Fish Tacos Two Ways

Fish tacos originated in Baja California, and I confess that the first time I heard of them I thought YUCK! I'm not sure what I imagined they would be like, but my mental image of the product was not good.

Boy was I wrong! That's some good stuff, Maynard! Earlier this year I gave you a recipe for Baja Fish Tacos with Mango Salsa, but I don't think you can ever have too many recipes for fish tacos...

Here are two more ways to fix them: Fish cooked "naked", wrapped in flour tortillas and served with a chipotle cream sauce; and fish fried in a beer batter with corn tortillas and salsa.

Any firm-fleshed fish will work; cod and haddock seem to be the fish of choice in many restaurants. I prefer red snapper or tilapia myself, but use what's fresh and on sale. It's all good!

FISH TACOS WITH CHIPOTLE CREAM
Makes 4 tacos

Ingredients:

• 4 Flour tortillas
• 1 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 4 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 3 Tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1 pound firm white fish fillets
• 2 Tbsp lime juice
• 2 cups chopped cabbage, lettuce or packaged coleslaw mix

Chipotle Cream Sauce:

• 2 canned Chipotle Chilies in Adobo, seeded and minced
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 1 small shallot, minced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup milk, mixed with 1 to 2 teaspoons of the chipotle adobo sauce
• 1/2 pint heavy cream
• 1/4 teaspoon Salt

Instructions:

CHIPOTLE CREAM SAUCE:
In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add shallot and cook slowly until tender and translucent. Add about half the minced chipotles and the cream, heating slowly. Mix in the milk with adobo sauce a tablespoon at a time and add more of the chipotles, tasting for spiciness as you go. Add salt to taste. Keep warm while preparing the tacos.

FISH:
Place vegetable oil, cumin, salt, pepper, garlic and cilantro into a large skillet and saute over medium-high heat for 5 minutes. (You can leave out the cilantro if you hate it, or replace it with chopped parsley)

Add the fish, cover and cook for about 3 minutes or until fish is easily flaked with a fork. Add lime juice and let cook for 1 additional minute. Remove from heat.

Heat the tortillas and lay each of the warmed tortillas on a cutting board. Place one-quarter of both the greens and fish on the center of each tortilla. Then top each with equal amounts of the Chipotle Cream Sauce. Fold the tortillas over to form tacos and serve.

BEER BATTER FISH TACOS
Makes 8 tacos
Ingredients:

• 1 pound fish fillets, cut into 2 to 3 ounce portions
• 8 corn (or flour) tortillas
• 2 cups chopped cabbage, lettuce or packaged coleslaw mix

Beer Batter:

• 1 cup flour
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp black pepper
• salt to taste
• 8 ounces of your favorite beer.
• vegetable oil for frying

Instructions:

Whisk together dry ingredients. Add beer, stirring constantly as you add it, until thoroughly mixed. Set aside.

Heat corn tortillas until softened, fold in half and keep warm while preparing the fish. Or, you can fry them 'till crispy if you prefer, and drain them on paper towels.

Rinse the fish fillets in cold water and pat dry. Roll each piece of fish lightly in flour, then dip it into the beer batter, and finally place carefully into a 350-degree deep fryer. Each piece should take roughly about 3-4 minutes to fry. Drain on paper towels.

Divide the fish and greens evenly among the tortillas, top with the salsa of your choice, and serve.

Buen provecho!

If you have a favorite recipe for a Mexican or Mexican-inspired dish, I'd love to add it to our recipe box! email lahuerita2@gmail.com (and put "recipe" in the subject box so I'll know what it's about)