Lox and Eggs, Meet the Breakfast Taco 🤝
If your ideal bagel order involves smoked salmon, cream cheese, and a little red onion, these smoked salmon breakfast tacos are about to become your new weekend ritual. They’re filled with soft, custardy eggs scrambled low and slow (the only way!!) chive chives, melting cubes of cream cheese, and silky ribbons of lox stirred in. Don’t worry, we add that at the end, warming the smoked salmon just enough to turn tender.
Spoon it all into a warm flour tortilla, add a squeeze of lime, and breakfast is ready in 20-minutes flat. They’re one of my favorite ways to feed a crowd (they scale easily!) without spending the morning at the stove, and they fit right in with my collection of elevated brunch recipes for entertaining.
Ingredient Notes From Testing
Flour tortillas are softer and more pliable, so they cradle the creamy eggs without cracking. If you need a gluten-free option, or simply prefer corn tortillas, I recommend charring them first to prevent them falling apart. Six- or 8-inch tortillas are the sweet spot. (Or use your favorite grain-free tortilla!)
Eggs: Plan on about 3 large eggs per person. This is also dependent on whether you’re serving additional brunch dishes alongside the salmon breakfast tacos.
And most importantly, let’s talk smoked salmon (lox or nova): Cold-smoked salmon is what you want here. Trimmings or “end pieces” are perfect and budget-friendly, since you’ll be cutting the fish into ribbons anyway.
Step-by-Step Instructions
My favorite way to warm tortillas is to stack them in foil and warm in 350°F oven for 7-10 minutes. Do this while you cook and everything will be ready at the same time.
If you didn’t preheat your oven or want a quicker method for warming the tortillas, wrap them in a damp paper towel and microwave in 30-second increments or char directly over a gas flame.
Fold In The Good Stuff
While the eggs are still slightly runny, add the cubed cream cheese and smoked salmon. Keep stirring gently until the eggs are just set, then pull the pan off the heat immediately. Residual heat will help them finish.
This past summer, I actually topped these with leftover grilled pineapple salsa with avocado (because yes, I made a different form of fish tacos featuring grilled salmon 😂). Let this be your cue to have fun with the toppings and raid your fridge of leftovers! Pickled red onions, sliced avocado, or fresh cilantro would be lovely too.
Freezer-Friendly Breakfast Burritos
Salmon breakfast tacos themselves don’t freeze well, but smoked salmon breakfast burritos do! Roll the filling into larger 10- to 12-inch tortillas, wrap each in foil, and freeze for up to 3 months.
The best way to prevent a soggy tortilla: add a swipe of cream cheese or a slice of cheese along the bottom of the tortilla (under the filling) before rolling. Full freezing and reheating directions in the recipe card below.
A Full Brunch Spread
This is hands down one of my favorite smoked salmon breakfast recipes, but I like to add something sweet on the side. A basket of flaky, bakery-style scones brings a bright, buttery counterpart, and a big bowl of fresh fruit keeps things light. If I’m hosting a boozy brunch, there will definitely be a build-your-own Bloody Mary bar on the side!
If these salmon breakfast tacos make it into your brunch rotation, I’d love to know what you think! Please leave a star rating and review below and tell me which toppings y’all loved best.
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20-Minute Smoked Salmon Breakfast Tacos
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 flour tortillas, 6 or 8-inch
- 6 large eggs
- 2 Tbsp heavy cream
- ¼ cup chives, thinly sliced, divided
- 1 tsp Kosher salt
- ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1 Tbsp neutral oil or unsalted butter
- ½ small red onion, finely chopped, plus more for serving
- 3-4 ounces smoked salmon, thinly sliced
- 6 Tbsp cream cheese, cut into small cubes
- 1 medium lime, cut into wedges
Instructions
- Warm the tortillas. Preheat an oven to 350°F / 175°C, then stack tortillas and wrap in aluminum foil. Place directly on the oven rack and warm for about 7-10 minutes. Alternatively, you can char the tortillas over a stove top flame or wrap them in a damp paper towel and heat in a microwave in 30-second increments until warm. Place two warmed tortillas on each plate.
- Whisk the eggs. Combine eggs, 2 Tbsp heavy cream, 3 Tbsp chives, 1 tsp Kosher salt, and ¼ tsp black pepper in a mixing bowl, then whisk to combine.
- Sauté the onion. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, then add 1 Tbsp butter or neutral oil. Add the diced red onion and cook until softened, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes. Lower the heat to medium, no higher.
- Cook the eggs. Add eggs and cook, stirring often, until small curds form. Adjust and lower heat as needed so eggs do not brown or cook too quickly.
- Stir in remaining ingredients. When the eggs are just slightly runny, add 6 Tbsp cubed cream cheese and ½ cup smoked salmon. Continue cooking until eggs are no longer runny, stirring often, then immediately remove from heat.
- Assemble, then serve. Divide scrambled eggs evenly between warm flour tortillas, then top with additional chives and diced red onion, if wanted. Serve immediately with lime wedges.
Notes
- Use large (10- to 12-inch) flour tortillas, and let the scrambled eggs cool completely before assembling. Warm eggs make soggy tortillas.
- Add a moisture barrier first: a swipe of cream cheese or a slice of mild cheese along the bottom of each tortilla.
- Spoon a few tablespoons of filling over the cheese, sprinkle with chives, then roll tightly. Fold in the sides, bring the bottom up over the filling, and keep rolling into a snug burrito.
- Wrap each burrito in foil. Freeze in a single layer on a baking sheet for 2–3 hours, then transfer to a freezer-safe bag. Freeze for up to 3 months.
- Oven or toaster oven: Bake from frozen, still wrapped in foil, at 375°F until heated through to the center, about 10-12 minutes.
- Microwave: Unwrap, place on a plate, and microwave until heated through, flipping halfway, about 2-3 minutes.
Nutrition
Photography by: Megan McKeehan
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