Quick Look: Salmon Tacos with Slaw
- Flavor: Fresh, zesty, creamy, and smoky
- Ready In: About 40 minutes
- Cooking Method: Oven baked salmon
- Key Ingredients: Salmon, lime, cilantro, cabbage, sour cream
- Best Toppings: Avocado, cotija cheese, pickled onions
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- The chili lime salmon is packed with fresh, bold flavor
- The creamy cilantro lime slaw is SO good with the salmon
- Everything cooks easily on a sheet pan for simple cleanup
- Perfect for an easy weeknight taco dinner
- Easy to customize with your favorite taco toppings
Love these chili lime flavors? Try our Chili Lime Shrimp or our salmon taco bowls!
Looking for More Fish Tacos?
If you love tacos as much as we do, you definitely need to try our Grilled Fish Tacos!
What You Will Need
Be sure to see the recipe card below for a full listing of ingredients, instructions, and estimated nutritional information.
- soy sauce – Added to the salmon marinade for the flavor and saltiness.
- salmon fillet – we prefer fresh, wild-caught salmon, but frozen salmon will work too! Just pick-up a high-quality salmon option at your local grocery store and make sure it is thawed before cooking.
- lime zest & lime juice – This little bit of acidity helps to amplify all the flavors of the marinade and the cilantro lime slaw.
- angel hair green cabbage – These tacos would be amiss if they didn’t have the crunch from this mild veggie.
- sour cream & mayo – The creamy base of the cool and crisp slaw.
- fresh cilantro – Adds another hit of freshness.
- tortillas – Flour tortillas or corn tortillas both work wonderfully with this recipe. If using corn tortillas, we suggest that you heat them up in a large skillet ahead of time.
- quick pickled red onion – An optional topping, but so so good! Plus, use the extras to eat with eggs, on sandwiches, or in salads.
How To Make Salmon Tacos with Slaw
Step 1: Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Remove the skin from the salmon and cut into 1-inch cubes. In a medium bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lime zest, lime juice, chili powder, cumin, garlic, soy sauce, salt, and cilantro. Pour over the salmon and marinate in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes.
Step 2: While the salmon marinates, combine the sour cream, mayo, lime juice, lime zest, cilantro, garlic, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Toss about half of the dressing with the cabbage until evenly coated, then set aside until ready to serve.
Step 3: Place the salmon in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes, adjusting cook time based on the size of the salmon pieces. Let cool slightly before serving.
Step 4: If you’re making quick pickled onions, and we sure hope you do because they’re amazing, this is the time to whip them together.
Step 5: Now it’s time to assemble your tacos! We love serving this meal buffet style to allow everyone to make customized tacos to their liking.
What To Serve With Salmon Tacos
We love these tacos with freshly sliced avocado, cojita cheese, fresh cilantro, lime wedges, and zesty pickled onions. And set out some hot sauce for those who like some heat! Pack all of these yummy flavors between warm corn tortillas or flour tortillas and top with creamy cabbage slaw.
Recipe FAQs
Simply use dairy-free mayo and sour cream.
Both Atlantic salmon and sockeye salmon work well for tacos. Skinless salmon filets are easiest to cube and bake for this recipe.
Yes. The cilantro lime slaw can be made up to 1 day ahead and stored in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Note, it will get softer as it sits.
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Ingredients
Chili Lime Salmon Bites:
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1-2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, minced
- 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- zest of 1 lime
- 2-3 teaspoons lime juice
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 pound fresh salmon fillets, cubed
Creamy Cilantro Lime Slaw:
- ¼ cup sour cream, reg. or dairy-free
- ¼ cup mayo
- 1 tablespoon fresh cilantro, chopped
- zest of 1 lime
- 2 teaspoons lime juice
- 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
- pinch of kosher salt and ground black pepper
- 1 cup angel hair green cabbage
Other Taco Ingredients:
- tortillas of your choice
- 1 avocado, sliced
- ½ cup cotija cheese, crumbled
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- 4 lime wedges
- quick pickled onions
Instructions
- Marinate Salmon: In a medium bowl, whisk together 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, 1-2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, 1 tablespoon garlic, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, zest of 1 lime, 2-3 teaspoons lime juice, ½ teaspoon chili powder, ½ teaspoon cumin, and ¼ teaspoon kosher salt. Add salmon cubes, toss to coat. Place in refrigerator and let marinate 10-15 minutes.
- Cilantro Lime Slaw: Meanwhile, combine ¼ cup sour cream, ¼ cup mayo, 1 tablespoon fresh cilantro, zest of 1 lime, 2 teaspoons lime juice, 1 teaspoon garlic, and pinch of kosher salt and ground black pepper in a small bowl – this is your cilantro lime sauce. In another small bowl, add angel hair cabbage. Add a little less than half of the sour cream mixture on top of the cabbage; toss to coat and set aside – this is your cilantro lime slaw. Reserve the remaining cilantro lime sauce for later.
- Cook Salmon: Preheat oven to 450℉. Remove salmon from refrigerator and transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet; try to ensure the salmon pieces aren't touching each other. Place in oven, middle rack, and let cook 10-15 minutes or until salmon is fully cooked. Remove and let cool slightly.
- Assemble Tacos: Divide the cilantro lime slaw, salmon, avocado, cotija cheese, and cilantro between tortillas. Garnish with a fresh lime juice, quick pickled onions, and drizzle with remaining cilantro lime sauce, as desired.
Notes
- Dairy-Free: use a dairy-free sour cream and omit the cotija cheese.
Tom says
I made these for taco night and the warm salmon with the cool cilantro lime slaw was a great combination. The sheet pan keeps cleanup easy, and the avocado and cotija cheese add a lot to the finished tacos.