Say hello to one of our favorite quick seafood recipes: salmon ceviche! It’s one of those meals we could enjoy on repeat, particularly during summer when it’s too hot to turn on the oven and cook. While the salmon may look cooked, it’s actually raw and marinated in fresh lime juice and lemon juice before serving.
What is ceviche? Ceviche is a Peruvian staple that highlights fresh seafood — you can use anything from shrimp, scallops, or octopus to halibut, sea bass, or flounder; we’re featuring high quality Norwegian salmon! Instead of cooking the fish with heat, the fresh seafood marinates in lots of citric acid from fresh limes and lemons until the structure of the proteins change. Both the appearance and texture will look cooked without any heat involved.
Here’s why we love salmon ceviche so much:
- Bright, vibrant, citrusy flavor!
- Healthy and light meal! Norwegian salmon is a great source of Omega-3 fatty acids and is heart healthy!
- Quick prep time! Ceviche takes about 15-20 minutes of prep time, then marinates for ~30 minutes. Easy and quick appetizer, lunch, or dinner!
- Tostadas de ceviche! We love to serve salmon ceviche on homemade tostadas (they’re so easy to make!) — the crunch is perfect with the fresh seafood!
If you’ve never tried a ceviche recipe at home before, let this be the one!! You’re going to love it! Be sure to try our Shrimp Ceviche recipe next!
Ingredient Notes
- Fresh Norwegian salmon, skin removed
- Citrus juice: fresh lime and lemon juices
- Red onion
- Jalapeño
- Avocados
- Tomatoes
- Cilantro
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
If you plan to serve these as tostadas de ceviche (which we highly recommend!), you’ll want to grab a package of small corn or flour tortillas to bake until crispy. Instructions below!
How To Make Ceviche
- ‘Cook’ the fish. Cut the Norwegian salmon into ½” cubes, then place in a medium stainless steel or glass mixing bowl with thinly sliced onion, ¾ cup lime juice, and ¼ cup lemon juice. Stir to mix well (there should be enough liquid that the fish is mostly submerged), then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30-40 minutes.
- Stir in remaining ingredients. Add 1 chopped jalapeño, 2 diced avocados, 1 cup chopped tomatoes, ¼ cup finely chopped cilantro, 1 tsp Kosher salt, and ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper. Stir well, then taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
- Serve with tostadas. If using, make homemade tostadas (see below) or serve immediately with tortilla chips.
To make homemade tostadas, preheat an oven to 400 F. Place corn or flour tortillas on a rimmed baking sheet, then drizzle lightly with olive oil or cooking spray. Cook for 5 minutes, then flip and cook an additional 5 minutes, or until crispy. Sprinkle lightly with Kosher salt, then serve immediately.
Expert Tips
- It all starts with high quality, fresh fish. We love Norwegian salmon for their clean, fresh taste, moist, flaky meat, and all-natural diet. They’re also a great healthy source of Omega-3 fatty acids. When selecting seafood for ceviche, look for the absolute freshest piece of Norwegian salmon! Pro tip: have the fish monger remove the skin for you!
- Taste as the fish marinates! Fish that are lean and firm will ‘cook’ in the lime juice marinade quicker than salmon. We recommend tasting the salmon ceviche every 5 minutes or so, beginning at 15 minutes, until the desired doneness is achieved. For us, that’s between 30 and 40 minutes marinating.
- Use a sharp knife! For clean, beautiful cubes of fish, you’ll want to slice the fillet with single cuts. This is best achieved with a sharp knife!
- Don’t just mix it all together. Allow the Norwegian salmon (or other fish) to marinate with fresh lime juice and red onion before adding in the tomatoes and avocado. They’ll hold their shape better if mixed in at the end.
Variations On Ceviche
- Fish: instead of salmon, use shrimp, halibut, octopus, striped bass, flounder, or sea bass to make ceviche!
- Citrus and fresh fruit: try added segmented orange or grapefruit! Diced mango would be delicious as well.
- Instead of red onion, use thinly sliced or finely chopped white or sweet onion.
FAQs
- How long will ceviche keep? When using very fresh fish, ceviche will keep for up to 2 days. However, the citric acid will continue to cook the fish the longer it sits. So if you don’t eat it all at once, note that the seafood will continue to firm up as it marinates. We also recommend draining the marinating liquid once desired doneness is achieved so the ceviche is not too tangy when ready to serve.
- Is ceviche spicy? With 1 jalapeño, this is a relatively mild ceviche recipe. You can spice it up by using 2 jalapeños or even hotter chiles. Alternatively, if you want a more mild ceviche, you can substitute bell peppers.
- Is the salmon cooked? No. Cooking involves heat and there is no heat when making ceviche. However, the process of denaturation (mixing raw seafood with citric acid from fresh lime juice and lemon juice) cooks the Norwegian salmon by changing the structure of its protein.
- What’s the best fish for ceviche? A lot of recipes call for firm, white fish for ceviche, but we love salmon! See above for recommended variations on fish or shellfish for ceviche.
One bite of this fresh, citrusy tostadas de ceviche and you’ll be transported to a warmer place with (hopefully) a cold glass of rosé or beer not far away. It’s light, refreshing, and a great way to use fresh Norwegian salmon! And it’s an easy way to explore other ways to enjoy fish outside of baking, roasting, grilling, or pan searing. It’s raw, but cooked. Ah ceviche, you are the best ever!
If you make this Salmon Ceviche recipe, please let us know by leaving a review and rating below!
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More light seafood recipes to try!
*This post was sponsored by the Norwegian Seafood Council. All opinions are my own. I only support and promote brands that I believe in and use in my own kitchen – I hope you’ll check them out! Thank you for supporting the brands that make Well Seasoned possible.
Salmon Ceviche Recipe
Ingredients
For salmon ceviche
- 1 lb Norwegian salmon skin removed
- ¾ cup fresh lime juice about 6 limes
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
- ½ medium red onion thinly sliced, about ½ cup
- 1 jalapeño seeded and finely chopped
- 2 avocados peeled and cubed
- 1 cup diced tomatoes
- ¼ cup finely chopped cilantro
- 1 tsp Kosher salt
- ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
For homemade tostadas (optional)
- 1 package small corn tortillas or flour tortillas
- Olive oil
- Kosher salt
Instructions
- 'Cook' the fish. Cut the Norwegian salmon into ½" cubes, then place in a medium stainless steel or glass mixing bowl with thinly sliced onion, ¾ cup lime juice, and ¼ cup lemon juice. Stir to mix well (there should be enough liquid that the fish is mostly submerged), then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30-40 minutes.
- Stir in remaining ingredients. Add 1 chopped jalapeño, 2 diced avocados, 1 cup chopped tomatoes, ¼ cup finely chopped cilantro, 1 tsp Kosher salt, and ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper. Stir well, then taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
- Serve with tostadas. If using, make homemade tostadas (see below) or serve immediately with tortilla chips.
- Optional: To make homemade tostadas, preheat an oven to 400 F. Place corn or flour tortillas on a rimmed baking sheet, then drizzle lightly with olive oil or cooking spray. Cook for 5 minutes, then flip and cook an additional 5 minutes, or until crispy. Sprinkle lightly with Kosher salt, then serve immediately.
Notes
- Nutrition facts do not include tostadas.
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