Taco Thursday is here (yes, we’re making this a thing). And you’ll be glad for a million reasons.
One of them being these beautiful & easy salmon tacos! These tacos are CASH MONEY, which in my language basically means they’re goooooood.
A few years ago, we went deep sea fishing in Florida and ending up cooking some of the fish we caught. My sister-in-law’s fiance, Matt, made blackened grouper and we topped it with my mango guacamole; the flavor compared to something out of some fancy Martha Stewart magazine (aka fancy AF).
After returning home, I knew I needed to bring you a recipe that was somewhat similar. So these delicious blackened salmon tacos were born!
Tips for baking salmon:
Looking back, I can remember when I first started cooking and salmon intimidated me since overcooking the fish can easily happen. Though as all cooking and baking goes, you don’t become better until you experiment a little. If you’re nervous about cooking salmon, I’ve got a pretty good rule I like follow: Always err on the side of undercooking rather than overcooking salmon; for every inch of thickness, you’ll need to bake it for 15 minutes at around 400 degrees F or until the salmon is opaque and easily flakes with a fork. My salmon usually always comes out perfect at 18 minutes.
You’ve got this! And if you don’t just put on Jay-Z. 99 problems and salmon ain’t one!
How to grill blackened salmon for salmon tacos:
Grilling blackened salmon is super easy and perfect for these delicious tacos! All you need to do is:
- Preheat a gas grill over medium-high heat and rub blackening spice mixture all over salmon. I would also lightly brush both sides of the salmon (including the skin) with a bit of olive oil to prevent sticking.
- Place salon skin side down first on grill or on foil (to seal in the flavors!) close grill lid and grill about 6-8 minutes. It’s easier to grill skin side down first so you can slide a spatula under the skin for flipping once it crisps up.
- Carefully flip salmon and cook 6-8 more minutes or until cooked well. Salmon is tricky, but just like baking it, it’s best to undercook rather than overcook your filets
What’s the difference between grilled and blackened?
Blackening a meat (like salmon) simply means adding a blend of blackening seasoning to your meat before cooking it. It adds a delicious flavor to meats and even veggies or plant-based proteins like tofu! In this recipe you have the option to grill or bake your salmon once you’ve added the blackening seasoning, and you’ll cook it skin side down over a higher heat to seal in all of the moisture and flavor.
If you’re wondering about where you can find the blackening seasoning mentioned in the recipe, it’s usually at larger grocery stores but sometimes can be hidden, often disguised as Cajun seasoning. I’ve included how to make a DIY blackening seasoning version in the notes section of the recipe if you prefer to do that instead of buying the entire blackening spice.
What else is in these healthy salmon tacos?
You’ll just need a few other fresh ingredients to assemble these healthy salmon tacos:
- Forbidden rice (aka black rice): this rice is ridiculously delicious, chewy and pairs well with the slight spiciness of the fish. Did you know that black rice has the highest amount of antioxidants compared to any other rice? It’s also rich in protein and fiber and has anti-inflammatory properties. Time to get on the black rice train people! Here’s the brand I usually buy.
- Homemade mango guacamole: this also helps to balance all the flavors out. It’s a little sweet and a little spicy to add a burst of freshness to every bite of your salmon tacos.
How to use leftover blackened salmon:
Oddly, the salmon makes the best leftovers when scrambled with eggs. Salmon breakfast tacos on repeat. Try adding it to a breakfast burrito like this one, or make a DIY salmon bowl with more forbidden rice like this one!
See how to make the blackened salmon tacos:
If you like this recipe, you might also like:
Honey Lime Sriracha Salmon with Sesame Cucumber Noodles
Sesame Ginger Teriyaki Salmon with Garlic Quinoa Stir Fry
Brown Sugar Honey Marinated Salmon with Pineapple Quinoa
30 Minute Chili Maple Lime Salmon Bowls with Forbidden Rice
If you make this, leave a comment below to let me know how it turned out or snap a picture, upload it to Instagram and tag #ambitiouskitchen! xo.
Blackened Salmon Tacos with Forbidden Rice & Mango Guacamole
Ingredients
- For the rice:
- 3/4 cup uncooked forbidden rice (black rice)
- For the salmon:
- 1 pound fresh salmon (I prefer wild)
- 1 tablespoon blackening seasoning
- For the mango guacamole:
- 1 medium ripe avocado
- 1/4 cup diced red onion
- 1/2 jalapeno, seeded and minced
- 1/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro
- 1 ripe mango, diced
- Zest and juice of 1 small lime
- Salt and pepper to taste
- For the tacos:
- 8 corn tortillas
- To garnish: extra cilantro & diced red onion
Instructions
-
Cook rice on the stovetop according to the directions on the package. Black rice typically takes about 45 minutes to cook and is chewy when done.
-
Preheat oven to 400 degrees if you are baking the salmon (options to grill are in the notes section). Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and grease lightly with olive oil or nonstick cooking spray. Place salmon skin side down and sprinkle blackening seasoning on the salmon. Use your fingertips to rub the seasoning evenly all over the salmon. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until salmon easily flakes with a fork. Mine is always perfect at 18 minutes!
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While the salmon is cooking, make the mango guacamole. In a medium bowl, add the avocado and use a fork to mash it until it reaches the desired consistency. (If you like chunky guac, don’t mash it as much.) Add in diced red onion, jalapeno, cilantro, lime zest and juice, and mango; stir well to combine then add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside until tacos are ready to assemble.
-
Once salmon is done cooking, flake it with a fork and discard the skin. Add flaked grilled salmon and rice to warm corn tortillas, then top each with a heaping tablespoon of guacamole. Serves 4 people, 2 tacos each.
Recipe Notes
Directions for grilling the salmon: Preheat a gas grill over medium-high heat. Rub blackening spice mixture all over salmon. I would also lightly brush both sides of the salmon (including the skin) with a bit of olive oil to prevent sticking. Be sure to also oil your grill a bit! Place salon skin side down first on grill, close grill lid and grill about 6-8 minutes. Carefully flip salmon and cook 6-8 more minutes or until cooked well. Salmon is tricky, but it's best to undercook rather than overcook your filets.
How to make DIY blackening seasoning: In a small bowl mix together the following: 1/2 teaspoon sea salt, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme, 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, 1/2 teaspoon chili powder (leave out the cayenne if you don't like spice). Rub all over salmon and then continue following recipe instructions.
Recipe by: Monique Volz // Photography by: Sarah Fennel
50 comments
This is LOVE. Omg I’m obsessed with fish tacos and these look a-mazingggg!!!
These look SO GOOD. Can’t wait to try!
These look fancy AF! And soooo delicious. Cannot wait to try teh black rice!
That salmon looks absolutely perfect! What a fun Taco Tuesday idea. I have been in a Taco Tuesday rut and need to change things up a bit.
That looks soooo incredible! I’m not a taco fan but you’ve completely changed my mind! I love how you added the mango, would have never thought of that myself…
i love having fish with pico de gallo or any kind of chunky salsa, and this sounds like a fancier version (love the sound of the mango and forbidden rice!).
Taco Tuesday, salmon, forbidden rice, mangoes and guacamole. BOOYAH. Can you really beat that?!
Ok, first I’m cracking up at this post — cash money, fancy AF AND a Jay-Z reference?! Amazing. But second, please come to my house for taco Tuesday because these are amazing!!
Perfect timing. Salmon just happens to be on my grocery shopping list for today.
FISH.
LOVE the forbidden rice! These look absolutely gorgeous. We just bought 4 cases of mangoes (yes, we’re a bit obsessed…) so this is perfectly timed!
This was absolutely amazing!!!! My teenagers, their friends and my three year old all loved it so this dish clearly is a crowd pleaser! Thanks so much for including the “how to ” on the blackening seasoning…. Love it all! Sooo yummy, thanks for sharing
I’ve been looking for heart healthy meals and so I made this for my partner and I last night and we both absolutely loved it. It was fairly quick, easy, fresh and best of all I got my partner to eat coriander and mango both of which he dislikes. Definitely going to make this again. I have already recommended it to my friends and family.
Oh so good! This was easy and absolutely delicious. The bonus is that we felt great after filling our bellies. Woohoo and thanks!
Check out this recipe
These were AMAZING! My hubby and I chowed this meal! Thank you so much for the unique, yet easy dinner idea! I will definitely be making these tacos again! 🙂
Prepped these for my lunches this week and they are just too yummy! So easy, so delicious, the perfect lunch to look forward to, to break up my day!
So happy to hear that! Good lunches are the BEST way to break up the day 🙂
Yummy! Amazing Salmon Tacos are one of the healthiest and easy to make the recipe, I make this recipe for the weekend and my family and husband love this salmon taco. Thank you guys for making my weekend yummy and amazing.
Amazing!! So happy to hear that 🙂
Thanks for this delicious recipe! The mango guac turned out well (I think we had a particularly juicy lime so lime was the dominant flavor, not that that’s a bad thing!), but the true star of the show was the blackened salmon. OMG. So good! I used your DIY blackening seasoning and it is on point. I’m definitely making this salmon again!
So glad you loved this one! That seasoning is seriously amazing on everything.
Monique, what brand of black rice do you use? The link did not work.
This is the brand I usually buy!
I really like forbidden rice, to me it is the only rice I will bother to eat, I usually skip the carbs, but not that one. We skipped the taco shell and I used cauliflower rice, some colorful chopped tomatoes, greens and steamed asparagus too, making a salad plate. The salsa is terrific and will be a go to recipe for me just even for the salsa. Frozen mango chunks cut up small worked just fine. Used less of that ingredient in the salsa but we found it to be perfect. Made for a very colorful plate. Thank you for a great recipe.
Sounds delicious (and gorgeous!) Glad you enjoyed 🙂
I made the salmon and they were great. This was very easy to make. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Absolutely! One of my favorites for summer.
We made these for Father’s Day brunch. Outstanding!!! So delicious. This recipe is a keeper and we have already made the mango guacamole again.
Easy and delicious!