Poke Nachos has totally become my top favorite party appetizer to make for my friends this year. It has all the best flavors of Asian and Mexican cuisine so it’s bound to be a true crowd-pleaser!
Poke Nachos is something I first had at our local Japanese restaurant and I really enjoyed it a lot the first few times I had it. But in the last couple years (as we all had to rely on take out orders mostly), I found that the chips got all soggy when we brought them home. So, I decided that I should try to make a recipe for it!
At first, I just started making it for our neighborhood parties as an appetizer but because everyone all raved about it so much that I decided to share it with you all here!
What kind of chips is best for Poke Nachos?
Although you can use any tortilla chips, I recommend that you use a thicker one if possible because it can become soggy pretty quickly. So it’s best to not add the toppings too much ahead of time because they will get soggy. If I’m bringing it to a party, I like to bring the ingredients separately in containers and then just assemble it at the party. It also doesn’t travel well as it will likely move on the plate a lot so that’s another reason why I like to put it together at the party place.
Making Poke Nachos ahead of time
As I wrote above, I wouldn’t recommend plating the Poke Nachos too much in advance but you can certainly make both the Gochujang Mayo and Sweet Soy Sauces days ahead. You can also make the poke up to 24 hrs before although the fish won’t look as bright if you keep it marinated too long.
bUYING and HANDLING raw fish for Poke
Because you are eating the fish basically raw, you should take care of where and what fish you buy and also how you store them. When buying fish for this dish, buy ‘sushi grade’ or ‘sashimi grade’ salmon and tuna. Although these are not official term, at least the store is saying they think it’s safe for raw consumption.
Also, know that the store may sell the sashimi as a piece of fillet or there may be a ‘poke’ style cubed fish which will be much cheaper. Or in the Korean markets, they may label as something for ‘Hoedeopbap 회덮밥’. Btw, here’s my Hoedoepbap recipe should you need one.
I recommend that you buy the fish on the day of consumption or at most 1 day before. Be sure to keep it refrigerated and keep the fish in a bowl on top of ice while you are handling it. Basically, minimize the time the fish is out at room temperature. Once it’s seasoned, I think it’s a bit safer and can be left on the platter for the duration of the party.
What to do with leftovers Poke Nachos?
Although I doubt that you will have much leftover, I have had some leftovers sometimes and I actually like to make a Poke Rice Bowl out of it. All these ingredients work so well on top of rice. Just add some Masago eggs on top and it will be delicious!
Ingredients
- 12 oz tortilla chips
- 3/4 lb raw Ahi Tuna and/or Salmon (sashimi grade)
- 2 limes (for juicing)
- 1 avocado
- 2 Jalapeno peppers
Poke Marinade
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tsp rice vinegar
- 2 tsp sesame oil
Reduced Sweet Soy Sauce
- 4.5 Tbsp soy sauce jin ganjang
- 3 Tbsp sugar
- 1.5 Tbsp water
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 2 tsp fresh lime juice*
- 2 tsp maesil syrup (cheong) green plum
- 1.5 tsp sesame oil
Gochujang Mayo Sauce
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1 Tbsp water
- 2 tsp gochujang
- 1 tsp fresh lime juice*
* You will need about 2 large limes to make about 1 Tbs of lime juice for the basic recipe
Step-by-Step Instructions for Poke Nachos
Cut salmon and ahi tuna into poke cubes – no bigger than 1/2 inch. Because these will be used as toppings for nachos, we don’t want them too big. 
- Marinate salmon and/or tuna with soy sauce, vinegar and sesame oil. Mix it well and refrigerate in the marinade while you prepare the other ingredients. You can use it immediately or let it marinade longer (even overnight up to 2 days).
- In a small sauce pot, add ingredients for the Reduced Sweet Soy Sauce – soy sauce, water, sugar, fresh lime juice, honey, sesame oil and maesil syrup (green plum). The link to maesil has info for substitute.
- Bring the sweet soy sauce to a boil then immediately reduce to simmer (lowest setting should work). Watch the pot because the sauce can easily boil over. Simmer and reduce the sauce for 15 min or so. Let it cool. The sauce should be thick and syrup once cooled.
- Cut avocado into small cubes (smaller than fish).
- Chop green onions and cilantro.
- Slice Jalapenos thinly – to reduce the heat, you can remove the seeds.
- In a bowl mix mayo, gochujang, water and fresh lime juice. If you don’t have gochujang, use siracha but reduce amount of lime juice. If you have a sauce bottle, fill it with the mayo sauce so it’s easier to drizzle later.
- HOW TO PLATE – when you are ready to serve, layer a large platter (16″x10″) with tortilla chips. Then top it with the marinated fish cubes (poke), avocado, green onions, jalapeno peppers and cilantro.
- Drizzle the top with gochujang mayo and reduced sweet soy sauce. I usually like to use a sauce bottle or spoon and drizzle in a crisscross fashion,. Be sure to not skimp on the sauce because that’s what really makes this dish.
Cut salmon and ahi tuna into poke cubes – no bigger than 1/2 inch. Because these will be used as toppings for nachos, we don’t want them too big. 
Here’s how glorious my Poke Nachos looks all plated up!
Watch Video
Poke Nachos with Gochujang Mayo Sauce
Ingredients
- 12 oz tortilla chips
- 3/4 lb Ahi Tuna, Salmon sashimi grade
- 2 limes juice and add to sauces
- 1 avocado
- 2 Jalapeno peppers or Korean Green Chili peppers
- 1/4 cup cilantro chopped
Poke Marinade
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tsp rice vinegar
- 2 tsp sesame oil
Reduced Sweet Soy Sauce
- 4.5 Tbsp soy sauce jin ganjang
- 3 Tbsp sugar
- 1.5 Tbsp water
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 2 tsp lime juice
- 2 tsp maesil syrup (cheong) green plum
- 1.5 tsp sesame oil
Gochujang Mayo Sauce
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1 Tbsp water
- 2 tsp gochujang
- 1 tsp lime juice
Instructions
- Cut salmon and ahi tuna into poke cubes – no bigger than 1/2 inch. Because these will be used as toppings for nachos, we don’t want them too big.
- Marinate salmon and/or tuna with soy sauce, vinegar and sesame oil. Mix it well and refrigerate in the marinade while you prepare the other ingredients. Marinate for 15 min or let it marinade longer (even overnight up to 2 days).
- In small sauce pot, add ingredients for the Reduced Sweet Soy Sauce – soy sauce, water, sugar, fresh lime juice, honey, sesame oil and maesil syrup (green plum). Check notes for substitute recipe for Green Plum Syrup (Maesil Cheong).
- Bring the sweet soy sauce to boil then immediately reduce to simmer (lowest setting should work). Watch the pot because the sauce can easily boil over. Simmer and reduce the sauce for 15 min or so. Let it cool. The sauce should be thick and syrup once cooled.
- Cut avocado into small cubes (smaller than fish). Chop green onions and cilantro.
- Slice Jalapenos thinly – to reduce the heat, you can remove the seeds. Add more or less to taste.
- In a bowl mix mayo, gochujang, water and fresh lime juice. If you don't have gochujang, use siracha but reduce the amount of lime juice in that case. If you have a sauce bottle, fill it with the mayo and sweet soy sauce. It makes it lot easier to dress the chips.
- HOW TO PLATE – when you are ready to serve, layer a large platter (16″x10″) with tortilla chips. Then top it with the marinated fish cubes (poke), avocado, green onions, jalapeno peppers and cilantro. Drizzle the top with gochujang mayo and reduced sweet soy sauce. I usually like to use a sauce bottle or spoon and drizzle in a criss cross fashion,. Be sure to not skimp on the sauce.
Tips & Notes:
- You can read more about Maesil Cheong (Green Plum Syrup) HERE. If you don’t have Maesil you can substitute the following. For 2 tsp Maesil Cheong = mix 1/2 Tbs water + 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar + 1/4 tsp sugar.
- Be sure to keep the poke fish refrigerated until you are ready to serve.
Overall, they came out good! I would use slightly less sesame oil in the marinade next time, but everyone enjoyed these so much. I could not get my reduced soy sauce to thicken into a glaze/syrup, but I always seem to have that problem when making similar sauces so I need to work on getting better at that.
Oh, you just need to cook/simmer longer for the sauce to reduce. Glad you enjoyed it!
I’ve made this several times for friends over the holidays and they’ve loved it, thank you! One thing to note – in one place your recipe calls for 1/4 cup mayo and in another place, 1/2. I used the 1/4 cup and the mayo wasn’t enough, so you probably meant 1/2?
Hi Carrie, thank you soo much for pointing that out! Yes I meant 1/2 cup. I just corrected it. I’m so happy to hear that your friends love it!! Happy New Year!
Hi JinJoo! I bought all the ingredients, but hadn’t noticed that the salmon has to be cooked thoroughly. Too late to exchange it, so I will just have to cook it first. Any suggestions as to how?
Hi Wendy, the salmon is supposed to be eaten raw – like sashimi. So you need to buy ‘Sashimi grade’ special salmon to make this recipe. Also, the marinating of the fish is kind of ‘cooking’ it. Hope that helps! Happy Holidays!