This recipe also works very well on a grill. Follow the directions below but grill over indirect heat. You can use a smaller fish if you like, but a 7-pounder is the largest salmon that will fit comfortably into a standard oven or a 22 1/2-inch kettle grill.
Preheat the oven to 475┬░F.
Rinse and pat dry:
1 salmon (7 pounds each), cleaned, with head and tail on
Rub the salmon inside and out with:
2 tablespoons olive oil
Sprinkle inside and out with:
Salt and ground black pepper
Stuff the cavity with:
1 small lemon, sliced
Several sprigs fresh thyme (optional)
Loosely wrap the head and tail of the fish in aluminum foil. Roast on a rack set on a jelly-roll pan until cooked through but slightly translucent at the bone, about 45 minutes. When the salmon is cooked, remove it to a serving plate with two spatulas. Remove the foil. Cut the skin around the head and tail, and down the top of the back, and gently pull off. Use a blunt knife to push out the line of little bones that run along the top of the back. Then push out the bones that run along the bottom of the belly. Gently cut off the brown flesh. Garnish the plate with:
Chopped fresh parsley, fresh thyme, and lemon wedges
