fishy business.

feeding my husband can be a little tricky sometimes. it's not that he's a picky eater...it's just that he knows what he likes and it's hard for him to like something that he's had a bad experience with before. like couscous, for example. he really hates the stuff. for him, the textures are weird and the taste is icky. whereas me, i freakin' love couscous!

another thing that he has a hard time eating is cilantro. while i grew up with having lots of cilantro in my diet, it was almost non-existent in his. he really could care less for the stuff. the same goes with fish tacos. he just never ate one he liked, no matter how many times he had it. so when i saw this recipe, i knew that i really wanted to try it for our "fishy friday" on our weekly dinner routine. there was a lot of different but familiar things going on and i really liked the use of red cabbage. i scaled waaaay back on the cilantro so that it's more of a hint and i tweaked the recipe to suit our taste. the result? a whopping success!! we've had this twice now and he gobbles this up every time. that's a win for me and definitely a win for him!

 

Crispy Fish Tacos
(adapted from Delicious Shots)

Corn Salad: 
2 ears fresh corn, husked with silks removed (or 1 can vacuum-packed super sweet corn) 
1/2 small red onion, finely chopped 
1/2 red or green bell pepper, finely chopped 
1 medium tomato, finely chopped 
1 tbsp chopped cilantro (or more, to taste) 
1 to 2 sprigs italian parsley, chopped
1 tbsp olive oil 
1 to 2 tbsp lime juice 
salt and pepper to taste 
1/4 tsp cumin 
1/4 tsp paprika 

Avocado Crema: 
1 very ripe avocado 
1/4 cup light sour cream 
1 tbsp lime juice 
1 tbsp chopped cilantro 
1 sprig of italian parsley, chopped
sprinkle of cumin 
salt and pepper to taste 

Fish Tacos: 
3 firm white fish fillet (like tilapia or pollock), cut into strips 
1 cup flour 
1/4 cup corn starch 
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper 
1/2 tsp paprika 
1/2 tsp garlic powder 
1/2 tsp onion powder 
beer from 1 bottle 
salt and pepper 
flour or corn tortillas 
red cabbage, finely shredded 
vegetable oil for frying 
taco or hot sauce for topping 

For the Corn Salad:
Heat grill to high and grill the corn until charred on all sides. When ready, remove the kernels with a sharp knife. (If using canned corn, skip the grilling part.) In a bowl, combine all the ingredients and season accordingly to taste. Cover and set aside for thirty or so minutes to let marinate.

For the Avocado Crema:
Puree all the ingredients in a food processor or blender. Season to taste. Set aside for thirty or so minutes to marinate.

To make the Fish Tacos:
In a small mixing bowl whisk together the flour, corn starch, cayenne, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. Add just enough of the beer to make a thick batter and whisk until smooth. The mix should look like thick pancake batter.

In a skillet, add vegetable oil about to 2-inches deep and heat the oil to 350 degrees F. Season the fish with salt and pepper, dip the fish strips into the batter and carefully place in the hot oil. Fry until golden brown, about 2 minutes on each side. To assemble the tacos place one piece of fried fish* in a warm tortilla and garnish with cabbage, avocado crema, corn salad, and taco or hot sauce. Serve immediately.

*also, the batter works well for a shrimp taco version too! :)