Baked Salmon Wonton Tacos
Baked Salmon Wonton Tacos- Teriyaki salmon, broccoli slaw, and chili crisp mayo fill baked wonton shells to make show stopping, bite sized tacos.
September 19, 2022 by Nicole Collins
Guys, I am sick.
Like, so sick (she says very dramatically in her whiniest voice).
And honestly, it’s just a head cold. I’m not ready to admit yet that I’ve developed allergies (though I know that’s what this really is). But, I’ve been living in a safe little bubble for so long, I forgot how to be sick. I feel extremely pitiful and pathetic right now.
I’ve been using all the tricks to kickstart my immune system and clear out my nostrils though. I’m eating all the apples. I’m drinking all the magic tea. I’m chugging all the water.
If my head doesn’t explode from pressure first, I’ll definitely be floating away. I have to be 95% liquid at this point.
The bestie told me to eat spicy food to help clear my sinuses, and that challenge has been accepted.
Though I wouldn’t classify today’s recipe as spicy, there’s definitely a kick to the sauce that goes on top.
So today, we’re making Baked Salmon Wonton Tacos!
These gorgeous little tacos come together with just a few special layers. We’re going to make some teriyaki salmon. We’re going to jazz up some store bought broccoli slaw. We’re going to make a chili crisp mayo. And we’re going to stuff it all into a baked wonton taco shell. It might sound like a lot of work, but with a little time management, these are actually pretty quick to assemble.
We’re going to start with the wonton shells. We’ll start by lining a baking sheet with aluminum foil, arranging our wonton wrappers in a single layer, and giving them a spritz on both sides with some cooking spray. Now, that foil lined baking sheet is going to do double duty, so we’ll use that a little later for our salmon. But, to form our wontons into perfect taco shapes we’re going to flip over a cupcake pan, and nestle those wontons in between the cups of the inverted pan. That’s going to help our wontons keep their taco shape while they bake, but these do bake pretty quickly. So, they only need a couple minutes in the oven to get nice and golden.
For our salmon, I like to start with small, 4 oz salmon filets. I actually buy a bigger filet and cut it into smaller pieces myself, because this helps us maximize the surface area that we can schmear with teriyaki sauce. We’ll season the salmon with a little salt and pepper, brush it all over with your favorite teriyaki sauce, and roast it in the oven for just about 8-10 mins. When the salmon comes out of the oven, we’re going to use a clean brush and a new batch of teriyaki sauce to brush the salmon in more sauce to really amp up that flavor. If you’re salmon had skin on it, we’ll separate it from the skin, and flake up the meat.
Now, the salmon and wonton shells can actually go in the oven at the same time. Put the salmon on the top rack, and the wontons on the bottom. Just watch those wontons since they only take half the time to cook. While the salmon and wontons are in the oven, we can work on the final two components of our tacos.
To add some fresh crunch to our tacos, we’re going to mix some store bought broccoli slaw with some sliced green onions. We’re not going to dress the slaw, because we’re going to top the tacos with a creamy mayo sauce.
For our chili crisp sauce, we need some mayo, some chili crisp, and a splash of rice vinegar. Chili crisp is a pretty trendy Asian condiment right now and for good reason. It’s spicy and loaded with oil, chili peppers, garlic, and sesame among other things. And, it just screams umami and flavor. The mayo and vinegar help to tame down the spiciness a little bit while the sauce still majorly benefits from all those chili crisp components taking us to flavortown.
When it’s time to assemble, we’ll fill our wontons with some salmon, some slaw, and a drizzle of that mayo. We can finish with some sesame seeds and some more sliced green onions, and we have ourselves the most beautiful, the most flavorful, and the most adorable little treats.
These are absolute showstoppers as an appetizer, but they’re also a fun way to serve dinner if you’re looking to switch up your routine. You get crispy crunch from the wontons. You get sweet richness from the salmon. You get a fresh bite from the slaw. And you get a kick of heat from that mayo. Talk about the full experience in one bite!
Ok, everyone! As much as I hate to admit it, we’re about to officially transition into comfort food mode. So, buckle up!
I hope you guys love this one as much as I do. So, let’s eat!
Baked Salmon Wonton Tacos
Serves: 12 tacos Print
Ingredients:
For the Salmon:
3 4oz filets salmon, skin on
1/8 tsp salt
Pinch pepper
2 tbsp teriyaki sauce, divided
For the Chili Crisp Mayo:
2 tbsp mayonnaise
½ tbsp Szechuan chili crisp (I used Fly By Jing)
½ tsp rice vinegar
For the Tacos:
12 wonton wrappers
1 cup broccoli slaw, roughly chopped
2 green onions, light and dark green parts only, thinly sliced
Cooking spray
Sesame seeds, for garnish
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
Bake the wonton shells: Invert 2 cupcake pans. Arrange wonton wrappers on prepared baking sheet, 6 at a time. Spritz both sides of the wontons with cooking spray, then arrange wonton wrappers between the cups of the cupcake pan to hold them in a taco shape. (Hold the wonton like a diamond shape, then lay on the pan with the left and right corners pointing up. 6 wontons will fit per cupcake pan.) Repeat with remaining wontons. Bake for 4-5 minutes until the wonton are golden and crisp.
Prepare the salmon: On the same foil baking sheet used to spray the wontons, arrange salmon slices. Sprinkle with salt plus a pinch of pepper, and brush all over with 1 tbsp teriyaki sauce. Bake for 8-10 mins until the salmon is opaque, and the internal temperature reaches 145 degrees. Using a clean brush, brush additional 1 tbsp teriyaki sauce all over the salmon. Set aside.
Make the Chili Crisp Mayo: To a small mixing bowl, add mayo, chili crisp, and rice vinegar. Mix well to combine. Set aside.
Mix the broccoli slaw: To a mixing bowl, add chopped broccoli slaw and green onions. Toss well to mix. Set aside.
Assemble the tacos: Remove salmon from the skin, and flake the salmon into small pieces. Fill each wonton shell with salmon and broccoli slaw. Top with chili crisp mayo. Garnish with sesame seeds, if desired. Enjoy immediately.
Recipe notes:
*This recipe moves quickly with a little time management. You can bake the wonton shells at the same time as the salmon. Mix the slaw and mayo while they bake. Then, you can assemble when it’s all ready.
*I bought a bigger salmon filet and cut it into 3 pieces myself. You can maximize surface area to spread the teriyaki sauce that way. The salmon also cooks faster this way.
*Make sure you’re using different brushes and batches of teriyaki sauce for before and after the oven. We don’t want to cross contaminate!
*Giving the broccoli slaw a rough chop makes it a little easier to fit into the wonton shells.
*The wonton shells go from zero to burnt quickly, so keep an eye on them. 30 seconds makes all the difference.
