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Salmon Ceviche is a colorful, refreshing salad made with citrusy salmon and fresh vegetables. Serve it with chips or tostadas, avocado, and your favorite hot sauce.
I learned how to make ceviche in Aguascalientes, Mexico. They make it in huge batches for parties with several family members working on it together. Everyone has a job, and they make a few different kinds simultaneously.
Serve ceviche with crunchy tostadas, tortilla chips, and even saltine crackers with plenty of hot sauce, mayonnaise, and lots of fresh limes on the side.
Table of Contents
Recipe ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Salmon: Thaw frozen salmon in a bowl or on a tray overnight in the refrigerator. For quicker thawing, thaw in a bowl of cold (not warm) water. Turn the faucet on and let a thin trickle of cold water run into the bowl, letting the excess water overflow out of the bowl and down the drain. Remove any skin before cutting in to pieces.
- Citrus juice: The acid that “cooks” the fish. Lime juice is the most common in Mexico (lemons are not usually available there), but lemon, grapefruit, and orange juice are all great options. You could also use a combination.
- Carrots: Carrots are a surprise ingredient compared to many other ceviche recipes, but that’s how they make it in Aguascalientes. It’s perfect.
- Jalapeños: Remove the seeds for less heat. In Mexico, they prepare a separate bowl of spicy chiles (like serrano and habañero chiles) so the adults can add those to taste and the kids don’t have to suffer.
- Cilantro: Cut off the main batch of stems at the bottom of the bunch, then cut up the remaining stems along with the leaves. Please omit if you hate cilantro (parsley or chives are good substitutes).
Step-by-step instructions
- To break down large pieces of salmon for ceviche, first cut each filet into strips about 2 inches wide, rinsing your knife in cold water between cuts. Holding your knife at a 45-degree angle and following the muscle fibers of the fish, slice the salmon into chunks. Continue cutting the salmon into 1/2-inch pieces for this recipe.
- In a medium glass or stainless-steel bowl, add salmon and citrus juice and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate until the salmon is opaque and “cooked” through, about 4 hours.
- Drain off and discard excess citrus juice. Add onion, carrots, tomatoes, jalapeños, and cilantro and toss until evenly coated. Season to taste with salt and more fresh citrus juice if desired.
- Serve with tostadas, tortilla chips, or saltine crackers, passing hot sauce and mayonnaise separately. Or, serve ceviche in individual bowls or glasses.
Recipe tips and variations
- Safety: Citrus juice does not kill bacteria or parasites in fish (neither will your home freezer), so choose commercially-frozen or high-quality fresh fish for ceviche.
- Yield: This recipe will make about 4 cups ceviche.
- Storage: Enjoy salmon ceviche the day you make it, and possibly the leftovers the day after. It doesn’t keep much longer than that.
- Denaturation: The technical term for the reaction between the citrus juice acid and the proteins in the muscle fibers of the salmon.
- Avocado: Mixed in or scattered on top, avocado tempers the heat and a creamy texture to ceviche. Guacamole works well too.
- More mix-ins: Get creative with cucumber, jicama, or even pineapple.
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Salmon Ceviche
Salmon Ceviche is a colorful, refreshing salad made with citrusy salmon and fresh vegetables. Serve it with chips or tostadas, avocado, and your favorite hot sauce.
Ingredients
For the ceviche:
- 1 pound salmon filet thawed (see note 1)
- 1 cup citrus juice plus more for serving (see note 2)
- 1 medium onion finely diced (about 1 cup)
- 1 large carrot peeled and finely chopped (about ½ cup, see note 3)
- 1-2 Roma tomatoes seeded and chopped (about ½ cup)
- 1-2 jalapeño peppers minced, seeded if desired (see note 4)
- 1 bunch fresh cilantro stems removed and minced (see note 5)
- Salt
For serving:
- tortilla chips or tostadas or saltine crackers
- Hot sauce and mayonnaise
Instructions
- Remove if the skin from the salmon filet if it is still intact and run your fingers over the filet to check for and remove any embedded bones. Use tweezers if necessary.
- Chop salmon into 1/2-inch pieces. Place in a glass or stainless-steel bowl. Add lime juice and toss until evenly coated. Cover and refrigerate until the fish is opaque and “cooked” through, about 4 hours.
- Drain off and discard excess lime juice. Add onion, carrots, tomatoes, jalapeños, and cilantro and toss until evenly coated. Season to taste with salt and more fresh lime juice if desired.
- Serve on tostadas or with tortilla chips or saltine crackers, passing mayonnaise, hot sauce, and sliced avocado separately. Or, divide ceviche among small clear-glass bowls, wineglasses, or martini glasses.
Recipe Video
Notes
- Salmon: Thaw frozen salmon in a bowl or on a tray overnight in the refrigerator. For quicker thawing, thaw in a bowl of cold (not warm) water. Turn the faucet on and let a thin trickle of cold water run into the bowl, letting the excess water overflow out of the bowl and down the drain. Remove any skin before cutting in to pieces.
- Citrus juice: The acid that “cooks” the fish. Lime juice is the most common in Mexico (lemons are not usually available there), but lemon, grapefruit, and orange juice are all great options. You could also use a combination.
- Carrots: Carrots are a surprise ingredient compared to many other ceviche recipes, but that’s how they make it in Aguascalientes. It’s perfect.
- Jalapeños: Remove the seeds for less heat. In Mexico, they prepare a separate bowl of spicy chiles (like serrano and habañero chiles) so the adults can add those to taste and the kids don’t have to suffer.
- Cilantro: Cut off the main batch of stems at the bottom of the bunch, then cut up the remaining stems along with the leaves. Please omit if you hate cilantro (parsley or chives are good substitutes).
- Safety: Citrus juice does not kill bacteria or parasites in fish (neither will your home freezer), so choose commercially-frozen or high-quality fresh fish for ceviche.
- Yield: This recipe will make about 4 cups ceviche.
- Storage: Enjoy salmon ceviche the day you make it, and possibly the leftovers the day after. It doesn’t keep much longer than that.
- Denaturation: The technical term for the reaction between the citrus juice acid and the proteins in the muscle fibers of the salmon.
- Avocado: Mixed in or scattered on top, avocado tempers the heat and a creamy texture to ceviche. Guacamole works well too.
- More mix-ins: Get creative with cucumber, jicama, or even pineapple.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cupCalories: 199kcalCarbohydrates: 10gProtein: 23gFat: 7gSaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 62mgSodium: 66mgPotassium: 780mgFiber: 2gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 3385IUVitamin C: 28mgCalcium: 38mgIron: 1mg
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Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.
Great recepie!
Thank you, Yuriy! Take care! – Meggan
Reminds me of when I went to Mexico on my Honeymoon. I made it for our anniversary, and we both agree it’s delicious!