Fish Taco Rocks!

Fish taco totally rocks! I have never had fish tacos before until now, and have always been curious why they seem to be a popular dish on Top Chef. I usually associated taco with beef mince, salsa, sour cream, guacamole and lots of cheese, plus a truckload of calories to go with it. Fish taco, however, is the opposite - light and delicate pieces of grilled fish, topped with a fresh salsa, baja sauce and a cabbage salad (which I substituted with, ahem... coleslaw), neatly wrapped in a warm flour tortilla. The marinated fish tastes fantastic, and so does the tomato and onion salsa with fresh coriander and cumin. The recipe called for lime juice, but I substituted with lemon juice instead.

This is now the family's new-found favourite food and I will be definitely be making this more often. It's so quick and easy to prepare and very healthy too (if you go easy on the baja sauce). YUMM-MY!

Grilled marinated barramundi, salsa and baja sauce in a soft and warm tortilla

Here is the original recipe from Food Safari (with my notes in Italics).

Fish Tacos Recipe

Ingredients

10 flour or corn tortillas

For the fish marinade
5 firm white fish fillets, boneless (snapper is good) (I used Wild Barramundi)
2 tbsp olive oil
¼ cup fresh lime juice (I used lemon juice)
Pinch of salt
2 tbsp chopped coriander
1 tsp of cayenne pepper or mild chilli powder

For the cabbage salad
1 red onion, thinly sliced
¼ cup coriander, coarsely chopped
2 cups freshly shredded white cabbage

For the baja sauce
1 cup light sour cream
1/3 cup plain yogurt (I omitted this)
½ tsp mild chilli powder (or to taste)
1 tbsp lime juice
Pinch of salt

For the chipotle salsa fresca
1 cup chopped red tomatoes
½ cup chopped red onion
3 chipotle chillies, minced (or use 1 minced jalapeno) (I omitted this)
1 large clove garlic, minced
½ cup chopped coriander
Juice of 1 lime
2 tbsp olive oil
Pinch of cumin
Sea salt

Method

Place the fish fillets in a large, shallow dish and brush with olive oil. Pour over lime juice, a sprinkle of salt, chopped coriander and half the cayenne pepper. Allow the marinade to infuse the fish for 30 minutes - 2 hours in the fridge.
In the meantime, toss the cabbage salad ingredients together - shredded cabbage with red onion and coriander.

For the salsa
Mix the chopped tomato, onion, chilli, garlic and coriander together in bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and lime juice. Add pinch of cumin and some sea salt and stir through. Set aside.

For the baja sauce
In a small bowl, mix together - sour cream, yoghurt, chilli powder, lime juice and salt.

Preheat a grill or barbeque to medium-low.
On a very clean grate brush the grill with oil and place the fish seasoning side down to cook. Sprinkle the rest of the chilli on the top side of the fish and cook for about 2-3 minutes per side or until the fish is cooked through.
Remove the fish to a clean platter, allow it to rest 10 minutes and then slice into thick strips.
Heat the tortillas by placing them on the barbeque grill for about a minute each side.

To serve
For each taco, place a warm tortilla on a plate, add a few chunks of fish, drizzle with the Baja sauce, and add a handful of salsa and cabbage salad.

Make a small fold along the bottom edge of the tortilla and close from both sides, creating a little parcel that won’t drip out the bottom. Now, take a big bite and ENJOY!

A smashing salsa with tomatoes, red onion, chopped coriander and cumin