Super Easy Fish Tacos

I love fish tacos.  They are lighter and healthier (at least they seem so to me) than the beef & cheese with a fried tortilla version that is very popular especially in fast food joints.  I’ve been trying them out at some of our local eateries.  However the LOML (Love Of My Life) had not caught on to the idea of creating our own fish tacos until recently.  Who knows what moves this man but for our most recent potluck he suggested we offer fish tacos.  Since it would be a small gathering I knew that fish tacos would be doable.  I knew the taste I was looking for so I went to the store without consulting any recipes, just with the memories of fish tacos that I have enjoyed. 

The fish had to be a cod or some other white fish that would flake easily.  Halibut was too expensive for a dish that would have so many flavors; its delicate taste would be lost.  So I chose a wild caught rock cod which I knew would flake up perfectly for tacos.

My prep time was limited so I grabbed a bag of pre-cut coleslaw mix of cabbage and carrots (with more time I would have purchased cabbage and sliced it much finer than the bagged version).  While in the produce section I selected a nice bunch of cilantro.  I didn’t want the greasy texture of mayonnaise that typically binds coleslaw so I turned to the dairy section and chose a light-fat sour cream.  I knew I had a bottle of lime juice at home so all that was left was to pick up some white-corn tortillas (I never get the ones that are stored in the refrigerator section since one should never refrigerate any type of bread product – freeze it if you can’t store it at room temperature.)  White corn tortillas are a bit lighter and softer than yellow corn tortillas.

Of course I didn’t measure a thing – I just went by taste to which this dish was well suited.  Using sour cream worked really well with the lime juice, it was thick enough to absorb the liquid without becoming too drippy (yes, tacos should be a little messy but not drippy).

Following are some approximations of amounts of what I used to make fish tacos for four people:

2 TBSP oil
1 lb. white fish
1 tsp seasoning salt (such as Adobo sold in Hispanic sections of the market – includes salt, pepper, onion salt, garlic salt, & oregano)
8 oz coleslaw mix (cabbage and carrots) or make your own
1 cup light-fat sour cream
2 TBSP lime juice
1 bunch cilantro, well rinsed and coarsely chopped
12 -24 corn tortillas (I prefer using 2 tortillas for each taco)

Heat the oil in a large skillet.  Season both of the sides of the fish with the seasoning salt.  Place the fish in the heated skillet.  Turn fish when about half-way cooked through (timing depends on the thickness of the fish).  Turn burner to low and continue to cook until done and ready to serve.

Chop cleaned cilantro and add to the coleslaw mixture.  Add sour cream and lime juice and mix well.  Taste and add more lime juice if necessary – you want the lime juice to jump out without being too drippy.

Heat tortillas in the microwave for about 2 to 3 minutes.

Plate and serve!  Have several hot sauces available (differing degrees of hotness)  My new favorite is the Jalapeno (green) Tabasco sauce.