This healthy and easy to make salmon bisque recipe has layers of flavor, tons of vegetables, and tender flaky salmon in a thick, hearty broth. It’s rich and creamy with just a little splash of cream!
Heat the butter and oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, and celery, and cook until starting to soften and brown in spots, about 7 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic, thyme, and bay leaves and cook 1 minute more, stirring constantly.
Turn the heat up to high, add the wine, and cook until evaporated, about 3 to 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the stock, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, paprika, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil, then turn heat down to low and simmer until veggies are very tender, about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Turn off heat and cool slightly. Remove the bay leaves.
Use an immersion blender to puree the soup until smooth, or use a regular blender and work in batches. Then pour the soup back into the saucepan. (If you use a regular blender, take out the cap in the center of the lid and place a kitchen towel over the hole so steam can escape as you puree the soup.)
Stir in the lemon juice and heavy cream. Cook a couple minutes over low heat until warm throughout, stirring constantly (do not let it boil).
Transfer the soup to serving bowls; top with the flaked salmon and chives, and serve immediately.
Notes
Net Carbs: 7g per serving
White Wine Substitute for Deglazing: If you don’t have wine on hand or just want to use something else, you can use ½ teaspoon of white wine vinegar dissolved in ¼ cup of water instead.
How to Pan Sear Salmon
For this recipe, I like to pan-sear the fish since it’s quick and gives it bit of color on the outside. Here’s how to do it:
Lightly coat the bottom of a nonstick skillet with olive oil and heat the skillet over medium-high heat.
Season the salmon with salt and pepper and add the salmon to the skillet when the oil ripples.
Cook the fish until golden on both sides, flipping once (about 2 to 4 minutes per side, depending how big your fillets are).
Put a lid on the skillet, turn off the heat, and leave it for 3 minutes to steam the inside of the fish.
Flake it with a fork, and serve.
How to Poach Salmon
Poaching the salmon for this recipe also works great because it yields tender, flaky fish. Additionally, you can add flavor if you add seasonings and aromatics to the poaching liquid! To poach salmon:
Add 2 inches of water to a large skillet. You can add aromatics and seasonings like sliced onion, garlic cloves, fresh herbs (such as dill, thyme, parsley, etc.), bay leaves, salt, and black pepper.
Bring the water up to a boil.
Add the salmon and turn the heat down to a simmer.
Cover the skillet and cook until the salmon is opaque and flakes easily with a fork, about 5 minutes, being careful not to overcook.
Transfer the salmon to a paper towel-lined plate to drain the water.