Salmon is good, but Salmon Stuffed with Spinach and Feta is betta! Every bite is full of tender flaky salmon and tasty briny feta. Spinach adds nutrients and balances out the salty feta. It's delicious and actually really easy to make in just 20 minutes. Below you'll find oven baking and air frying instructions, as well as step-by-step pictures and video to make this a fool-proof recipe!
Jump to:
Feta stuffed salmon
Feta is such a great cheese to add so much flavor to any dish on a budget. A little bit goes a long way. Its creamy saltiness goes perfectly with flaky salmon.
You can use a block of feta or crumbled feta in this recipe. I usually buy the block because it's cheaper and then crumble it up with a fork in a bowl.
More easy salmon dinners: Salmon and Orzo One Pan Dinner
Ingredients
- 4 salmon fillets
- ½ - 1 teaspoon Old Bay or your favorite seafood seasoning
- salt and pepper, to taste (optional, use if your seasoning is not salted / not spicy enough)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil, divided
- 4 ounces baby spinach (3 cups packed) exact amount doesn't matter much)
- 3-4 ounces feta (block or crumbled)
- 1-2 scallions, diced
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
More easy salmon recipes: Spinach Potato Salmon Patties (this one uses canned salmon)
Equipment
- Air fryer OR
- Baking sheet with parchment paper
- Silicone brush
- Medium-large skillet (I have this set and absolutely love it)
- Medium bowl
- Meat thermometer
More easy seafood dinners: Baked Panko Crusted Cod
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375F, or see air fryer instructions below. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large skillet, sauté the baby spinach and diced scallion in ½ tablespoon olive oil for 1-2 minutes, or just until the spinach starts to wilt. Don't cook the spinach once it's wilted.
In a medium bowl, combine the wilted spinach, feta, and garlic powder. Mash it together with a fork until it forms a paste. If using a block of feta, break it up with a fork.
Place the salmon fillets onto the parchment paper (or your air fryer tray). Brush them with the remaining olive oil, season with seafood seasoning, and cut a slit lengthwise, taking care not to cut all the way through the bottom.
Place a quarter of the spinach feta mixture into the slit of each salmon fillet.
Bake at 375F for 15-20 minutes, or until fully cooked (USDA recommends a temperature of 145F). Serve hot with your favorite side dishes (see ideas below!).
Air fryer instructions
Prepare the salmon fillets as described above, stuffing them with the cooked spinach-feta mixture.
Air fry at 350F for 10-13 minutes, or until cooked through (145F). Serve hot with your favorite side dishes.
Storing leftovers
Cooked salmon will be fine in the fridge for up to 2 days, but the salmon does get a little dried out when you reheat it, and the spinach is easy to overcook when reheating.
Kate's cooking tips
- Make-ahead tip: You can slice the salmon and prepare the spinach-feta mixture in advance, but I recommend seasoning the salmon, stuffing it, and baking it right before eating.
- Salmon is always best enjoyed immediately after cooking, so I recommend stuffing and baking only as many as you will eat right away.
- Try to choose salmon fillets that are the same size so they cook for the same amount of time.
- I sometimes tear the stems off the baby spinach. It's not necessary, but the stems are firmer than the leaves and I prefer not to have them in my sauteed spinach.
- If you want to use fresh garlic instead of garlic powder, mince or grate 1 garlic clove and sauté it with the spinach and green onion.
What to serve with feta stuffed salmon
Rice and roasted broccoli are good side dishes for this salmon dinner. Get started on the rice before working on the salmon. My garlic roasted broccoli cooks at 375F just like this salmon, so they can go into the oven together. I recommend putting the broccoli in 5-10 minutes before the salmon so they're done at the same time.
Quinoa is another great high-protein side dish to serve instead of rice.
A great summer side dish for salmon is this summer orzo salad or some grilled avocado. Here are some other great side dishes to check out.
Spinach Feta Stuffed Salmon
Ingredients
- 4 salmon fillets
- ½ - 1 teaspoon Old Bay or your favorite seafood seasoning
- salt and pepper to taste (optional, use if your seasoning is not salted / not spicy enough)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil divided
- 4 ounces baby spinach (3 cups packed) exact amount doesn't matter
- 3-4 ounces feta block or crumbled
- 1-2 scallions diced
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
Special equipment
- Air fryer OR
- Baking sheet with parchment paper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F, or see air fryer instructions below. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large skillet, sauté the baby spinach and diced scallion in ½ tablespoon olive oil for 1-2 minutes, or just until the spinach starts to wilt. Don't cook the spinach more once it's wilted.
- In a medium bowl, combine the wilted spinach, feta, and garlic powder. Mash it together with a fork until it forms a paste.
- Place the salmon fillets onto the parchment paper (or your air fryer tray). Brush them with the remaining olive oil, season with seafood seasoning, and cut a slit lengthwise, taking care not to cut all the way through the bottom.
- Place a quarter of the spinach feta mixture into the slit of each salmon fillet.
- Bake at 375F for 15-20 minutes, or until fully cooked (USDA recommends a temperature of 145F). Serve hot with your favorite side dishes.
- Prepare the salmon fillets as described above, stuffing them with the cooked spinach-feta mixture.
- Air fry at 350F for 10-13 minutes, or until cooked through (145F). Serve hot with your favorite side dishes.
Video
Notes
- Try to choose salmon fillets that are the same size.
- If you like, you can tear off the stems from the baby spinach. Optional.
- Prep ahead: the spinach and feta mixture can be prepared ahead of time, and the salmon fillets can be slit ahead of time. I recommend seasoning, stuffing, and cooking the salmon right before serving.
- Serve with rice and garlic roasted broccoli, or with this summer orzo salad and grilled avocado.
Elena
Thursday 15th of January 2026
That’s definitely something interesting. It’ll be my next salmon dish
Judy
Thursday 15th of January 2026
Can another cheese be substituted for the feta,,something with less sodium
Judy
Thursday 15th of January 2026
@Kate, thanks,I will give the corina cheese a try
Kate
Thursday 15th of January 2026
I believe they have reduced sodium feta out there. You can also soak a block of feta in water for a few hours and that should reduce the sodium by a little bit, though I really can't say by how much. If those options don't work, then queso fresco or cotija cheese crumbled up might work, though I believe you'd have to add a little bit of salt to the cheese-and-spinach mixture to get it to taste better. Let me know if you give any of these options a try!
Kate
Wednesday 14th of January 2026
I love how simple and flavorful this salmon recipe is! I hope you like it as much as we did! Give it a try and leave a comment here.