Best Frozen Salmon Filets That Aren’t “Fishy” at All

I don’t want to totally rock your world, but even if you’re buying salmon from the fish guy at the grocery store rather than from the freezer aisle, you’re probably buying previously frozen salmon. Unless, of course, you’re going directly to the fish guy’s boat. Or you live in Alaska and you’re the fish guy, bringing your own salmon home after snatching it directly out of the river with your bare hands. 

Anway, what we’re talking about here is the best frozen salmon from the freezer aisle. 

We tasted 11 different brands of frozen salmon—including both unseasoned frozen salmon filets and pre-sauced frozen salmon filets (watch the taste test, above). And when I say “we” I’m talking about myself, a salmon lover, and my colleague Gwynedd Stuart, a salmon skeptic. So, don’t worry. Whether you’re shopping for someone who adores the pink poisson or someone who swears they’ll never forsake white fish, there’s some good frozen salmon for you on this list.

We cooked them all in the oven, and looked for a flaky, silky texture, buttery flavor, and just a hint of fishiness. We’ve already found the best frozen fried fish filets and some excellent frozen seasoned filets, and now we’ve found the best frozen salmon. Tell the neighborhood grizzly bears that dinner is served.

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Best for Sandwiches

Kroger Smoky Bourbon Atlantic Salmon

Kroger

These Kroger brand frozen salmon filets are thin, so you don’t get those big, buttery flakes of fish—but the flavor is great. Yes, they’re advertised as “Smoky Bourbon” but they taste much more like they’re coated in teriyaki sauce. The glaze is sweet but savory—it tastes like it’s heavy on the soy sauce. And there’s a good hit of black pepper, as well. These frozen salmon filets might be a bit too thin to serve as a main course protein, but this would be some really good frozen salmon to use on sandwiches.

Credit: Merc / Kroger

Rating:

7/10

Sporks

Best for Salmon Skeptics

Great Value Atlantic Salmon

Walmart

Walmart’s Great Value frozen salmon is the best frozen salmon if you are cooking for someone who thinks they hate salmon. There’s no skin. And no bones. And it practically tastes like whitefish. It still retains that signature salmon richness, though. This was one of Gwynedd’s top picks of the day. It’s some of the best frozen salmon to serve for a classic weeknight dinner of rice pilaf, steamed broccoli, and your choice of sauce (we’ve got some good tartar sauce picks, if that’s your style).

Credit: Merc / Walmart

Rating:

7.5/10

Sporks

Best Teriyaki Salmon

C. Wirthy & Co. Teriyaki Salmon

Instacart

There’s a lot to love about these frozen salmon filets from C. Wirthy & Co. First of all, they’re big and thick and luxuriously fatty. Second, the sauce is perfect. It tastes great—sweet, tangy, and savory—but there’s not too much of it. The best frozen salmon is actually quite subtle in flavor, so too much sauce easily overpowers it. And I want to taste my salmon, dagnabit. The teriyaki sauce on this frozen salmon tastes homemade and acts as a flavor enhancer for the fish, rather than something covering it up. This is the best pre-sauced frozen salmon to buy.

Credit: Merc / Instacart

Rating:

9/10

Sporks

Best of the Best

Trader Joe’s Atlantic Salmon

Trader Joe’s frozen salmon is the best frozen salmon by far. It’s absolutely delicious. It’s so silky and buttery and the flavor really lingers in your mouth—but it isn’t super fishy. It manages to taste like salmon without tasting like “salmon” in the derogatory sense of the word. Even Gwynedd (that rascally salmon skeptic) loved this frozen salmon. Each portion is the perfect size for one—they’re long, narrow filets but they’re thick. And you can use them in a ton of preparations. Roast them up on a sheet pan with vegetables. Serve them on white rice with chili crisp. Poach them and serve them with hollandaise sauce. I’m skipping the fish counter from now on and heading straight to Trader Joe’s freezer.

Credit: Merc

Rating:

10/10

Sporks