Fried (or seared) Fish Tacos

Fish tacos are a great Although this recipe was originally meant for fried fish tacos, if you don’t have a deep-fat fryer or if you just want to keep things healthier, you can also cook your fish on the stove top (with slight adjustments).

 
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Slaw

Ingredients:

  • ½ head red cabbage

  • ½ head green cabbage

  • 1 large carrot, peeled and shredded (or 2 cups of pre-shredded carrots)

  • ½ cup kosher salt

  • 1 cup white vinegar

  • ½ cup lime juice

  • 1 cup sugar

  • 3 TBSP lightly ground coriander

Instructions:

  1. Slice the cabbage thinly

  2. Shred the carrot either on a mandolin or box grater (Ignore this if you bought pre-shredded carrots)

  3. Mix the cabbage and carrots with the kosher salt and place into a colander. Place colander over a pan and set in the refrigerator overnight or for at least six hours.

    (PLEASE NOTE: By salting the slaw veg and letting it sit over night, the salt will pull water out of the veg, making for optimum crunchiness when put on a taco. If you’re in a rush you can skip the salting process all together and skip straight to step five.)

  4. The next morning, put the slaw into a vessel and soak in water for about five minutes. The slaw should be crunchy and slightly salty. If too salty, let veg continue to soak for a few minutes.

  5. Squeeze excess water out of the slaw by hand and place somewhere dry.

  6. For the slaw dressing, mix the vinegar, lime juice, coriander, and sugar with a whisk making sure to incorporate all the sugar.
    Do not toss the slaw with the dressing until you are ready to assemble your tacos.

Smoked Paprika Aioli

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup mayonnaise

  • 2 TBSP whole grain mustard

  • 2 tsp smoked parika

  • ¼ tsp ground cayenne pepper

  • 1 tsp balsamic vinegar

Instructions:

  1. Whisk all ingredients together

Fried Fish

Ingredients:

  • 2 pounds white fish (cod, hake, tilapia, etc)

  • 1 cup All Purpose Flour

  • 1 cup corn starch

  • 1 TBSP ground mustard powder

  • 1 TBSP kosher salt

  • 1 TBSP baking powder

  • 2 bottles of beer (preferably an IPA or lager)

Instructions:

  1. Cut fish into 4 inch-by-1 inch strips

  2. Mix corn starch, AP flour, ground mustard, and salt in a bowl.

  3. Slowly begin whisking in beer of your choice (I’m partial to Lagunitas IPA). Continue to whisk in the beer until the batter is the consistency of pancake batter. You will probably not need the full two bottles so just drink the rest or something.
    (Alternatively, if you abstain from using alcohol, you can use seltzer water instead).

  4. Dip the fish pieces into the batter and individually place into a 350º F deep fryer slowly. You don’t want to go splashing oil all over yourself, trust me.
    As you slowly place the fish into the fryer, keep half of each strip out of the oil for about five seconds before fully releasing to allow the submerged part of the fish to begin to puff up. This will keep the fish from sinking to the bottom of the fryer and sticking to the basket.

  5. Once golden brown, remove fish and place on paper towels to absorb any excess fat. Lightly sprinkle with a touch of kosher salt.

Seared Fish

Ingredients:

  • 2 pounds tilapia

  • 1 cup packed cilantro leaves

  • 3 cloves garlic

  • Zest of two limes

  • 2 tsp cumin

  • 1 tsp kosher salt

  • 1 tsp black pepper

  • ¼ cup tequila

Instructions:

  1. Place cilantro, garlic, zest, cumin, salt, and pepper into a food processor.

  2. Pulse about 20 times. You want this chunky not smooth. Afterwards, pulse slowly as you drizzle in the tequila (I suggest a reposado tequila if available).

  3. Place tilapia fillets into a large ziploc bag and add the cilantro-tequila marinade. Mix contents inside the bag gently to ensure marinade covers all the pieces of fish.

  4. In a pan over medium heat, add 1 TBSP of olive oil and sear the fillets on each side to get some color.

  5. Remove fish from the pan and break into smaller, taco-sized pieces.

Assembly

Additional Ingredients:

  • 6” flour tortillas

  • Pickled red onions

  • Picked cilantro leaves

Instructions:

Obviously this is the way I recommend it’s done but it’s your taco. Do whatever you want.

  1. Toss the slaw and the slaw dressing.

  2. Smear the bottom of the tortilla with the paprika aioli.

  3. Add fish and top with slaw, pickled red onions, and cilantro.

  4. Enjoy!

Luis Fayad