The first time I ever had a fish taco, I was a high schooler on a mission’s trip in Ensenada, Mexico. I had very strong opinions about food (wait, maybe that hasn’t changed!) and I think the word for those opinions would be, um, closed-minded (okay, so maybe that hasn’t changed much either!). One of the families that we were building a house for wanted to thank us for our hard work, so they made our group fish tacos for lunch. Please understand that at this point in my life, fish was not a word in my culinary vocabulary. So, obviously, I was thrilled that we were going to eat slabs of fried fish of questionable origin covered in some mysterious white sauce. Riiiiight…….
No, really, I was terrified.
But upon my first bite, I was converted. The fish was flaky, crispy, and tasty. The mysterious white sauce was actually good. In fact, it completed the taco. A.Maz.Ing. I wanted to eat fifteen of them, but I realized that there were 29 other kids who also needed lunch. Sharing. It’s so overrated.
I found this recipe on www.allrecipes.com. I’m so glad I did. Print it off (remember that “Print this Recipe” button at the top of this post?) and laminate it and put it on the fridge. Really – it belongs there next to your pre-schooler’s drawings. It’s that good.
By the way, we use tilapia instead of cod and have had great results. I’ve never served it with cabbage (greens – also overrated). If you have some on hand, Pico de Gallo also makes a delicious topping even though it’s not included in the original recipe.
fish tacos
White sauce:
- 1/2 cup plain yogurt
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1 lime, juiced
- 1 jalapeno pepper, minced
- 1 teaspoon minced capers
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed
- 1/2 – 1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper, depending on personal tastes
Batter
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 egg
- 1 cup beer
For frying:
- 1 quart oil for frying
- 1 pound cod fillets, cut into 2 to 3 ounce portions
- 12 corn tortillas
- 1/2 medium head cabbage, finely shredded
Thaw your fish and, if necessary, cut into 3-4″ strips.
Make the white sauce by combining all the ingredients in a medium sized bowl.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, corn starch, baking powder, and salt for the batter.
In a separate bowl, combine the beer and egg.
Mix the beer mixture into the flour mixture just until a few lumps remain. Coat the fish in the batter.
Heat oil in large frying pan over high heat until wavy and then reduce heat to medium. Working in small batches, carefully drop battered fish into the oil and cook until browned on one side.
Once golden on one side, flip the fish and cook until the second side is golden and fish is cooked through.
When cooked, place on a paper towel lined wire rack and blot top with another paper towel to remove excess grease.
While fish is cooking, heat corn tortillas on a pan on the stove until warm.
Serve while fish is still hot. Layer tortillas with white sauce, fish, and extra lime. Enjoy!
3 responses so far ↓
1 Jo // Jan 13, 2010 at 4:49 pm
one of the MANY reasons I wish I lived near you… these sound ohsogood
2 Lisa Travis // Jan 14, 2010 at 12:36 pm
Paula, I get Fine Cooking and have been dying to try the vodka pie crust recipe. I also tried the minestrone soup and added tortellini and spicy Italian sausage (since that’s all I had on hand) and it was AWESOME – possibly the best soup I’ve ever made. Thank you!
3 Michelle // Jan 19, 2010 at 9:02 pm
Yum!! I can almost taste it!
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