Helloooo summer!! These Grilled Salmon Tacos with Jalapeño Tartar Sauce are just straight-up dreamy and perfect for all the summer entertaining + grilling we all have ahead of us.
Salmon tacos are just one of those simple pleasures in life, but what makes these salmon tacos so special? EVERYTHING! From the easy and flavorful Jalapeño tartar sauce to the delicious coconut sugar and spice rub that is smothered over the salmon — they are just simply perfect. They are also topped off with a simple slaw and some grilled corn kernels to really take it all up a notch. I love making this dish when entertaining because I can put Clayton in charge of the salmon while I prep the sauce, slaw, and toppings. Serve it alongside Martha’s Mexican Rice or some black beans for a full feast — and of course, you’ll need some Clayton Margaritas.
If you have a Traeger Grill, this is the perfect recipe to add to your lineup!! If you don’t, you could simply bake the salmon in the oven at 400 for about 20-25 minutes or you could even use this cedar-plank method on any grill if you prefer! Regardless, everyone needs to make these tacos because they are 10/10!
Grilled Salmon Tacos with Jalapeño Tartar Sauce
Ingredients
For the Jalapeño Tartar Sauce:
- ½ cup plain greek yogurt I use 2%
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro leaves
- ¼ cup fresh dill fronds
- 1 jalapeño seeded and loosely chopped
- 1 tsp distilled white vinegar
- 1 tsp onion powder
- ¼ tsp kosher salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp drained capers loosely chopped
For The Salmon:
- 2 lbs center-cut salmon
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp chipotle chile powder
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- 2 tsp coconut sugar
For the Corn:
- 4 ears corn husked
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- Sprinkle of salt
For the Slaw:
- 2 cups finely shredded red cabbage
- 2 tbsp fresh lime juice or 1 lime
- Pinch of salt
For Serving:
- 12 tortillas warmed (I use @sietefoods almond flour tortillas), * this is also great in bibb lettuce leaves!
- Fresh cilantro leaves
- 1 avocado thinly sliced
- 1 lime cut into wedges
Instructions
Make the Jalapeño Tartar Sauce
- In a food processor or blender, combine the greek yogurt, olive oil, garlic, cilantro, dill, jalapeño, vinegar, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Blend until smooth. Stir in the capers. Transfer to the fridge until ready to serve. This can be kept in the fridge for 5-7 days.
Prepare the Salmon and Corn
- Place the salmon on a pan and pat dry. Drizzle with 1 tbsp of olive oil and brush to coat the top of the salmon evenly. In a small bowl, combine the salt, pepper, chipotle chile powder, garlic powder, dried oregano and coconut sugar toss until well combined. Sprinkle all over the salmon to evenly coat and using your hands, rub it into the salmon.
- When ready to cook, set the Traeger temperature to 400˚F and preheat with the lid closed for 15 minutes.
- Insert the probe horizontally into the center of the filet. Place the salmon skin-side down directly on the grill grates. Place the corn on a the grill grates. Close the lid and cook until the salmon reaches an internal temperature of 130˚F for medium, around 20-25 minutes, rotating the corn halfway through.
Meanwhile, Make the Slaw
- In a medium bowl, combine the slaw with the lime juice and a pinch of salt. Toss until well combined and set aside.
Assemble the Tacos
- When the salmon and corn are done, remove from the grill and let rest for 10 minutes.
- First, warm the tortillas. You can do this 2 ways:
- -- For a Gas Stovetop: Fire up the burners on your stove to the lowest setting. One at a time, carefully place a tortilla directly on the burner and flip after about 45 seconds. As you finish cooking the tortillas, place them onto a towel and close the towel up to steam the tortillas and keep them warm.
- -- For an Electric Stovetop: Place the tortillas in a dry (no oil) stainless steel skillet over medium heat and cook them for about 30 seconds on each side.
- Using a fork, flake the salmon into large pieces. With a sharp knife, carefully remove the corn kernels from the husks.
- Fill the tortillas with the salmon and slaw. Top with a drizzle of the jalapeño tartar sauce, the corn, avocado, cilantro and a squeeze of lime. Enjoy!
Photography by Eat Love Eats.
21 Comments
Mary
August 8, 2022 at 9:37 pmHi Alex! How would you recommend cooking the salmon without a grill? Oven or stove top?
Alex
August 9, 2022 at 2:51 pmYou can simply bake the salmon in the oven at 400 for about 20-25 minutes!
Stefanie T
July 8, 2022 at 6:01 amSuper flavorful! Super Easy!! Made this on my Traeger. The salmon tasted delicious. Don’t skimp on the jalapeño tarter sauce. This is hands down the best salmon taco recipe I’ve ever tried. Thank you Alex for another great recipe.
amanda
June 30, 2022 at 12:44 amSuper yummy! My 18 month old couldn’t stop dipping salmon into the tartar sauce- she was a big fan!
Here are some tweaks we made for our family:
Kite Hill plain greek yogurt (dairy-free) subbed for the greek yogurt
Pre-shredded green & red cabbage (slaw mix) for the red cabbage
Trader Joe’s pickled jalapenos subbed for the fresh jalapeno (made it less spicy for the toddler!)
SO GOOD!!!! Thank you, Alex!
Ashley
June 21, 2022 at 5:05 pmMade these last night and OMG SO GOOD! Easy enough for a weeknight and tons of flavor. Tossed the leftover fillings + jalapeno sauce with some spinach today for a quick lunch salad and that was great too – bonus!
Mary
June 16, 2022 at 12:56 amWhat an insanely incredible recipe! I was intimidated by the idea of grilling salmon or even salmon in a taco. But this is now 100% a new staple. Simple to prepare, virtually impossible to screw up, and beyond heavenly.
That SAUCE is divine! And the salmon alone, with the caramelization and combination of sweetness with a little spice is delicious. Hands down a new standing recipe for the books.
Alex
June 16, 2022 at 1:17 pmSo glad you loved it, Mary!
Melissa
June 13, 2022 at 9:10 pmI am eager to give this one a try for an upcoming dinner party! For those who are not a fan of fish, would you recommend chicken or beef as another option that would pair well with the slaw and sauce? Or is it really just best with salmon? Thank you in advance for your time!
Alex
June 15, 2022 at 11:50 amHi Melissa!! Honestly, both would be fantastic!!! The rub would work great with grilled chicken breast and the sauce/slaw works well with anything!!
Jill
June 10, 2022 at 2:13 amAbsolutely lovely! I grilled my salmon on a regular grilled, but monitored the temp at 400 and watched the internal temp, which I took to 145. My salmon grilled closer to the 25 min mark. It crusted beautifully and the sauce was delightfully spicy! So good! Well done, again!
Brittany
June 8, 2022 at 11:16 amI really want to make these, but I can’t do dairy. Is there a substitute for the Greek yogurt? Maybe a vegan Mayo?
Alyssa
June 10, 2022 at 5:10 pmBrittany, I am currently DF and used a dairy free greek yogurt, it’s plant based and I believe the one I used was almond milk. I used the brand Kitehill but I also know Siggis makes a great DF yogurt substitute. In this recipe I couldn’t tell a difference at all!! Both of those brands are available at Whole Foods for sure.
Brittany
June 19, 2022 at 3:11 amThanks for the suggestion! I actually used vegan Hellman’s and it came out great!
Ashley
May 31, 2022 at 8:16 pmThese tacos were amazing! My Dad, who doesn’t love usually salmon, even agreed they were very, very good. I had no idea what jalapeno tartar sauce would taste like but I was ready to drink it out of the bowl. Can’t wait to make this again!
Sofi S
May 28, 2022 at 12:33 amOmg. 10/10 would recommend. I want to drown in this sauce. I genuinely don’t understand how every single recipe is so damn good. God bless the Defined Dish.
Brittany
May 27, 2022 at 4:40 pmHow many does this serve?
Alex
May 31, 2022 at 8:10 pmThis can serve 6!
Sophie G
May 25, 2022 at 11:50 amOh my goodness. These looks so delicious but I wish it was less ingredients. The sauce alone is daunting that requires me an extra trip to the store to search for 11 ingredients! Many that I probably won’t use in another recipe. If the ingredients list can be shortened that would be great and much more enticing for beginner chefs!
Alex
May 26, 2022 at 11:28 pmHi Sophie,
I have so many recipes on the blog with less ingredients if this seems intimidating to you! I do feel like that for the salmon, most are all spices that people have on hand. Same with the sauce, other than the greek yogurt, jalapeno, + fresh herbs, most are pantry staples. It is a delicious and layered recipe with a lot of ingredients, though, indeed!
Nickie
June 7, 2022 at 12:54 amThis is prob hands down the best DD recipe I have made to date! So so good!!! Sauce was super easy, you just throw everything in a blender and go.
Alex
June 7, 2022 at 3:45 pmSo glad you loved it! It is one of my favorites as well.