Fish Tacos with Chipotle-Lime Dressing

I totally adore fish tacos.

You could say I am in love. I would probably even leave my Mr. Man for fish tacos.

This was not always the case.

I blame this love affair on my husband. He was the one who introduced us. Now, I am in love, well..... maybe just infatuated.

I bet you'd really like fish tacos. I bet you'd like them even more if they were served out the side-window of a food truck, parked down the street.

I bet you'd double love them if they were smothered in a chipotle-lime sauce.

Now, you may feel embarrassed that the taco truck guy knows you by name. Perhaps you ate fish tacos 5 days in a row last week. But don't worry! It turns out it's real easy to make them from scratch. I mean, you just fry the fish and put it all together. No one's saying we have to make the tortillas from scratch. You and me, we're busy people. True fact.

The key to a good fish taco is good fish. Here in Seattle, we have good fish. It's fresh. It's cheap {excluding halibut}. It's sustainable. We're doing good. We're saving the environment. Doing our part.

Once you've scored some tasty fish, cover it with flour, and egg, and beer and fry it up.

Not happy with your batter to fish ratio? You like your fish with lots of batter? Add more flour.

You like your fish with less batter? Add more beer.

Next, we need to make some sauce. Fish tacos need sauce. It's a must.

A chipotle-lime sauce will definitely do the trick.

{warning: if you suffer from heartburn scale back on the chipotle peppers. take care of yourself}

A little pico de gallo or salsa can add some color. You can make it from scratch, or buy a tub from Fred Meyers. No bigs.

A little lime juice. A sprinkling of nappa cabbage. Yessum.

All packed into a tiny soft warm tortilla. Yes please.

This is my kind of fish taco.

Unfortunately, I'm paying the price today. I didn't take my own advice about scaling back the peppers... love hurts!

[Print Recipe]

FISH TACO'S WITH CHIPOTLE-LIME DRESSING RECIPE {makes 10 - 12 tacos}

Ingredients
1/2 cup light sour cream
3 limes
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 chipotle in adobo sauce, minced
2 tsp adobo sauce
2 - 3 cups vegetable oil
1 lb white fish {I used cod}
1 head of nappa cabbage, shredded
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp dry mustard powder
1 tsp salt
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup {4 ounces} beer
1 cup pico de gallo or salsa
10 - 12 small soft {white or yellow} corn tortillas

Directions

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the sour cream, juice from 1/2 a lime, sugar and salt. With a knife, mince the chipotle pepper. Add it to the sour cream followed by the adobo sauce. Combine. Set to the side. {if you prefer your sauce less spicy, omit the chipotle pepper}. 

2. In a large pot, wok, or deep-fat fryer, heat the vegetable oil on medium for 15 minutes.

3. While the oil is heating, cut the fish into bite size pieces and let soak in the juice of one lime for 10 minutes.

4. Next, shred the lettuce and place in a large bowl. Drizzle with 1/2 lime juice and place to the side.

5. In a large bowl, mix the flour, garlic powder, dry mustard, and salt with a whisk. Whisk in the beaten egg. Next, add the beer and whisk until all the flour lumps are gone.

6. Place the fish in the batter ensuring that each side is evenly coated.

7. To test whether the oil is hot enough, drop a tiny bit of batter into the oil. If the oil starts to bubble and pop, it is ready for frying.

8. Place 5 - 6 pieces of fish in the oil at a time. This will prevent the pieces form sticking together. Fry for 1 - 2 minutes on each side. {you want the pieces to be golden brown on each side}

9. Place the cooked fish on a paper towel to soak up any excess oil.

10. Warm the tortillas in the microwave for 30 seconds. Top the tortilla with 2 -3 pieces of fish, shredded cabbage, the chipotle-lime sauce, and pico de gallo or salsa. {fish taco's are best eaten when the fish is still hot!}