Fish Tacos/TGIF

A Catholic home always had fish on Friday. Most still do, hopefully, for more then the religious affiliation but also because it is so good for you. Everyone knows that already but getting them to eat fish 3x a week is the hard thing. Making Friday night a tradition for fish is one step to meeting that goal. Making fun, tasty fish tacos certainly makes it easier. The kids will love them and non-fish eaters will embrace them and Mom's will do a happy dance.

The last time I made fish tacos, they were good but not great. I just don't think I had the right set-up. This time I got my inspiration from the King of the Grill, the Master of Spices and All Around Good Guy, Mr.Bobby Flay (he's this adorable skinny little Irishman with eyes you could get lost in).

I have eaten in most all of his restaurants yet own not one of his cookbooks nor have I ever prepared any of his recipes. That streak is about to end.



Fish tacos are healthy by default and since this recipe uses no cheese and lots of lime juice and cabbage, it is extremely Diabetic friendly. I stumbled on a corn and whole wheat tortilla (made by Mission, they are new) with a label I can handle and in a size that is perfect for tacos. Built in portion control I can wrap my mouth around.

I like to use Swai (aka Basa or Indonesian catfish) for my tacos. It's inexpensive, goes on sale at least once a month, doesn't flake easily and it's naturally sweet.

I halved the recipe for the tacos but not the salsa. I have plans for that. I decided on a lite ranch dressing instead of the usual sour cream for more flavor, and diced Maui onions because I forgot to save some red onion from my salad.

I was a bad girl and fried my fish in my new favorite coating because I had some left over from the Chiles Rellenos the other night, but you could use a grill or grill pan as Bobby does with his.

Fish Tacos
Recipe courtesy Bobby Flay
Serves: 4 servings

Ingredients
Tacos:
* 1 pound white flaky fish
* 1/4 cup canola oil
* 1 lime, juiced
* 1 tablespoons ancho chili powder
* 1 jalapeno, coarsely chopped
* 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
* 8 flour tortillas

Garnish:
* Shredded white cabbage
* Hot sauce
* Crema or sour cream (a lite ranch is a good alternative)
* Thinly sliced red onion
* Thinly sliced green onion
* Chopped cilantro leaves (Left out, we have the HATE gene)
* Pureed Tomato Salsa, recipe follows

Directions

Preheat grill to medium-high heat. Place fish in a medium size dish. Whisk together the oil, lime juice, ancho, jalapeno, and cilantro and pour over the fish. Let marinate for 15 to 20 minutes.

Remove the fish from the marinade place onto a hot grill, flesh side down. Grill the fish for 4 minutes on the first side and then flip for 30 seconds and remove. Let rest for 5 minutes then flake the fish with a fork.

Place the tortillas on the grill and grill for 20 seconds. Divide the fish among the tortillas and garnish with any or all of the garnishes.

Pureed Tomato Salsa:
* 2 tablespoon peanut oil
* 1 small red onion, coarsely chopped
* 4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
* 4 large ripe tomatoes, chopped
* 1 serrano chile
* 1 jalapeno, sliced
* 1 tablespoon chipotle hot sauce
* 1 tablespoon Mexican oregano
* 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
* Salt and pepper

Preheat grill or use side burners of the grill. Heat oil in medium saucepan, add onions and garlic and cook until soft. Add tomatoes, serrano and jalapeno and cook until tomatoes are soft, about 15 to 20 minutes. Puree the mixture with a hand-held immersion blender until smooth and cook for an additional 10 to 15 minutes. Add the hot sauce, oregano, cilantro and lime juice and season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings



This might be our new GO TO fish dinner every Friday, it was terrific and even The Nudge agreed. I would say I finally got the right set-up for GREAT tacos.

Enjoy!!

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