Hello, gorgeous salmon filets with the best sweet and spicy marinade, topped with fresh avocado peach salsa. If you’re looking for a sign to stock up on gorgeous summer produce to create an easy, beautiful meal, this is it.
I created this wonderful firecracker salmon recipe about 8 years ago and have been making it every summer since. It’s incredibly flavorful, easy to make, and feels a little bit fancy with the fruit salsa spooned on top.
I’ve included simple ways to bake or grill your salmon so that it comes out deliciously flaky every time, plus tons of great side dishes to serve right alongside it. This is truly summer on a plate!
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What type of salmon is best for cooking?
You’ll need 1 pound of salmon in this recipe. You can choose wild or farmed, it’s up to you.
- Farm-raised salmon tends to be milder in flavor and more fatty/buttery in texture
- Wild salmon can be a little more spendy but is leaner, pinker, and higher in minerals such zinc and iron. Both are delicious!
Homemade firecracker marinade
Can we talk about the delicious firecracker marinade for a sec?! It makes the salmon taste both sweet + a little spicy and pairs well with the sweetness of the peaches and the creaminess of the avocado. Healthy eating has never been this beautiful. Here are the marinade ingredients:
- The base: you’ll need oil (I like olive oil or avocado oil), reduced-sodium soy sauce, and balsamic vinegar.
- The sweetness: we’re naturally sweetening this firecracker marinade with some honey.
- The heat: get that spicy, firecracker flavor with red pepper flakes and cayenne pepper!
- The extra flavor: don’t forget minced garlic and freshly grated ginger.
Can I make it less spicy?
Absolutely! Feel free to reduce the cayenne pepper and/or the red pepper flakes. You can always whisk the marinade without them, sprinkle a bit, taste, and adjust the heat as needed before adding the salmon to it.
Fresh & delicious peach avocado salsa
You’re going to LOVE the sweet, creamy, and delicious pairing of the peach avocado salsa with the heat of the spicy salmon. It’s loaded with:
- Peach
- Avocado
- Jalapeño
- Red onion
- Cilantro
- Lime juice
- Salt & pepper
How to cook this firecracker salmon in the oven
- Make the marinade. Whisk the marinade in a small bowl, and place your salmon in a separate, large bowl, skin-side up.
- Marinate the salmon. Pour the marinade over the salmon, and let it marinate in the fridge for no longer than 1 hour.
- Make the salsa. While the salmon marinates, mix your peach salsa together in a separate bowl.
- Bake the salmon. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper, place the salmon on top skin-side down, and bake it.
- Top & serve. Top your salmon with the fresh salsa, and serve it as is or with one of my favorite sides listed below!
My best salmon-cooking tip
As a general rule, for every inch of thickness of your salmon fillet, bake it for 15 minutes. My salmon is usually perfect around 16-18 minutes.
Try it on the grill
Get that delicious char flavor by grilling this firecracker salmon! Get all of my tips and tricks for grilling salmon here, and check out the basics:
- Preheat a gas grill over medium-high heat. Meanwhile, pour or generously brush the firecracker marinade over the salmon.
- Place salmon skin side down first on the grill or on a large piece of foil (to seal in the flavors!), close the grill lid, and grill for 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 the salmon and cook for 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 to serve with this salmon recipe
The best part about this sweet and spicy firecracker salmon is how versatile it is for serving with your favorite sides. Here’s what I suggest:
- Enjoy it with a side of brown rice, quinoa, or my famous green rice
- Add everything to flour or corn tortillas
- Make a side of Grilled Brussels Sprouts, Sesame Roasted Vegetables, or Grilled Mini Sweet Peppers
- Top leafy greens, or enjoy with my Summer Peach Spinach Salad, my Tomato Cucumber Avocado Salad, or my Peach, Tomato & Corn Arugula Pasta Salad
By the way, if you still have extra peaches left over, I highly suggest my gluten-free peach crisp for dessert!.
Storing tips
Store any leftover salmon and salsa in separate airtight glass containers in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.
More salmon recipes you’ll love
- Honey Lemon Garlic Salmon
- 30 Minute Chili Maple Lime Salmon Bowls with Forbidden Rice
- Chipotle Lime Salmon Tacos with Corn Avocado Peach Salsa & Cilantro Yogurt Sauce
- Spicy Maple Glazed Salmon for Two!
- Damn Good Salmon Taco Bowls For Two
Get all of our delicious seafood recipes here!
I hope you love this delicious firecracker salmon recipe. If you make it, leave a comment below and don’t forget to rate the recipe so others can see how you liked it!
Ambitious Kitchen
Cookbook
125 Ridiculously Good For You, Sometimes Indulgent, and Absolutely Never Boring Recipes for Every Meal of the Day
Firecracker Salmon with Peach Avocado Salsa
Ingredients
- For the salmon:
- 1 ½ pounds salmon
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil or olive oil
- 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- ½ tablespoon honey
- 3 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
- For the peach salsa:
- 1 avocado, diced
- 1 peach, diced
- 3 tablespoons finely diced red onion
- 1 jalapeño, seeded and diced
- 2 tablespoons finely diced cilantro
- 1 lime, juiced
- Salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Make your salmon marinade: In a small bowl whisk together avocado oil, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, honey, garlic, crushed red pepper, and ginger.
- Add your salmon to a large bowl skin side up (so that the salmon sits in the sauce) and pour marinade over the top. Cover and place salmon in the fridge for no more than 1 hour
- While your salmon is marinating, make your peach salsa. Add avocado, peach, red onion, jalapeño, cilantro, lime juice, salt, and pepper to a medium sized bowl and mix until well-combined.
- Once ready to bake salmon, preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Place salmon on a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and place marinated salmon skin side down. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until salmon easily flakes with fork.
- Top salmon with peach avocado salsa and serve with brown rice, black rice quinoa, or extra veggies for a full meal. Serves 4.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Recipe by: Monique Volz // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by: Eat Love Eats
This post was originally published on September 10th, 2018, republished with new photos on June 19th, 2023, republished on July 7th, 2024, and republished on June 24th, 2026.
Swapped out the peach for mango and it was a huge hit with the family. Will make again. Delicious…
Perfect!!
The peach and avocado salsa was the perfect topping for this salmon. But fair warning, I found the hour-long marinade time left the salmon mushy. I did not leave it for one second longer than the one hour called for in the recipe. Next time, I would likely do 10-15 minutes tops or just use the marinade as a sauce. Or leave the vinegar out altogether, using just the avocado oil and soy sauce. The marinade packed decent heat so tone down the cayenne and crushed red pepper if your family doesn’t like spicy.
So strange that it left it mushy! Yes, feel free to use it as a sauce next time and shorten the marinade time if you’d like.
This is a great recipe and has been very popular every time I’ve made it. I’ve used the marinade for veggies, along with the salmon, before grilling and mixing up into a bowl with rice or quinoa.
So happy to hear that!
I’ve made this recipe multiple times and always get a ton of compliments on it! Such good flavor!! This is my go to salmon recipe!
This was fantastic. We’ve been remodeling the house I hadn’t had any dinner parties in a long time. So I bought this nice piece of salmon. I decided this would be a good recipe to use to kind of get back into the swing of things. I wish I would’ve remembered to marinate longer, but it was still unbelievably delicious and ridiculously easy. Everyone loved it. I will definitely be making this all the time. I do think I’ll experiment the next time on halibut. Thank you for making me look good.
Amazing! So glad you found this one!
All of this pairs so well! Since my husband loved it (much to my hopeful surprise), we did it three times in a row for our BBQ. Easy to prepare and cook/BBQ – very delicious! Thanks from Germany – Gina
Love that!! One of our favorites for summer, too 🙂
The salsa is awesome. My husband liked the experiment I made. Next time I will definitely try the firecracker marinade/seasoning. Thanks from Germany! Gina
So glad you both loved this one!
Made this tonight!! So incredibly tasty! I think be t time I’d do half a jalapeño instead of a whole was a bit spicy for my taste but came out amazing!!
Thank you for this awesome recipe 🩵
Perfect! I find that jalapeños can really vary in spiciness, so half is a great place to start 🙂
Tried this tonight after being on holiday and needing something healthy and tasty. This hit the spot totally. Loved the flavours, and different textures too. Delicious 😋
Thank you
Amazing! Glad you enjoyed!
Made last night using sockeye salmon. The marinade for the salmon is phenom, that portion of the recipe is 6/5 stars. I struggled with the salsa though – would advise not to use overly-ripe peaches and/or avocado. I had both on hand, and the salsa ended up more mushy and like a peach-forward guacamole. Flavors were pretty good, and I think with a better peach would have been even better.
I’ll make a note to remind people to use ripe produce but not TOO ripe 🙂 Glad you enjoyed regardless!
Delicious, beautiful summer meal. Great for date night, entertaining or simple enough for a weeknight meal. Well done. Thank you.
Absolutely! Glad you enjoyed!
Do you peel the peaches for the salsa? or are they canned?
I use fresh peaches but I don’t peel them 🙂 You’re welcome to peel them if you’d like.
I just made this dish and it was a hit with my family!! The spices of the marinade pair very well with the sweetness of the peaches.
WOO! So glad you and your family are loving this recipe, Anna!
The salsa is to die for!
Yesss! My faveee part 👏🏼
Amazing flavor! Hands down one of my favorite on the blog!
Excellent! Glad you’re loving this recipe ❤️
Preparing this tomorrow for a 4th of July bbq. Can the salsa be made the day before?
So sorry to the late response – it can totally be made the day before! Hope it was a hit!
The formula is simple to grasp and follow. I’ll keep the recipe and learn how to cook it.
This was SO good! We eat salmon pretty regularly and I was looking for a different way to prepare it with more of a summer vibe and this was just right!
I made it exactly as stated and we grilled it- absolutely delicious! Definitely going on the summer meal rotation!
Excellent! I am so glad you are loving this recipe and it turned out great for you ❤️ Seriously the perfect summer recipe!
Can you use this marinade for chicken in the slow cooker?
Hello! I haven’t tried it but I bet it would be amazing!
This was delicious and so easy! Perfect for a weeknight. The salsa is incredible–we ate leftovers with tortilla chips. I could have eaten it with just a spoon!
Monique, this salmon was DELISH!!! We loved it! That salsa is the BOMB! My husband isn’t a huge salmon fan, but he said, “If I have to eat salmon, I want it like this!” Pretty high compliment, lol!
Umm yes BEST compliment ever! Thank you so much!!
The title says it all! This firecracker salmon is spicy and packed with flavor! I served it with white rice and green beans. Such a quick dinner for the week night!