Salmon Lettuce Wraps with Cucumber, Jicama, and Ginger

Fresh and healthy lettuce wrap with poached salmon, cucumber jicama, and ginger.

School is out, summer is here, and potluck season has commenced. That said, one cannot live on lasagna every day. (Or at least I can’t, maybe you can?)

The best way to survive hot days or heavy dishes is to balance them out with something cool and light, like these salmon lettuce wraps.

If you want, you can use leftover cooked salmon from another dish, but the method we describe here for rubbing it first with salt and ginger, then poaching it in salted water infused with lemon, will result in beautifully flavored salmon.

The salmon is paired with a salad of chopped jicama, cucumber, cilantro, onion, ginger, lime, and mint and served in lettuce leaves with some avocado slices.

Salmon Lettuce Wraps with Cucumber, Jicama, and Ginger Recipe

  • Prep time: 30 minutes
  • Cook time: 20 minutes
  • Yield: Serves 4

Prep the ingredients for the cucumber, jicama, ginger salad while the salmon fillets are marinating.

Ingredients

  • 12 ounces skinless salmon fillets, cut into two even pieces
  • 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt for marinade
  • 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger root
  • 4 cups water
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons Kosher salt for poaching liquid
  • Slice of lemon
  • 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice

Cucumber, Jicama, Ginger Salad:

  • 3/4 cup of seeded, diced, thin-skinned (English or Persian) cucumber, peel-on (you can also use regular cucumbers that have been peeled)
  • 2/3 cup peeled, small diced jicama
  • 1/4 thinly sliced red onion
  • 3 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
  • 1 teaspoon grated lime zest
  • 2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
  • 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
  • 1 Tbsp chopped fresh mint
  • 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
  • 1 ripe avocado
  • 6 large leaves of butter lettuce

Method

1 Marinate the salmon fillets: Rub with 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt and a teaspoon of grated ginger. Set in refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes, while you prep the other ingredients.

2 Combine cucumbers, jicama, red onion, cilantro, lime, ginger, mint, salt: In a medium bowl, gently combine the diced cucumbers, jicama, red onion, cilantro, lime zest, lime juice, grated ginger, chopped mint, and salt. Set aside for the flavors to blend.

3 Poach the salmon: Prepare salmon poaching liquid. Place water, salt, and a slice of lemon in a pot wide enough to hold the salmon fillets. Bring to a boil and let simmer for about 5 minutes.

Add the salmon fillets that have been marinating in ginger and salt to the poaching liquid. Return to a simmer and cook for about 4 minute at a very low simmer.

When just cooked through, remove from poaching liquid and place in a bowl. Toss with a teaspoon of olive oil and a teaspoon of lemon juice. Once the salmon has cooled to touch, break up gently into large flakes.

4 Arrange the lettuce wraps: Slice the avocado. On to each butter lettuce leaf, place a few chunks of salmon, a large spoonful of the cucumber jicama mixture, and top with some slices of avocado.

Fold up the lettuce wrap and eat!