BBQ salmon with charred spring onion and saffron butter recipe

Bring the joy of a beach-shack supper to your back garden with this easy barbecued fish.

By The Good Housekeeping Cookery TeamPublished: 11 July 2025

David Loftus

Meaty fish, such as salmon or monkfish, work a treat on a barbecue and are also relatively quick to cook. Once the salmon side is barbecued to perfection, simply transfer to a board and let everyone tuck in.

Advertisement - Continue Reading Below

Yields:

4 - 6 serving(s)

Prep Time:

12 mins

Cook Time:

23 mins

Total Time:

35 mins

Cal/Serv:

412

Ingredients

3 Tbsp.
olive oil, plus extra to grease
1 1/2 Tbsp.
chopped fresh dill
Whole skin-on salmon side, about 800g
2
bunches spring onions, trimmed
Finely grated zest and juice 1/2 orange, keep separate
Large pinch saffron
100 g
salted butter, softened
2
smoked garlic cloves, crushed

Directions

1. Step 1Mix 2tbsp oil with the dill and plenty of seasoning and rub over the flesh of the salmon. Chill until ready to cook.
2. Step 2Prepare the BBQ for indirect cooking, with the hot coals to one side of the grill. Toss the spring onions with the remaining olive oil and cook over indirect heat for about 6-8min, or until a little charred and soft. Remove from heat and leave to cool, then finely chop.
3. Step 3In a small pan, or in a bowl in the microwave, warm the orange juice. Add the saffron and leave to steep in the juice until cooled. Add the softened butter along with the orange zest, crushed garlic and chopped spring onions and mix well. Season and set aside.
4. Step 4Oil a fish basket and place the marinated salmon fillet inside. Cook over direct heat, skin-side down, for about 5min, then flip over and continue to cook over indirect heat for about 8min, until just cooked. Dollop about 1/2 the spring onion butter (see GH tip) over the top of the salmon and leave to cook for another 2min, until the butter melts. Remove from the barbecue and transfer to a board to serve.

GH tip
Leftover butter is also great with grilled chicken or pork. You can also melt it over just-boiled potatoes for a warm potato salad.

For potato salad inspiration, check out our best potato salad recipes.

If you like this recipe, you'll love our BBQ Piri-piri sardines.

Per serving (if serving 6):

Calories: 412
Protein: 28g
Fat: 32g
Saturates: 9g
Carbs: 2g
Sugars: 2g
Fibre: 1g

Our best ever BBQ recipes - it's time to get your grill on!

tomahawak steak with whipped blue cheese butter

The Good Housekeeping Cookery Team

An experienced and highly skilled team of food writers, stylists and digital content producers, the Good Housekeeping Cookery Team is a close-knit squad of food obsessives. Cookery Editor Emma Franklin is our resident chilli obsessive and barbecue expert, who spends an inordinate amount of time on holidays poking round the local supermarkets seeking out new and exciting foods. Senior Cookery Writer Alice Shields is a former pastry chef and baking fanatic who loves making bread and would have peanut butter with everything if she could. Her favourite carb is pasta, and our vibrant green spaghetti is her weeknight go-to. Lover of all things savoury, Senior Cookery Writer Grace Evans can be found eating crispy corn and nocellara olives at every opportunity, and will take the cheeseboard over dessert any time (though she cannot resist a slice of tres leches cake). With a wealth of professional kitchen know-how, culinary training and years of experience between them, they are all dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work (and if they don’t – we’ll have the answer for why*) every time (*90% of the time the answer is: “buy an separate oven thermometer”!).

Recipe bySarah Akhurst

Kitchen and Homes Director

Sarah is Good Housekeeping's Kitchen and Homes Director, looking after all things food and homes for the brand. Sarah started her career in journalism, then retrained as a chef 15 years ago following a lifelong dream to work in food. Since retraining, she has worked as a private chef, assisted on tv commercials, created recipes for some of the country's leading brands and became the go-to birthday and wedding cake baker in her friends and family network. In 2025, she was shortlisted for Cookery Writer of the Year by the Guild of Food Writers

Watch Next