Salmon Tacos

Bursting with flavors, these blackened salmon tacos are a party in your mouth.  Toasted tortillas, smoky chipotle mayo, savory salmon, topped with crunchy slaw, sweet pickled onions, avocado slices, and a Fresno chili pepper.  A perfect weeknight dinner that comes together in under 20 minutes. 

Take advantage of the HOT deals on salmon ($5.97/lb. on sale), and coleslaw ($.99 a bag),  at Safeway to make this dish for dinner this week.  You won’t regret it!  This is a fairly budget-friendly meal as well as far as seafood goes.  It’s around $16 to feed 5 people, so just $3.20 per person for 2 – 3 good size tacos each. 

I was inspired for this recipe from a food truck in Vail that made salmon tacos with a chipotle sauce drizzled on top.  I recreated it at home and I think my recipe may even be better than the food truck. 

This may in fact be my favorite recipe of everything I’ve posted on this blog so far.  The flavor combo is outstanding!

My kiddos devoured the pickled onions, which actually surprised me.  It shouldn’t as they are really good eaters because they take after their mother.  😉

I bought 1.5 lbs of salmon, which was perfect for four.  You definitely need 2 lbs. for 5 people. 

Ingredients

• salmon 
• olive oil
• chile powder
• cumin
• onion powder
• garlic powder
• dried oregano
• salt
• pepper
• chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
• mayo
• corn tortillas
• coleslaw or shaved cabbage
• jalapeno or Fresno chili
• avocado
• lime

Pickled Onions

• red onions
• salt
• sugar
• white wine vinegar
• 1 1/2 cup boiling water

How to Make Salmon Tacos

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with foil.  Place the salmon on top of the foil. 

Brush the salmon with olive oil, then top with the blackened seasoning.

Bake the salmon for 15 – 18 minutes until it is cooked through and flakes easily with a fork. 

While the salmon is baking, prepare the pickled onions.  See below for how to make quick pickled onions. 

Next prepare the chipotle mayo by combining mayo and the chipotle peppers in a bowl and stirring to incorporate. 

Heat the corn tortillas over an open flame to char the edges, or heat in a skillet.

Assemble the tacos by spreading a dollop of chipotle mayo on each tortilla, followed by the flaked salmon, the crunchy slaw, an avocado slice, pickled onions and fresh jalapeno.  Squeeze with fresh lime juice and enjoy.

Note: If you want, you can mix the mayo with the slaw.  It will turn the slaw brown from the adobo sauce, but give it a fabulous flavor.  Alternatively, you can leave the slaw raw and smear the tortilla with the chipotle mayo. 

This is a purely personal preference.  I did both and slightly preferred the mayo mixed with the slaw – but the choice is yours. 

How to Make Pickled Onions

Pickled onions add phenomenal flavor to anything they accompany.  Raw onions are strong, but pickled onions have the perfect sweetness with just a zing of bite.  They totally made these tacos and I now have a stash of pickled onions in the fridge that I can use for tacos, enchiladas, gyros, and more.   

This is a quick pickling technique that you can use when you want pickled onions for dinner, but haven’t taken the time to pickle them beforehand. 

The pickling brine consists of white wine vinegar, sugar, and salt.  You can also add additional flavor components like garlic cloves, black peppercorns, or dried chili peppers to change up the flavor of the onions. 

In a glass bowl, combine the vinegar, salt, and sugar and stir until dissolved.

Bring 1 1/2 cups water to a boil in a small saucepan.

Thinly slice the red onions into rings.  Place the red onion rings into the boiling water for 1 minute just to blanch or soften the onions.

Remove the onions from the boiling water and place them into the brine solution.  Discard the boiling water.  Stir the onions occasionally to let the brine pickle all the onions.   

Let the onions soak up the brine for at least 10 minutes.  30 minutes marinade time is better, and you can store the onions in the brine in the refrigerator to have on-hand anytime you want pickled onions. 

What to Serve with Salmon Tacos

The tacos are filling and flavorful on their own and cover all essential food categories – carbs, vegetables, and a protein, but if you want a side dish, I would suggest rice and beans or a simple garden salad.

The RightRice Spanish Rice would be perfect with this meal. 

Additional Salmon Recipes

Salmon is a staple in our home and we have it at least once a week, often more when it’s on sale.   Here are a few of my favorite salmon dishes. 

Marinated Grilled Salmon With Mango Salsa

Blackened Salmon With Fresh Peach Salsa

Roasted Salmon with Greek Lemon Spinach Orzo With Feta Recipe

Grilled Salmon Burgers Recipe With Lemon Chive Aioli Sauce

Grilled Mediterranean Salmon

Honey, Garlic, Butter Salmon

Salmon Tacos

Bursting with flavors, these blackened salmon tacos are a party in your mouth.  Toasted tortillas, smoky chipotle mayo, savory salmon, topped with crunchy slaw, sweet pickled onions, avocado slices, and a Fresno chili pepper.  A perfect weeknight dinner that comes together in under 20 minutes. 

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Course: dinner

Cuisine: Mexican

Keyword: salmon tacos with chipotle sauce

Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes minutes

Servings: 5 servings

Calories:

Author: Eva Fry

Ingredients

• 1.5 - 2 lbs. salmon
• 1 teaspoon olive oil

Blackened Seasoning

• 1/8 teaspoon chile powder
• 1/8 teaspoon cumin
• 1/8 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/8 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
• salt and pepper to taste

Chipotle Mayo

• 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce or 1 tablespoon
• 1/2 cup mayo
• corn tortillas
• 1 bag coleslaw or 2 cups shaved cabbage
• jalapeno or Fresno chili sliced
• 1 avocado sliced
• lime

Pickled Onions

• 1 medium red onion
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon white sugar
• 3/4 cup white wine vinegar
• 1 1/2 cup boiling water

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with foil.  Place the salmon on top of the foil.
• Combine chile powder, cumin, oregano, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Stir to mix.
• Brush the salmon with olive oil, then top with the blackened seasoning.
• Bake the salmon for 15 - 18 minutes until it is cooked through and flakes easily with a fork.
• While the salmon is baking, prepare the pickled onions.
• In a glass bowl, combine the vinegar, salt, and sugar and stir until dissolved.
• Bring 1 1/2 cups water to a boil in a small saucepan.
• Thinly slice the red onions into rings.  Place the red onion rings into the boiling water for 1 minute just to blanch or soften the onions.
• Remove the onions from the boiling water and place them into the brine solution for 10 minutes.  Discard the boiling water.  Stir the onions occasionally to let the brine pickle all the onions.
• Next prepare the chipotle mayo by combining mayo and the chipotle peppers in a bowl and stirring to incorporate.
• Heat the corn tortillas over an open flame to char the edges, or heat in a skillet.
• Assemble the tacos by spreading a dollop of chipotle mayo on each tortilla, followed by the flaked salmon, the crunchy slaw, an avocado slice, pickled onions and fresh jalapeno.  Squeeze with fresh lime juice and enjoy.

Notes

Note: If you want, you can mix the mayo with the slaw.  It will turn the slaw brown from the adobo sauce, but give it a fabulous flavor.  Alternatively, you can leave the slaw raw and smear the tortilla with the chipotle mayo.  This is a purely personal preference.  I did both and slightly preferred the mayo mixed with the slaw - but the choice is yours. 

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