Grilled Salmon Salad with Strawberry Salsa

Grilled Salmon Salad with strawberry salsa, baby arugula, avocado, and homemade balsamic vinaigrette. This clean and refreshing dinner recipe is packed with nutrients for a delicious healthy dinner!

There’s so much going on in this bowl, I can barely contain my elation. 

We’ve got perfectly cooked grilled salmon with fresh strawberry salsa on top of a peppery arugula salad, creamy avocado slices, all dressed in homemade strawberry balsamic vinaigrette.

The freshness and flavor of the balsamic vinaigrette and the strawberry salsa, paired with the rich buttery salmon tickles the taste buds and gives you that sensational refreshed feeling.

Fancy enough to serve for a special occasion and easy enough to make on any given weeknight, this easy recipe is perfect for grilling season. 

While I use a simple dry rub for the salmon, you can also marinate the fish using The Best Salmon Marinade. 

If you enjoy main dish salads, add this wild salmon salad to your arsenal! 

Let’s discuss the fresh ingredients in this salmon salad recipe. You can find them at any grocery store.

Ingredients For Grilled Salmon Salad:

For the Salmon:

Pick up a fresh salmon filet (or individual fresh salmon fillets) and choose your favorite seasonings. Simple sea salt and pepper is plenty for seasoning the salmon or you can do as I do and sprinkle it with a dry rub consisting of garlic powder, onion powder, and paprika. 

Use your favorite type of salmon here. I like wild-caught salmon for a hefty dose of omega-3 fatty acids, but you can also use sockeye salmon or Atlantic salmon.

Salad Ingredients:

Baby arugula, avocado and radishes are all I use for the green salad. Add in your favorite veggies for a winning salad!

Strawberry Salsa Ingredients:

The strawberry salsa consists of fresh strawberries, jalapeno, red onion, a small clove of garlic and fresh lime juice. You can sweeten it up by adding pure maple syrup. 

Balsamic Dressing Ingredients:

Extra virgin olive oil (or avocado oil), balsamic vinegar, honey, dijon mustard, fresh strawberries and some sea salt is all we need for the homemade balsamic dressing. I also like adding a little fresh lemon juice and lemon zest but this is purely optional.

There are plenty of ways you can mix up this recipe to make it your own. Here are some ways you can customize this healthy dinner recipe.

Recipe Adaptations:

• Get creative with the fresh veggies and fresh greens. Baby spinach, spring greens, kale, romaine lettuce, cherry tomatoes, carrots, sprouts, kalamata olives, bell peppers, hard-boiled eggs, are all great options along with any of your favorite fresh vegetables.
• You can use any type of fruit for the salsa, including blueberries, peaches, mango, or pineapple.
• Swap the grilled salmon out for The Best Grilled Chicken Thighs, Perfect Grilled Steak, or your favorite type of animal protein. Rotisserie chicken works great here!
• Cheese lovers, toss in some feta cheese, goat cheese, or blue cheese.
• Use your favorite store-bought or homemade dressing. My Creamy Balsamic Vinaigrette or Homemade Italian Salad Dressing Recipe is great here!
• Add nuts such as pistachios, walnuts, or pecans. Sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds are great in this application too!
• Use any spice blend you like for the salmon. Chili powder is a great option, and ground cumin and ground coriander are lovely too.
• If you have fresh herbs like fresh mint, fresh basil, fresh dill, or fresh parsley on hand, feel free to chop them up and mix them in with the salad greens.

Now that we’ve covered the healthy ingredients list, let’s make this amazing Grilled Salmon Salad!

How to Make Grilled Salmon Salad:

Prepare the Salad Ingredients:

Add all of the ingredients for the vinaigrette to a small blender and blend until smooth. Transfer to a jar or sealable container and refrigerate until ready to use.

Stir together the ingredients for the salsa in a bowl. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Add the ingredients for the salad to a large serving bowl and toss in your desired amount of strawberry vinaigrette. Refrigerate until the salmon is ready.

Prepare the Grilled Salmon:

Scrape any food particles off of your grill and spray (or brush) it with oil. This ensures the fish will not stick to the grill. Preheat the outdoor grill to medium-high heat (about 400 to 450 degrees F), keeping the grill covered. 

Note: if you’re using a charcoal grill, ignite the coals in a charcoal chimney starter and allow them to heat until many of the coals are white before spreading them into the grill.

Place the salmon on a large plate, baking sheet, or in a large casserole dish. Drizzle with olive oil. Use your hands to spread the oil over the flesh so that the whole surface is coated. Stir together all of the spices (or use your favorite spice blend) and sprinkle them over the fish.

Place the salmon skin-side down over direct heat and cover the grill, leaving the fish untouched for 5 to 6 minutes. Note: some people prefer cooking salmon skin side up first. If this is your preference, feel free to do so.

Carefully flip and cook on the other side for about 2 minutes, or until grill marks appear. Move the salmon to indirect heat at any point to keep it from getting too charred.

Salmon filets that are one inch thick or less will take about 8 minutes total on the grill. Thicker filets will require 10 to 12 minutes. You can cook the salmon for less time if you want the center of the fish to be rare).

Salmon is considered fully cooked once it reaches an internal temperature of 145 degrees F. Insert a meat thermometer into the thicket part of the filet to get an accurate read on the temperature.

Transfer the grilled salmon to a cutting board and let salmon rest for at least 10 minutes. Use a sharp knife to cut smaller filets to serve.

Serve arugula salad with salmon and top with strawberry salsa. 

Store any leftover salmon in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

If you would rather bake the salmon, follow My Go-To Crispy Salmon Recipe or my Crispy Skillet Salmon for a pan seared salmon method.

And that’s it! A simple dinner recipe that is big on flavor and relatively easy to prepare. 

This delicious salad is also a perfect complete meal for meal prep for those who like to batch cook ahead of time. It may just be your new favorite hearty salad no matter the time of the year!

If you love healthy salmon recipes like this, also try out these reader favorites.

More Salmon Recipes:

• 4-Ingredient Mediterranean Stuffed Salmon
• Easy Canned Salmon Salad  
• Sun-Dried Tomato and Feta Baked Salmon with Spinach  
• Baked Garlic Butter Salmon
• Crispy Sesame Salmon  
• Greek Salmon Salad  
• Crispy Skillet Salmon with Lemon Caper Dill Sauce  

Enjoy this easy grilled salmon salad during the warm summer months and beyond!

Grilled Salmon Salad with Strawberry Salsa

5 from 4 votes

Grilled Salmon with Strawberry Salsa is the only salmon salad recipe you'll need all summer long!

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Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings: 2 Large Salads

Ingredients

For the Grilled Salmon

• 1 pound salmon fillet
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• ¼ teaspoon sea salt to taste

Strawberry Salsa:

• 6 large ripe strawberries finely chopped
• 1 jalapeno seeded and chopped
• 1/2 cup red onion finely chopped
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
• Pinch sea salt to taste

Arugula Salad:

• 5 ounces baby arugula
• 1 large ripe avocado diced
• 3 radishes thinly sliced

Strawberry Balsamic Vinaigrette

• 1/3 cup olive oil
• ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
• 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
• 3 ripe strawberries chopped
• 2 Tbsp honey to taste
• 1 Tbsp dijon mustard to taste

Instructions

Prepare the Strawberry Vinaigrette:

• Add all of the ingredients for the vinaigrette to a blender and blend until smooth. Transfer to a jar or sealable container and refrigerate until ready to use.

Prepare the Strawberry Salsa:

• Stir together the ingredients for the salsa in a bowl. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Prepare the Arugula Salad:

• Add the ingredients for the salad to a large serving bowl and toss in desired amount of strawberry vinaigrette. Refrigerate until the salmon is ready.

Prepare the Grilled Salmon:

• Place the salmon on a large plate, baking sheet, or in a large casserole dish. Drizzle with olive oil. Use your hands to spread the oil over the flesh so that the whole surface is coated. Stir together all of the spices (or use your favorite spice blend) and sprinkle them over the fish.
• Scrape any food particles off of your grill and spray (or brush) it with oil. This ensures the fish will not stick to the grill. Preheat the grill to medium-high (about 400 to 450 degrees F), keeping the grill covered. Note: if you're using a charcoal grill, ignite the coals in a charcoal chimney starter and allow them to heat until many of the coals are white before spreading them into the grill.
• Place the salmon filet on the grill skin-side down and cover the grill, leaving the fish untouched for 5 to 6 minutes. Carefully flip and cook on the other side about 2 minutes, or until grill marks appear. Note: Salmon filets that are one inch thick or less will take about 8 minutes total on the grill. Thicker filets will require 10 to 12 minutes. You can cook the salmon for less time if you want the center of the fish to be rare). Salmon is considered fully cooked once it reaches an internal temperature of 145 degrees F. Insert a meat thermometer into the thicket part of the filet to get an accurate read on the temperature.
• Transfer the grilled salmon to a cutting board and let salmon rest for at least 10 minutes. Use a sharp knife to cut smaller fillets to serve.
• Serve arugula salad with salmon and top with strawberry salsa.

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Nutrition

Serving: 1Serving (of 2) · Calories: 1020kcal · Protein: 54g

Author: Julia

Course: Main Dishes

Cuisine: American

Keyword: clean eating, gluten free recipes, grilled salmon salad, healthy dinner recipe, healthy salad recipes, paleo dinner recipe, salmon salad recipe

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I originally shared this recipe April 15, 2016. I updated the photos, blog post copy, and made a few changes to the recipe to make it even better.