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A plate with pasta and salmon tossed in a Creole Cream Sauce, with a bowl of parmesan cheese nearby.

Creole Cream Sauce with Air Fryer Salmon

This rich and flavourful sauce is a perfect sauce for salmon, grilled chicken, shrimp or even Cannellini beans. Serve it all over your favourite pasta or rice.
Course Main Course
Cuisine North American
Keyword air fryer salmon, creole cream sauce, creole seasoning
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients

Creole Cream Sauce, for four

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 medium onion finely diced
  • 2 cloves garlic finely diced
  • 1/3 cup (65g) finely chopped sun-dried tomato, packed in olive oil
  • 2/3 cup (100g) finely chopped red bell pepper
  • 1 tbsp Creole seasoning see Notes
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
  • 1 cup (240ml) heavy cream, at room temp
  • 1/2 cup (120ml) Chicken Stock, alternatively you can use Vegetable stock
  • 1/4 cup (60ml) Dry White Wine, or 1 tbsp white wine vinegar (or apple cider or champagne vinegar)
  • 1/3 cup (30g) freshly grated Parmesan, plus more for finishing
  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley.

Serve over:

  • cooked pasta, start with 2 oz dry pasta per person, or rice, polenta, mashed potatoes etc

Air Fryer Salmon, for four

  • 24 oz (680g) salmon fillet, wild Pacific or Atlantic
  • 1 tbsp olive oil, or more if needed to coat all sides
  • salt
  • pepper
  • Creole seasoning or other favourite seasoning

Instructions

Creole Cream Sauce

  1. Heat a large skillet over medium heat, and then drizzle in the olive oil. Add the onion and sauté until it begins to soften/turn golden, about 5 minutes. Then add garlic and cook for another minute.

  2. Add in sun dried tomatoes, red bell pepper and cajun seasoning, sauté for a minute to soften. Add the tomato paste and stir through everything.
  3. Add the wine and use a wooden spoon to deglaze the pan. Allow the wine to reduce by half, then pour in stock and cream.
  4. Add the parmesan and stir through, then turn heat down to medium-low. Allow to simmer for 5 minutes or so until the the sauce begins to thicken, stirring occasionally.
  5. Add the salmon fillets whole or flaked and nestle into the sauce.

  6. You can actually prepare the carb and protein before starting the sauce, since the sauce takes only about 12 minutes. Just drain your pasta, and let the meat rest. Folding the flaked fish or nestling the chicken or shrimp into the warm sauce will bring it up to the correct temperature.

  7. Finish with generous sprinkling of parmesan cheese, and chopped fresh parsley.
  8. See blog post for more details and suggestions.

Air Fryer Salmon

  1. Make sure you have similarly sized salmon pieces, so that they will cook evenly.

  2. Preheat your air fryer at 5 minutes to 400F, see below

  3. Pat your salmon fillet dry with paper towel very well.
  4. Drizzle the olive oil over the salmon, and brush all over so that oil lightly coats the salmon.
  5. Sprinkle the salmon with salt and pepper and any favourite spice blend such as this Creole seasoning.

  6. Place salmon in the air fryer basket, skin side up, this will ensure the skin crisps up. Cook for 7-10 minutes until salmon is done and flakes easily.

    *Depending on your air fryer, and if your salmon is on the thicker side, you may want to drop the temperature to 375F, and cook a bit longer, just so that the outside isn't charred before the inside is cooked through. You know your air fryer.

  7. Remove from air fryer and serve. Season with additional salt and pepper as needed.

    To check, the internal temperature in the thickest part of the salmon should be 125-130F for medium cooked salmon.

  8. Cooking time will depend on your air fryer and how thick your piece of salmon is.

Recipe Notes

Creole Seasoning, makes 3/4 cup
3 tbsp paprika
2 tbsp garlic powder
1 tbsp onion powder
1 tbsp cayenne pepper
1 tbsp black pepper
1 tbsp white pepper
4 tsp dried oregano
4 tsp dried thyme
1 tbsp dried basil
Combine well and store in a sealed container in a dark place.

If you desire, add two large handfuls of trimmed baby spinach or baby kale (chopped if you wish) after you have stirred the parmesan cheese through the sauce. Let it soften as the sauce thickens.
If using frozen salmon, thaw in the fridge overnight. Alternatively you can thaw the salmon in a bowl of cold water. You want to remove packaging and place the salmon a new resealable plastic or freezer bag.
Fill a bowl with cold water and submerge the salmon in the water. Replace the water every 30 minutes to prevent bacteria growth. Once salmon is thawed, store in the refrigerator until ready to use.
Do not use hot water, as the cold water preserves the freshness of the salmon and prevents bacteria growth.
If you actually don't want to eat the skin, it is usually very easy to remove after cooking.