Fish Tacos

Tonight's dinner was fish tacos served on corn tortillas with black beans, broccoli slaw, queso fresco, and a little cilantro. I have never made or eaten fish tacos, but have loved the idea of them. I chose a Martha Stewart recipe to adapt because her recipes tend to work well: if you follow the instructions, everything turns out right.

I chose to use tilapia because it is fairly mild and it was on sale; however, the recipe calls for any firm white fish. Conversely, I saw other recipes for fish tacos that called for fish that flaked easily. I bought a pound of tilapia fillets today so they would be as fresh as possible, and we ate all but a quarter cup of the cooked fish. The New Englander in me prefers to buy fish that was caught the same morning that I bought it. The recipe also called for thinly shredded red cabbage, but I chose a small bag of broccoli slaw. That is something else that I have always wanted to cook with, but for which I could never find a use. This is much faster than trying to shred cabbage and changes the visual effect of the tacos from a reddish purple accent to a green accent. Again, in my opinion, this is a matter of preference that will not adversely affect the taste of the tacos.

I chose to to cut the tilapia strips in half horizontally because corn tortillas are tiny. In addition, I cook with grapeseed oil instead of olive oil. This recipe did not call for cheese, but what Mexican food is complete without some queso? I bought queso fresco for the first time, and it was perfect crumbled in the tacos. Finally, I used green onions because the produce guy at the store said they were the same as scallions. And I used about half of what was called for. If I had sliced them thinner, I would have used more.


While the fish was cooking, Sydney heated the tortillas on a griddle pan over medium heat. This pic shows a flour tortilla that I used to make a quesadilla for Audrey. While the second batch of fish cooked, I drained the already-cooked fish on a plate covered with a paper towel. The thinner slices of fish in the second batch did not need 5 minutes on each side. Another tip is to pause between batches to replenish the oil in the pan and to let it heat up. In order to use the queso fresco, cut a few cubes and then crush them between your fingers over your taco. Finally, I took the one long half of the jalapeno that was for cooking the fish, and cut it lengthwise into three slices. I thought it might spread the jalapeno wealth throughout the pan.

As soon as the fish was done, we loaded up each taco with broccoli slaw, fish, black beans, crumbled queso fresco, and a little cilantro. I think you could easily put finely diced tomatoes, too. Another good addition would be thinly sliced cucumbers that have been marinated in lime, olive oil, and sugar. (I will find a recipe for you because these cucumbers are divine.) While Freebirds taught me the value of rice in a burrito, this meal does not need it in order to be filling. We chose to have some pineapple chunks on the side of our tacos. I do not like spicy food, and this was not spicy at all. In fact, if you like spicier food, you might consider using a spicier pepper or keeping some seeds in your jalapenos. Coarse salt and ground pepper are called for without specific measures, so I was heavy with the pepper and sparing with the salt. I rubbed the salt and pepper into the fish instead of just sprinkling it over the fish. If you like salty food, add more salt to the fish or to the broccoli slaw mix. Overall, I loved my first fish tacos! The girls ate them, but I did not require Zach and Audrey to because I was not sure how spicy it would be. Next time I will serve it to them.

1/4 c reduced-fat sour cream
2 T lime juice
Coarse salt and ground pepper
2 1/2 c broccoli slaw mix
1/2 c thinly sliced green onion
1 jalapeno, halved lengthwise, one half minced
2 T grapeseed oil
1 lb tilapia fillets, cut into 16 equal strips
enough corn tortillas for your family, around 8
1/8 c fresh cilantro, finely chopped

1. In a bowl, combine sour cream and lime juice; season with salt and pepper. Transfer half the mixture to another small container; set aside for serving. Toss cabbage, green onions, and minced jalapeno with the remaining sour cream mixture. Season again with salt and pepper.

2. In a large skillet, heat oil and remaining jalapeno over med-high heat, making sure to coat the bottom of the pan. Season fish on both sides with salt and pepper. In two batches (starting with larger pieces) cook fish until golden brown on all sides, 5-6 min. Discard jalapeno.

3. Meanwhile warm tortillas and black beans, according to package directions.

4. Fill tacos with slaw, fish, black beans, queso fresco, and cilantro. Garnish with drizzled sour cream mixture. Serve immediately. (The pic is from my leftovers and I did not have any extra sour cream.)

Find the recipe at www.marthastewart.com/262267/fish-tacos