Southwestern Salmon Tacos

Circle B Kitchen

These are some of the best tacos we've had in recent memory. I made a few changes from the original recipe, which we think totally rocked. In addition to the changes noted in the recipe, including serving these in homemade corn tortillas, I added some shredded lettuce and a little grated cheese to the tacos. I also chose to spread the chipotle sour cream on the tortilla rather than adding it as a topping.

Recipe adapted from The Splendid Table

Serves 4

2 avocados

2 tomatoes, cored and diced

1/2 cup finely diced red onion

1/4 cup loosely packed chopped cilantro

Juice of 1 lemon (I used 3 tablespoons lime juice)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 (5- to 6-ounce) salmon fillets

1/4 cup canola oil

shredded lettuce or cabbage

grated cheese (a blend of jack and cheddar or some cotija cheese)

Eight 6-inch flour tortillas (I used homemade corn tortillas

Chipotle Sour Cream (recipe follows)

Cilantro leaves, for garnish

Cut each avocado in half lengthwise and remove the pit. Carefully scoop the flesh from the shell and dice it. Toss the diced avocado with the tomato, onion, cilantro, and lemon or lime juice. Stir to mix and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Season the salmon fillets with salt and pepper. If you have access to an outdoor grill, then grill the salmon over a medium high heat for about 4 minutes per side or until just barely cooked through. Alternately, you can do this in a cast iron skillet or saute pan, in which you will want to heat the oil until smoking over medium-high heat and cook the fillets, fleshy sides down, for 4 to 5 minutes on each side or until cooked through. Transfer the salmon to a platter to cool slightly. Using your fingers, break each fillet into bite-sized pieces.

Spread each tortilla with some of the chipotle sour cream and top with the salmon chunks. Top the salmon with a little of the shredded lettuce and then spoon heaping tablespoons of the avocado salsa over the lettuce. Sprinkle each taco with some of the grated cheese and cilantro leaves. Serve immediately.

Chipotle Sour Cream

1/2 cup sour cream

1 canned chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, minced

1 tablespoon adobo sauce from the can

Kosher salt

Stir together the sour cream, chipotle pepper, and adobo sauce and mix well. Season to taste with salt. Serve right away or refrigerate, if not using soon.