Tacos, Tacos

OK, no offense to the intelligent Mexican man in the white suit on t.v, but tacos does not equal Old El Paso!  Real tacos are a wonderfully simple food, complex in flavor and suited to everyone's individual taste.  Street food in Mexico, you can find numerous stalls around the town, including in front of Costco or the Mega (local Superstore) similar to our Canadian Fat Franks stalls.  They are delicious.  I love them with chicken (pollo), flank steak (arrachera), and, yes, now fish (pescado).

We are always out to try at least two new things on each trip to Mexico and this time it was Tacos al Pastor at a local taqueria, and the famous Baja fish taco.  Al Pastor - excellent.  But, I have to admit, I couldn't find the taco stall that gets rave reviews by multiple food network chefs, and our choice was less than spectacular.  However, it has now led me on the hunt for a great recipe I can try at home.  So, I turn to Bobby Flay and  his recipe with another wonderful addition, a slight move away from traditional Tacos pescado - grilled fish!  On the menu this weekend at our place!

Thank you to Food Network and Bobby Flay for this modern and health conscious version of Tacos Pescado.  Here is my slightly adapted version:

Ingredients


Tacos:

1 pound white flaky fish, or try cod or halibut

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 corn tortillas


Garnish:

Shredded white cabbage

Hot sauce (our favorite Valentina Mexican sauce, found in your local Walmart grocery store!)

Sour cream

Thinly sliced red onion

Thinly sliced green onion

Chopped cilantro leaves

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.

Try your favorite salsa recipes for this dish (red, green or both), or try Bobby Flay's pureed tomato salsa:

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 (fresh or dried)

1 jalapeno, sliced

1 tablespoon chipotle hot sauce

1 tablespoon Mexican oregano

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Salt and pepper

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.


Saludos!