Sea or kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
Optional aromatics: lemon or orange slices; fresh herbs like parsley, dill, chives, and/or basil; thinly sliced shallots or green onions; thinly sliced fennel, etc.
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 250℉, and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or foil. Place the salmon on the baking sheet, skin side down, and rub the fish all over with the olive oil. Season well with salt and pepper. Option: If desired, you may place a layer of the thinly sliced aromatics-choose one or several-under the salmon prior to roasting. This will infuse a little extra flavor into the fish as it cooks.
Bake the salmon until it is opaque on the outside and just barely cooked through the center, 20 to 25 minutes. The internal temperature should read 120℉-or just cut into the thick end and peek inside. (Tip: When cooking leaner wild salmon fillets like Sockeye, I have found the time to be right at 20 minutes, give or take a minute or two. Extra time will likely be needed for farmed and thick wild fillets; simply cook until the fish registers an internal temperature of 120℉.)
Let stand for 5 minutes before serving. Serve as is or with your choice of citrus wedges or any of your favorite salsas or sauces.
Notes
*I prefer to give the salmon time to come to room temperature (or close to it) before cooking. Often, however, there just isn't time so I cook it straight from the refrigerator. The primary differences are a small difference in cooking time and you may notice a little more albumin, which is the harmless white stuff (actually a liquid protein in the fish that becomes semi-solid when cooked) that often appears on the exterior of the cooked salmon.