Fish Tacos

Fish tacos are a lighter and more refreshing alternative to some types of Mexican foods. There are many variations using different types of fish, vegetables and sauce. Which is why they are great to make at home, you choose your favorite ingredients and the amount of spice you want. This is one of my favorites and was easy to make. I know some of you may be thinking “This can’t possibly be easy with all the ingredients being used!” However, it can be very easy with a little planning. I made the sauce the night before and refrigerated it and I made the slaw a couple of hours in advance and refrigerated it. So when dinner time came around all I had to do was make the fish and dinner was on the table in about 15 minutes. The ingredients below will serve 2 people. See Chatty Advice below for a different take.

Ingredients

Slaw
1/2cup of green cabbage thinly sliced
1/2 cup of red cabbage thinly sliced
1/4 cup of jicama peeled and grated or thinly sliced
2 tablespoons of red onion minced
2 tablespoons of cilantro minced
2 teaspoons of lime juice
Dash of Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
Sauce
3 tablespoons of sour cream
2 tablespoons of mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon of adobo seasoning
1/2 teaspoon of chili powder
Fish
2 filets of tilapia (about 6 oz. total weight) cut into pieces about 3 – 4 inches in length and 1 – 2 inches in width
1/4 cup of egg beaters or 1 egg beaten
3/4 cup of panko bread crumbs or plain bread crumbs
1 teaspoon of adobo seasoning
1 teaspoon of chili powder
1/2 teaspoon of crushed red pepper
Dash of fresh ground pepper
Accompaniments
Corn or flour tortillas
Diced tomatoes (optional)
Diced avocados (optional)
Lime wedges for garnishing or squeezing juice over fish (optional)

Technique

Make the sauce by mixing all ingredients in a small bowl. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Make the slaw by adding all the ingredients in a medium bowl and mix well. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

In a large shallow bowl mix all dry ingredients for fish. Rinse fish and pat dry. Cut into strips about 3 – 4 inches in length and 1 – 2 inches width. Dredge the fish in egg beaters and then into the panko bread crumb mixture. Place on a baking sheet lined with foil or coated with non-stick cooking spray. Bake in a preheated oven at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes. Assemble by smearing sauce on a tortilla add the slaw top with fish. Add any other accompaniments you may like and dish it up our way!

Suggested Side Dish

If wanting a side dish try Charro Beans or Island Rice.

Suggested Beverage

A margarita – try our Classic Margarita or Tres Citrus Rita or a Mexican beer try – Modelo especial, Dos Equies, Corona with a wedge of lime.  For kids try Sidral Mundant, which is an apple soda, Sidral Manzana Verde, which is a green apple soda or Barrilitos Fruit Punch. These can be found in the Ethnic section of most large grocery stores or in Mexican stores.

Chatty Advice

As we have said, everyone has their own take on fish tacos. Our co-contributing editor Ellen gave me hers that she says is very simple and calls for less ingredients. “The sauce – lime and mayo is all I use. I usually wait until I see the breaded catfish at the fish counter and just broil those and add the lime mayo, greens and diced tomato. I’m sure Kevin adds salsa since he puts it on everything. It’s one of my personal favorites for a weeknight meal. I make the kids fish quesadillas and everyone is happy!” There you have it folks – another option that may be easier – you decide!