If you need a healthy and fast dinner, these salmon tacos are perfect. They are super easy to make on a busy night, packed with healthy goodness, and full of flavor. The salmon is quickly baked in the oven for less than 15 minutes before being shredded, piled into warm corn tortillas, and topped with a quick homemade avocado salsa.
We cannot get enough of these salmon tacos. They don’t require a ton of ingredients, and you get fresh and delicious flavors with each bite you take. These tacos are a healthy, mouthwatering dinner everyone will enjoy. Want another easy salmon recipe for a busy weeknight? Try my pan-seared salmon recipe or skillet salmon with garlic lemon butter sauce recipe.
Key Ingredients You Need
- Salmon — This is a quick-cooking protein, perfect for a busy weeknight! Feel free to use salmon fillet with or without skin. If you are using more than one fillet or two small ones, try to get fillets that are similar in size so they’ll cook evenly.
- Olive oil — I use olive oil for cooking the salmon, but you can use another neutral oil of your choice, such as avocado oil.
- Seasoning — I use a combination of chili powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper but feel free to use your favorite seasoning.
- Tortillas — I love using corn tortillas for these salmon tacos. Feel free to use your favorite tortillas.
- Salsa — I make a delicious homemade salsa with avocado, onions, cilantro, and lime juice. It pairs so well with the salmon, and I highly recommend you do not skip it!
How to Make Salmon Tacos
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 400F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Spray the paper with a light coat of cooking spray.
Step 2: Place the salmon onto the sheet pan and brush or spray the salmon with a light coat of olive oil. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the chili powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Sprinkle the seasoning on the salmon. Bake the salmon.
Step 3: While the salmon is baking, make the salsa by combining avocado, onion, cilantro, and lime juice in a small mixing bowl and mix to combine.
Step 4: Remove the salmon from the oven and let cool.
Step 5: Shred the salmon with a fork.
Step 6: Warm the tortillas on the stovetop and assemble your tacos by adding the salmon into each tortilla and adding salsa on top. Serve immediately.
Tips For This Recipe
- The easiest way to tell if the salmon is ready is by using an instant-read thermometer. If you do not have a thermometer, use a fork to press into the thickest part of the salmon gently. If the salmon flakes apart easily, it’s ready to come out of the oven.
- Be careful not to overcook the salmon, as it’ll make it dry.
- Warming the tortillas before serving helps make them more pliable, so they don’t rip. It also makes them tastier! I like to warm mine by placing each tortilla directly on a gas burner for a few seconds per side, turning them with tongs. If you do not have a gas stove, you can warm the tortillas up in a skillet.
- You can easily double or triple the recipe to feed a crowd by adding additional salmon fillets to the sheet pan.
- Make sure to pat dry the salmon before adding the oil and seasoning. Patting it dry helps the oil and season adhere better to the salmon.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can use frozen salmon fillets for this recipe. You’ll have to thaw it first before baking it, as when you cook from frozen, the exterior will cook before the middle, causing the salmon to become overcooked.
You can refrigerate leftover salmon in an airtight storage container for up to 2 days. I recommend refrigerating leftover salsa separately in an airtight storage container as you don’t want it to make your salmon soggy.
You can serve these tacos with coleslaw, sliced radishes, pico de gallo, guacamole, sliced jalapeños, shredded lettuce, mango salsa, cheese, sour cream, and more! Pick your favorite toppings to serve over these salmon tacos.
I highly recommend using wild-caught salmon as the salmon is usually much higher in quality and contains more omega-3 fatty acids. Some of my favorite salmon to pick up at the store are king, coho, or sockeye salmon but feel free to pick your favorite.
If you’ve tried this Salmon Tacos Recipe, then don’t forget to leave me a 5 star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below!
Salmon Tacos
Ingredients
For the Tacos:
- 1 lb salmon filet
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- Corn tortillas
For the Salsa:
- 1 large avocado
- ½ onion diced
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro chopped
- 1 lime juiced
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Spray the paper with a light coat of cooking spray.
- Add the salmon to the sheet pan. Brush or spray the salmon with a light coat of olive oil.
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the chili powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Sprinkle the seasoning on the salmon.
- Bake the salmon until the internal temperature reaches 135 F or until the fish easily flakes when poked with a fork. For a salmon filet that is an inch thick, it will take around 11 minutes.
- While the salmon is baking, make the salsa: combine all of the salsa ingredients in a small mixing bowl and mix to combine.
- Once the salmon has finished baking and has cooled, shred with a fork. Add the salmon into each tortilla and add salsa on top. Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
- The easiest way to tell if the salmon is ready is by using an instant-read thermometer. If you do not have a thermometer, use a fork to press into the thickest part of the salmon gently. If the salmon flakes apart easily, it’s ready to come out of the oven.
- Be careful not to overcook the salmon, as it’ll make it dry.
- Warming the tortillas before serving helps make them more pliable, so they don’t rip. It also makes them tastier! I like to warm mine by placing each tortilla directly on a gas burner for a few seconds per side, turning them with tongs. If you do not have a gas stove, you can warm the tortillas up in a skillet.
- You can easily double or triple the recipe to feed a crowd by adding additional salmon fillets to the sheet pan.
- Make sure to pat dry the salmon before adding the oil and seasoning. Patting it dry helps the oil and season adhere better to the salmon.
Claire K says
Absolutely delicious, and so easy!
Justin Coit says
So glad to hear that Claire, thank you!