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    Home » Recipe » Seafood » Salmon Crudo

    Salmon Crudo

    Published: Feb 14, 2022 · Modified: Oct 26, 2022 by Sabrina Currie · This post may contain affiliate links.

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    If you love fresh raw salmon, you'll love this. Salmon crudo is lightly marinated in a lemon, orange and herb dressing and garnished with pickled shallots. So quick and easy, you'll have this impressive restaurant quality dish in just 15 minutes!

    Up close picture of thinly sliced sockeye salmon with chopped herb sauce and pickled shallots on top. It is in a white dish on a white tablecloth with green onions beside the plate.

    Frozen at sea salmon works excellent for this and makes it easy to create at any time of year. As a former salmon fisherman, I've always appreciated fresh seafood and eating it in a raw fish dish is the ultimate way to enjoy high quality salmon. (Check out my other raw salmon recipe, Salmon Carpaccio.)

    I love raw and marinated seafood dishes. This was inspired by my Mexican Tuna Ceviche and makes a great part of a seafood themed evening paired with Miso Baked Oysters and Scallop And Bacon Pasta. Or make it the start of an Italian themed dinner with Scallops Vongole Style and Italian White Beans.

    Salmon is so good raw, but for cooked salmon, I love Roasted Miso Glazed Salmon and these simple Air Fryer Salmon Bites.

    Jump to:
    • Recipe Ingredients
    • Kitchen Tools
    • Step-by-Step Instructions
    • Substitutions
    • Variations
    • Storage
    • FAQs and Expert Tips
    • Related Recipes
    • Recipe

    Recipe Ingredients

    Use the freshest ingredients you can to really make the flavors pop!

    Labelled ingredient picture from overhead showing salmon filet, orange, lemon, salt, parsley, chives, shallot and pepper.
    • Salmon - Sushi-grade salmon is what you need for this raw salmon dish. Fresh caught or fresh frozen-at-sea salmon is the best choice. Fresh salmon should smell only faintly of the salt and sea with no "fishy" smell. I love sockeye salmon for this recipe. It has a fine, buttery texture and is the most vibrantly colored salmon but other species work well too.
    • Citrus - Use fresh squeezed lemon and lime for this recipe because it is the next most important ingredient after the salmon. Lemon adds vibrancy and orange tempers the acidity. Use a small grater or microplaner to grate the lemon zest before cutting and juicing. Use extra orange or lemon wedges for garnish if you like.
    • Herbs - Soft chives or green onions and parsley add some flavor and texture. Chop these as finely as you can.

    See recipe card for quantities.

    Kitchen Tools

    Using a sharp knife is essential if you want nice smooth and thin slices of salmon. I use this santoku chefs knife which has little indentations. The little indents create airspace so the slices don't stick to the knife!

    I love my microplane grater for zesting citrus. It also works great for grating parmesan, garlic, ginger and chocolate too. If you don't have one, use the back of your box grater and use the smaller side to grate the citrus zest. If you have neither, you can use a small paring knife to carefully slice strips of zest off and then mince the strips to tiny pieces.

    Sharp large chefs knife, box grater and micro plane grater on a white marble countertop.
    Red thinly sliced salmon on a narrow platter with green herb and citrus dressing down the middle. There are pickled shallots sprinkled over.

    Step-by-Step Instructions

    1. Thinly slice shallot and place in a bowl with red wine vinegar and set aside to pickle slightly while you finish the recipe.
    White bowl with thinly sliced shallots and red wine vinegar in it.

    2. Next, grate orange and lemon zest and squeeze the fresh lemon juice and orange juice.

    A lemon and orange with the zest grated off into a white bowl.

    3. Mix all the crudo dressing ingredients together and set aside.

    Light orange colored dressing in white bowl. Knife and citrus halves are beside.
    Bowl of dressing with the green herbs chopped finely on the cutting board beside the bowl.
    Citrus parsley dressing in white bowl. It looks green.


    4. Lay salmon filet on a cutting board horizontally. Using a sharp knife, trim any bruised or discolored bits off. If salmon has bones, pull them out in the same direction they are sitting in using needle nose pliers or tweezers.

    A knife at a horizontal angle slicing a salmon filet across the grain.

    5. Slice salmon off the skin, thinly across the grain. Continue slicing, laying each piece of salmon on your serving dish as you go.

    A long white skinny serving platter with thinly sliced salmon along it.


    6. Once the salmon is all sliced on the platter, drizzle with the crudo dressing, sprinkle with drained pickled shallots and season to taste with additional salt and black pepper if desired.

    Bright orangey red salmon on long skinny platter topped with green herb dressing and purple pickled shallots on a white tablecloth.

    Substitutions

    • Herbs - Cilantro makes an excellent substitution for the parsley. It will add a Mexican flavor and goes very well with crudo.
    • Pickled Shallots - You can use pickled cocktail onions instead of shallots. Simply slice them thinly and scatter on top of dressed salmon. You can also choose to skip the pickling step and just use thin red onion slices.

    Variations

    Love this and want to try it again with a twist? Try one of these ideas!

    • Tuna - Swap out salmon for sushi grade tuna crudo. Slice it thinly across the grain the same way you would for salmon.
    • Scallops - Ditto for scallops. Thinly slice scallops through the center horizontally making them thin circles. Use a light vegetable oil instead of olive oil in the dressing then spoon over the raw scallops.
    • Japanese Salmon Crudo - Use soy sauce or ponzu sauce in place of the orange zest and juice and add 3-5 drops of sesame oil to the dressing. Finish with a sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds instead of the shallots.
    Sliced raw salmon on a blue plate with green citrus herb dressing spooned over top.

    Storage

    Salmon crudo is best eaten fresh. Leftovers can be covered in an airtight container or with plastic wrap and stored in the refrigerator and are best eaten within 1 day.

    The pickled shallots can be made up to 5 days in advance and the rest of the recipe can be made a few hours ahead and kept cold. When ready to serve, bring out of fridge and let come to cool room temperature (about 10 minutes) before serving.

    This does not freeze well.

    FAQs and Expert Tips

    Is salmon crudo raw?

    Yes, crudo means raw in Italian and Spanish. Crudo is a traditional Italian dish that is usually made of raw fish or other seafood but can also be made with raw beef or thinly sliced vegetables.

    Why is some salmon orange and some white?

    Different species of salmon are different shades. Ranging from the almost red sockeye to the pale pink of a pink salmon. Some, like the king salmon (aka chinook or spring salmon) can be deeper or lighter in color including even white!

    Related Recipes

    Here on the West Coast, we love our seafood and I have lots of fish recipes to share. Here are some of my favorites:

    • Top 20+ Easy, Healthy Salmon Breakfast Ideas and Recipes
    • Best (Easy) Sea Scallop Appetizers
    • Easy Grilled Prawns With Garlic Butter
    • Spicy Mango Kani Salad

    To make the salmon easier to slice, pop it in the freezer for 10 or 15 minutes before cutting. If you are thawing salmon from frozen, slice it when it's only half thawed and keep slices covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated until serving.

    For more on what I'm cooking up, follow me on Instagram or Facebook. You might also like my FREE printable weekly meal planner.

    Cheers friends! Sabrina

    Have a delicious day!

    Sabrina

    Recipe

    Red thinly sliced salmon on a narrow platter with green herb and citrus dressing down the middle. There are pickled shallots sprinkled over.

    Salmon Crudo

    Delicious raw salmon recipe with flavors of herbs, lemon and orange, topped with pickled shallots. A fast and impressive appetizer for a large or small group.
    5 from 13 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Appetizer, Seafood
    Cuisine: Italian, Spanish
    Prep Time: 15 minutes
    Total Time: 15 minutes
    Servings: 4
    Calories: 138kcal
    Author: Sabrina Currie

    Ingredients

    • 250 g Sushi grade salmon filet (½ lb) I like to use sockeye salmon
    • 1 Shallot
    • 2 tablespoon Red wine vinegar

    Crudo Dressing

    • 1 teaspoon Each: Lemon and orange zest
    • 3 tablespoon Lemon juice
    • 1 tablespoon Orange juice
    • ½ c Each, parsley and chives finely chopped
    • 2 teaspoon Sugar
    • ½ teaspoon Salt or to taste
    • 1 tablespoon Olive oil
    • Black pepper to taste

    Instructions

    • Thinly slice shallot and place in a bowl with red wine vinegar and set aside to pickle slightly while you finish the recipe.
    • Next, mix all the crudo dressing ingredients together and set aside.
    • Lay salmon filet on a cutting board horizontally. Using a sharp knife, slice salmon off the skin, thinly across the grain. Continue slicing, laying each piece on your serving dish as you go.
    • Once the salmon is all sliced on the platter, drizzle with the crudo dressing, sprinkle with drained pickled shallots and season to taste with additional salt and pepper if desired.

    Notes

    For optimum flavor its important to use fresh squeezed citrus juice and make sure to zest the lemon and orange before you cut and squeeze juice.
    Note: Ensure salmon is trimmed and deboned. Using a sharp knife, trim any bruised or discolored bits off. If salmon has bones, pull them out in the same direction they are sitting in using needle nose pliers or tweezers.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 138kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 13g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 34mg | Sodium: 320mg | Potassium: 351mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 37IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 12mg | Iron: 1mg
    Tried this Recipe? Tag me Today!Mention @wckitchengarden or tag #wckitchengarden!
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    About Sabrina Currie

    Classically French trained cook, photographer and food stylist living on beautiful Vancouver Island, BC.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Wes Erikson

      February 16, 2022 at 8:10 am

      That looks really good!!

      Reply
      • Sabrina Currie

        February 16, 2022 at 10:23 am

        Thanks Wes! No one knows how good fresh seafood is more than you!

        Reply
    2. nancy

      February 27, 2022 at 6:51 pm

      Love this refreshing salmon recipe

      Reply
      • Sabrina Currie

        February 27, 2022 at 7:19 pm

        Thanks Nancy, nothing beats fresh salmon does it?!

        Reply

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