much in as you would on top. Season the top of the salmon and bake the same way as in the recipe.
If you want to stuff the tails with the same stuffing just mound it on top and cook the same as the salmon.
Tanya
I tried your recipe and made the dish Salmon stuffed with crabmeat for my fiance’s Birthday. The dish was spectacular! To hear him while eating saying mmm. This is Delicious! Thank you I will continue following your recipe’s. We truly enjoyed it.
Chef Dennis Littley
Thanks for the great review and comment Tanya, I’m very happy to hear you enjoyed my recipe. I hope you find more to try!
Becca
Hi! These are delicious by the way. I was just wondering if these can be frozen if they’re vacuum sealed and frozen appropriately. I usually just eat them over a 2-3 day time frame because I wasn’t sure if they could be frozen.
Chef Dennis Littley
hi Becca
you can freeze these, but with seafood you risk overcooking them. I would suggest freezing before you cook them if you’d like to save them for another day.
ALISA JOHNSON
Because of the cream cheese, how would you reheat this dish?
Chef Dennis Littley
The cream cheese is bound to the other ingredients, so reheat covered in the oven with some water in the pan, or stovetop in a covered pan with water to create steam and keep the fish moist.
Joseph Gerard
I have the prepare a Coho Salmon in the refrigerator, ready to bake.
It will be there overnight for tomorrow’s dinner.
Instead of using Just crab, I also added finely diced Lobster and Shrimp. Par-cooked each.
Substituted Smoke white cheddar and Gouda cheese.
The Salmon was about 1.5 lbs, fairly thin, so I just butterflied the thicker meat. I piped in the stuffing to keep the thin meat from tearing. Rolled into a log. Piped the remaining filling on top. Worked quite well.
We’ll see how it tastes tomorrow.
Thank you for the great ‘core’ recipe!
Stella
Easy to make, and can be adjusted to add lobster Char and shrimp as a variety.
Loved it
Amy
Hi, I have a whole fish (wild caught in Alaska and currently frozen). Any thoughts on how to adapt this recipe for a whole fish?
Chef Dennis Littley
You can most certainly roast each half with the stuffing mounded on top of the length of each side. Season the sides well with sea salt and black pepper before adding the stuffing and place the sides into the oven on a sheet pan with a little water on the pan. Cooking times shouldn’t be much longer than normal you just want to check the stuffing with a meat thermometer to make sure it reached 165 degrees. It should make a spectacular presentation.
Andrew Smith
Great idea which I enhanced by wrapping this in puff pastry and baking at 400 deg for 30 minutes. Some pink peppercorns added a je ne sais quoi to the flavors. Tried it by using shrimp instead of crab and this proved to leave the salmon flavor as dominant over the crab which kind of took over the flavor profile.
Chef Dennis Littley
sounds like a delicious adaptation Andrew, thanks for sharing and for the great review!
Justin
So tasty!! Just like the description says, this is a restaurant quality dish that can be easily made at home! The entire family loved it!
Chef Dennis Littley
I’m happy to hear you enjoyed my recipe Justin and thanks for the great review!
Kenneth Fechtler
Fallow the recipe as written. Came out great. Going to try cod next.
Chef Dennis Littley
I’m happy to hear that you enjoyed the recipe, Kenneth, thanks for the great review!
Swathi
This looks delicious I haven’t tried stuffed salmon with cream cheese. Need to try my son love salmon
Brianna
This sounds fabulous! I never thought about combining the two, I’d love to try it!