Baja Style Fish Tacos

Wouldn't you agree that it’s been a while since I've shared a recipe on my blog? Well, I think so too. In my house, we all take turns cooking; and, Wednesdays is my turn to make dinner. So this time around I thought I’d shoot pictures of the yummy fish tacos I was preparing. I’m not a huge fan of fish tacos, but my sister wanted me to make some—so I thought, “Ok, why not?” Since, I’d never attempted making them before I thought I would turn to my trusty source of great Mexican food—Marcela Valladolid, from the Food network. I've tried some of her recipes before and loved them; so, I figured her fish tacos would be amazing—and they were! You can click here for her recipe, and if you click on the image you can watch the video of her making them. I’ll also post the full recipe below, too.

I always love to make my quick and easy salsa for almost everything I eat, and these tacos are no exception, hehe. This salsa is super easy and it consists’ of: white onion, jalapeño, 1 garlic clove, and tomato. All I do is give them a ruff chop, spread the chopped pieces onto a baking sheet, apply some nonstick cooking spray to a baking sheet, top with salt and pepper, add about a tbsp. of vegetable oil, and place in the broiler on high heat until they’re cooked through and slightly burned. Lastly, I just place the veggies into a blender and pulse a few times until I get a nice salsa.

I wanted to take a picture of the tacos all assembled in the tortilla with the cream, salsa, fish, and cabbage—but I couldn't wait to eat, lol, and I didn't get a chance to. They were so good—so good in fact that I’m now a fish taco lover, but only if I make them, of course.

Ingredients

Beer Batter:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 cup dark Mexican beer*

Cream Sauce:

1/3 cup mayonnaise

2/3 cup Mexican crema** or sour cream

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 tablespoons water

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Fish Tacos:

Oil, for frying

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt, plus more for seasoning

2 pounds skinned halibut cut into 5 by 1/2-inch strips

Freshly ground black pepper

Corn tortillas

2 cups shredded cabbage

2 cups tomatillo salsa (store-bought or homemade) for garnish, optional

Pickled jalapenos, for garnish, optional

Directions

For the Beer Batter:

Mix the flour, salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Gradually add in the beer while whisking. Set aside and let the batter rest for 15 minutes before using.

For Cream Sauce:

Add the mayonnaise and crema to a medium bowl. Whisk in the lemon zest, lemon juice and water. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper (can be made 3 days ahead, covered and refrigerated).

For the Fish:

In a large skillet, over medium heat, add enough oil to reach a depth of 1-inch. Heat the oil until a deep-fry thermometer registers 350 degrees F or when the end of a wooden spoon sizzles when inserted into the oil.

On a large plate, combine the flour and salt. Season the fish pieces all over with salt and pepper and coat with the flour. Working in batches, dip the fillets in the beer batter and coat on both sides. Fry in the hot oil until golden brown and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Transfer to paper towels to drain.

Make tacos with the tortillas and fish and top each with cream, shredded cabbage, tomatillo salsa and pickled jalapenos, if desired.

*Cook's Note: Crack open a cold Mexican cerveza like a Negra Modelo or a 2 Equis (XX) Amber to make this tasty beer batter, which will change the way you think about fried fish! You can use it for vegetables, too.

**Cook's Note: Mexican Crema is Mexico's version of creme fraiche and is found at many supermarkets and can easily be substituted with sour cream.