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Mesquite BBQ Salmon

Salmon fillets marinated in lemon and olive oil, seasoned with mesquite chips and spices, then grilled and brushed with barbecue sauce.

From the Wikibooks Cookbook · 13 ingredients
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Why it works: Garlic and olive are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and 25,665 recipes mention both. Both carry linalool, which smells floral, citrus. The science ↓

Mesquite BBQ Salmon

Time2–3 minutes per side

Ingredients

Directions

Marinate

  1. Combine lemon juice and olive oil in a gallon-size zip-top bag. Add salmon, toss to coat, and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

Light the grill

  1. Wad up a sheet of newspaper and moisten with vegetable oil.

  2. Place the newspaper under a chimney full of coals, which you have put in the bottom of the grill, then light.

  3. Wait 15 minutes.

  4. While charcoal heats, combine seasonings and sugar.

  5. Rub the seasoning mixture into salmon filets.

  6. Dump coals evenly around the grill and toss in wood chips.

  7. Re-apply the grate, then quickly swab the grill with the towel.

Grill and serve

  1. Add salmon filets, skin side down, to the hottest part of the grill.

  2. Cook 2–3 minutes per side for medium rare, rotating 90 degrees halfway through cooking to make grill marks.

  3. Brush the meat side with sauce and cook until charred and crispy on the meat side, about 30 seconds.

  4. Serve immediately.

Recipe from the Wikibooks Cookbook.

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.

  1. Garlic + olivetop 2% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapmoderate
    Mentioned together25,665 recipes

    Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

  2. Pepper + lemontop 3% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together27,047 recipes

    Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).

  3. Lemon + olivetop 7% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapmoderate
    Mentioned together11,922 recipes

    Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).

  4. Pepper + garlictop 8% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapmoderate
    Mentioned together27,090 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  5. Garlic + lemontop 9% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapmoderate
    Mentioned together8,893 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Wild salmon filets
Forms the main protein; the skin protects the flesh while it cooks over direct heat.
Olive oil
Carries the marinade and adds moisture and richness to the fish.
Lemon juice
Adds acidity that brightens the fish and adds flavor to the marinade.
Light brown sugar
Caramelizes on the surface, promoting browning and a charred finish.
Barbecue sauce
Adds sweetness and gloss, and chars briefly on the fish's surface.
Mesquite wood chips
Release smoke that gives the salmon its characteristic smoky aroma.

The step that matters

Cook 2–3 minutes per side for medium rare. Salmon is lean and dries out quickly once its proteins set and moisture is pushed out, so short, watched cooking keeps it moist. Brushing sauce on late, as the sugars burn easily, keeps the final char brief.

Flavor stand-ins for the garlic

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (salmon, pepper, sugar, lemon, olive, sauce):

  1. Capersbetter flavor fit
  2. Parsleybetter flavor fit
  3. Dillbetter flavor fit
  4. Garlicthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against salmon, pepper, sugar, lemon, olive, sauce. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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