20-Minute BBQ Salmon in Foil

Name: 20-Minute BBQ Salmon in Foil
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 4 1/4 lb salmon filets (or 1 lb. salmon cut into 4 pieces); 4 cups green beans (snipped); 2 tbsp barbecue sauce; 2 tbsp olive oil; 2 cloves garlic (minced); salt and pepper

by Hannah Magee, RD on Aug 17, 2023 0 comments »

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20 minutes is all you need to make tender and flaky grilled salmon in foil. Paired with delicious green beans, this recipe for BBQ salmon in foil requires only 5 simple ingredients and some easy aluminum foil packets. Serve with rice, potatoes, or salad for a quick, easy, and healthy dinner meal.

salmon and green beans in an open foil pack

Why You’ll Love BBQ Salmon in Foil:

Cooking salmon on the BBQ can not get easier than this! This easy grilled salmon recipe requires only 5 ingredients, some aluminum foil, and 20 minutes of your time. That’s it!

This recipe is great for seasoned cooks and beginners alike. I know that fish and shellfish recipes can be intimidating, but this one is foolproof. It makes the most tender and flaky BBQ salmon every time.

This recipe for grilled salmon in foil was inspired by my Lemon Butter Haddock in Foil which has been a popular recipe here on my blog for a while now. Instead of white fish, we use juicy salmon that’s rich in a variety of important nutrients. Ah, it makes my dietitian heart sing!

Salmon Health Benefits:

Being a Registered Dietitian, I cannot glaze over the fact that salmon is really nutritious. Here’s why:

Omega-3s: Salmon is rich in essential fatty acids, particularly EPA(eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid). These two types of omega-3s benefit heart and brain health, and can only be found in a handful of food sources.
Vitamin D: Salmon is also one of the very few food sources of vitamin D! Vitamin D is important for a variety of reasons, including maintaining good bone health and a strong immune system.
Vitamin B6 and B12: It’s also a good source of important B vitamins, including vitamins B6 and B12.
Protein: In addition to its fatty acid and micronutrient content, fish and shellfish (including salmon) are great sources of high-quality protein. Protein not only supports a variety of important body functions, it also helps to keep you feeling full after eating.

If you want to increase your intake of omega-3s (particularly DHA and EPA!), try these other delicious salmon recipes: Restaurant-Style Grilled Maple Salmon Salad and 10-Minute Healthy Canned Salmon Salad.

Cooking Salmon on the Grill:

In my opinion, the best way to grill salmon is in a foil packet! The heat in the aluminum foil helps to steam the fish (and the veggies), creating the most tender, flaky piece of salmon.

It only takes 10 minutes of actual cooking, and cleanup is minimal (no scraping morsels of fish off of your grill!). Here’s how to cook salmon on the BBQ in foil:

two filets of salmon in individual foil packets — Create foil packets and add a filet of salmon to each one.

two filets of salmon brushed with BBQ sauce in individual foil packets — Create foil packets and add a filet of salmon to each one.

Salmon in Foil on the Grill: How Long Does it Take?

The best part about this recipe is that the salmon and green beans only take 10 minutes to cook. 10 minutes! That’s it.

It will require about 10 minutes of prep as well, totalling only 20 minutes for the entire recipe. Talk about a quick, easy and healthy meal!

salmon and green beans in an open foil pack on a plate

Ingredient Substitutions & Suggestions:

I used fresh Atlantic salmon filets for this recipe, but you can really use any fresh salmon variety that you like. Each filet is approximately 1/4 lb.
Green beans are my vegetable of choice to cook with these BBQ salmon filets. Other vegetables that would work well are asparagus, broccoli, cauliflower, sugar snap peas, and zucchini.
The salmon is brushed with BBQ sauce before cooking. You could also do a maple-soy marinade, a mixture of lemon, garlic, and butter, or any other flavour combination that you prefer.
I season the vegetables with olive oil, minced garlic, and salt and pepper. Feel free to add any other spices or herbs that you like.

two plates of BBQ salmon, green beans, and wild rice.

What to Serve with BBQ Salmon in Foil:

To create a well-balanced meal, I like to serve a source a source of complex carbohydrates alongside my BBQ salmon and veggies in foil.

This could be anything from rice (wild rice pictured above), quinoa, baked potato, roasted potatoes, sweet potato fries, pasta, a roll, or even a pasta salad (my Pesto Caprese Pasta Salad and Italian Pasta Salad are my favourites).