Fish Taco Wraps

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These Fish Taco Wraps with mango salsa are a fresh and healthy take on tacos you just can’t get enough of. The combination of salmon with the mango salsa is irresistible along with the creamy avocado crema. Piled into lettuce leaves, it makes for a super tasty ‘taco’. Add some freshly steamed rice to the lettuce wraps for a more filling dinner.

Fish Taco Lettuce Wraps with Mango Salsa | Get Inspired Everyday!

Fish tacos… most beloved of foods – second only to pizza for me. Every vacation near the ocean is centered around where I’m going to get the best fish taco for lunch (really, I’m not exaggerating)! But, these aren’t just any fish tacos, although I really do like them all. My favorite combination consists of fresh grilled salmon, mango salsa, and avocado cream.

This particular recipe today has been in the makings for a decade now, and it’s underwent several innovations! I started with homemade flour tortillas, moved to deep fried corn tortillas, and eventually I settled into lettuce wraps as my shell.

Fish Taco Lettuce Wraps with Mango Salsa | Get Inspired Everyday!

So, why lettuce instead of regular taco shells?

1. They are the easiest (and fastest) shells to make at home – they only require a quick wash in the salad spinner

2. They’re healthier (which came about more as a side benefit, and weirdly enough I prefer the healthier option in this case).

Ingredients for these Fish Taco Lettuce Wraps

  • Fish – I love using salmon, but any fish you love in fish tacos is perfect here from cod to halibut.
  • Lettuce – I call for Butterhead which has a wonderful softness to it that pairs well with the fish. However, it does tear more easily, so green-leaf or red-leaf lettuce works well too. I’ve also gotten tips for readers that they’ve enjoyed these wraps with cabbage leaves.
  • Mango – The ripest mango is always the best, but if you do happen to see Champagne mangos at the store, definitely scoop them up. You’ll recognize them by their yellow skins. Their flavor is incredible, and I’ve found the texture to be less fibrous. But any ripe mango is great here.
  • Avocado – To make this recipe even easier, you can skip the avocado crema as a sauce and just slice up a ripe avocado instead.
  • Salsa Ingredients – For the cilantro, jalapeno, onion, lime juice, etc. freshness is key. While it’s tempting to opt for pre-done convenience, you’ll notice in the final salsa.

Let’s make this recipe step by step

Prepping the mango salsa for the fish tacos!

Step 1: First up prep the ingredients for the mango salsa.

Mixing together the mango salsa for the fish tacos!

Step 2: Then mix the salsa together.

Season to taste with sea salt, and set it aside to let the flavors meld.

Blended avocado crema for the fish taco lettuce wraps!

Step 3: For the avocado cream, blend everything in a blender until smooth, scraping down the sides once. Transfer the avocado cream to a serving dish.

If it’s not a fancy dinner, I usually put my salsa and avocado cream into a Pyrex container. If there are any leftovers, I can just place a lid over the container and put it in the fridge – no extra dirty dishes for me – no sir!

Grilling the fish for fish tacos makes cleanup even easier!

Step 4: Next, prepare your salmon for the grill. Lightly drizzle the fillet with avocado or olive oil, and generously sprinkle it with sea salt. Make sure to get some of the oil onto the salmon skin – it keeps it from sticking to the grill. Place the salmon over medium heat and grill for 6-10 minutes.

You’ll know it’s done when it no longer feels squishy when poked, and there will be some cooked juices appearing at the bottom of the fillet. If you see white cooked juices coming from the top of the fillet – it’s overdone. If you’re unsure, pull 1 fillet off the grill and test it – better safe than sorry!

Fish Taco Lettuce Wraps with Mango Salsa | Get Inspired Everyday!

Step 5: Once everything is prepped, serve it all family style. That way each person can assemble their own wraps. For presentation, you can assemble the lettuce wraps and place them on a platter.

And you can even pile all these ingredients into your choice of tortillas. There are even some good paleo tortillas (we like Siete) available at the store now that we love with this recipe.

Fish Taco Lettuce Wraps with Mango Salsa | Get Inspired Everyday!

Ways to serve this

  • Try these fish taco wraps with my Caramelized Pineapple Salsa for a variation or when good fresh mangoes aren’t available.
  • Skip making the avocado crema and serve these wraps with diced or sliced avocado as a shortcut.
  • Add freshly steamed rice to make this a more filling meal.
  • Serve with lime wedges if desired for a bright pop of flavor.

Tips & Tricks

  • Try this recipe with any kind of fish you enjoy in fish tacos. Any white-fleshed fish is great in this recipe like rockfish, halibut, and cod. We love the combination of salmon and mango salsa, but white fish fillets are really good too, and make a nice variation.
  • Don’t overcook the fish, it should be just done and still moist – never dry. An easy way to tell if fish is done is if it easily flakes apart with a fork.
Fish Taco Lettuce Wraps with Mango Salsa | Get Inspired Everyday!

I hope you enjoy these Fish Taco Wraps as much as we have! If you do make it, I hope you’ll leave me a comment/rating below.

Fish Taco Lettuce Wraps with Mango Salsa | Get Inspired Everyday!

Fish Taco Wraps


4.67 from 3 votes
Author: Kari Peters
Total Time 40 minutes
Yield: 2
Course: Dinner

INGREDIENTS  

  • 1 large head butterhead lettuce
  • 1 pound salmon fillet
  • 2 tsp avocado oil
  • sea salt - to taste

Mango Salsa:

  • 1 mango - weighing 1 pound, peeled and diced
  • 1/4 cup minced red onion
  • 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
  • 2 tbsp fresh lime juice
  • 1 tsp jalapeno - minced, or serrano
  • Sea salt to taste

Avocado Coconut Cream:

  • 1 ripe avocado - peeled and pitted
  • 1/2 cup coconut milk - from the can
  • 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt - or to taste

INSTRUCTIONS 

  • Mix all the ingredients for the mango salsa and set it aside to let the flavors meld.
  • Place all the ingredients for the avocado coconut cream in a blender and blend until smooth. Scoop the cream out of the blender and into a serving dish.
  • Preheat the grill on high heat.
  • While the grill is heating up, drizzle the salmon with avocado oil and sprinkle generously with sea salt. Make sure to oil the skin on the bottom of the fillet, it keeps it from sticking to the grill.
  • Place the salmon on the grill and immediately lower the heat to medium. Cook until the salmon is barely done, just starting to flake but with some softness left and a bit of translucent pink in the middle. This normally takes 8-12 minutes for a 1-pound fillet.
  • While the salmon is cooking, pull the lettuce apart into individual leaves. Wash and dry it in a salad spinner.
  • When the salmon is done serve it with the lettuce wraps, mango salsa, and the avocado coconut cream.
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NOTES

Tip: the reason I like to prepare most of the recipe before grilling the salmon, is so I can keep an eye on it. Fresh, ocean-caught fish is expensive so I try to give it my full attention because every time I turn my back it overcooks!
This recipe is a high-protein dinner, but you can make these lettuce wraps to serve 4 instead of 2 and add freshly steamed rice to bulk up the wraps. In this case, I recommend using 2 heads of butter lettuce.
Category: Dinner
Cuisine: Mexican, Tex-Mex
Keywords: Fish Taco Lettuce Wraps, Fish Wraps

nutrition facts

Calories: 555kcal | Carbohydrates: 21g | Protein: 47g | Fat: 32g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 7g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Cholesterol: 125mg | Sodium: 692mg | Potassium: 1500mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 16g | Vitamin A: 1633IU | Vitamin C: 50mg | Calcium: 61mg | Iron: 4mg
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10 thoughts on “Fish Taco Wraps”

  1. 5 stars
    Just a quick question as I’m not familiar with cooking fish on the grill or at all I’m guessing you cook it skin side down? Do you flip it at all, and how do you tell when it’s done but not over cooked? Please & Thanks! Jenni

    Reply
    • I cook mine skin side down on the grill and you don’t need to flip it because it cooks through fast enough as long as your fish is less than 2″ thick at the thickest part it will cook evenly just from the bottom. I hope this helps and be sure to let me know how it goes or if you have any more questions!

      Reply
  2. Hi Kari,
    Love the look of this recipe. I want to try it for my sister’s bday on May 6th. Wondering what fruit might be a good substitute since mangos are not in season? Any suggestions?
    thanks,
    Jennifer

    Reply
    • I’m not sure where you live, but here in Montana the imported Champagne mangoes are in season so you might be able to find those. Also I think a pineapple salsa might work just as well and I’m including a link to my Grilled Pineapple Sals for you! Best of luck on the birthday dinner, and let me know how it goes if you decide to try the pineapple salsa!
      https://getinspiredeveryday.com/grilled-pineapple-salsa/

      Reply
  3. 4 stars
    I’m making this for dinner tonight! We’ve got a foot of snow on the ground and this seems like just the thing to make us remember the sun.

    As I am going along in this recipe the full teaspoon of salt in the mango salsa and again in the avocado cream seems excessive. I used just a generous shake of salt and that was plenty.

    You have absolutely beautiful photos. I was lured by them from Pinterest. This will be dinner for my day 23 of my second whole30. Wish I found this recipe on my first round!

    Reply
    • These fish tacos wraps always make me feel like I’m near the ocean! I’m glad you said something about the salt measurement, I should have written or to taste into the recipe because the size of produce varies so much that 1 teaspoon of sea salt might be perfect but it could also be overkill! I’m going to update the recipe and I’m glad you used your better judgement and seasoned to taste! 🙂

      Reply
  4. I agree with you Kari, lettuce wraps are the ultimate wraps.
    And with that avocado coconut cream and the mango salsa, these fish tacos are total winners!

    Reply

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