Fish Tacos
The “Three Weeks” are upon us and we are fast approaching the “Nine Days“. During the Nine Days many Ashkenazi Orthodox Jews refrain from eating meat and poultry. Fish is often the go to protein for many people during that time. I love tacos! Tacos are the worlds most flexible food. You can fill a taco with almost anything. You can top a taco with as much or as little as you would like. So for the Nine Days why not go with the ever popular fish tacos?
For fish tacos I would stay away from any fish that are too oily, like mackerel. Stick with a basic firm fleshed white fish like cod. In the Chicagoland area we have something called “White Fish”. I am not sure exactly what species is it , but seems to work well for fish tacos. In a pinch you can use tilapia, but it often comes frozen or previously frozen and thawed, and I find it has a slightly “fishy” taste, so I tend to avoid it.
Talking Tortillas
As for a tortilla I went with a basic medium sized corn tortilla. If you really want to get fancy you can make you own tortillas. I recommend my recipe for poblano tortillas. If you want something more suited for an appetizer or hor d’oeuvre you can use a small “street Taco” sized to tortilla. I like the texture you get from corn tortilla, but if you prefer a flour tortilla go for it. Like I said, tacos are flexible.
Peach Pico
With summer upon us, peaches are in season. Mixing the peaches with the brightness of mango, the heat of jalapeno, and sharpness of the red onion makes a great balanced pico de gallo to top your fish tacos. Note that I don’t include tomatoes in my pico , as I abhor raw tomatoes (but love ketchup), but if you like them feel free to add them in. Also, with fish tacos you have the opportunity to use real dairy. A basic crema is super easy to make. I just combine standard sour cream with the zest and juice of a lime, but you can use crème fraîche or add some other flavors, have fun with it.
Check out some of our other meat and poultry free recipes:
Meatless-stuffed Eggplant with Cilantro Tahini Sauce
Spinach Ravioli With Alfredo Sauce
A tasty taco, great for when you want something a little lighter or can't have meat.
- ½ lb Firm Fleshed White Fish Such as Cod Skin removed.
- 1 Cup All Purpose Flour Divided.
- 1 Cup Beer Nothing fancy or too heavy.
- 1 tsp Cayenne Pepper Powder
- Salt and Pepper To taste
- Neutral Oil for Frying Such as vegetable or canola. This is NOT the time to use your fancy extra virgin olive oil.
- 3 Medium Sized White Corn Flour Tortilla
- ½ Cup Fresh Diced Mango
- ½ Cup Fresh Diced Peach
- ¼ Cup Diced Red Onion
- ¼ Cup Diced Jalapeno
- Juice of One Lime
- ¼ Cup Fresh Cilantro Leaves Stems removed
- 1 tsp Salt
- 8 oz Sour Cream
- Juice and Zest of One Lime
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In a mixing bowl combined the mango, peach, onion, jalapeno, salt, lime juice, and cilantro. Mix with a large spoon until all the components are well distributed.
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In a mixing bowl, combine the sour cream with the lime juice and zest.
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In a mixing bowl combine the cayenne pepper powder and half the flour (½ cup) with the beer (1 cup). Stir until there the mixture forms a thin batter. The batter should be fairly runny. Put the batter aside to allow the flour to hydrate and the gluten to relax.
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Cut your fish in to 1"x4" strips. If your fish has skin remove it.
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Add enough oil to a frying pan to come about a ½" up the side, and place on the stove over medium heat. Allow the oil to come to 350°F
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In a shallow dish add the salt and pepper to the remainder of the flour (½ cup) and stir to distribute. Lightly dust your fish strips in the flour, then dip in to the batter and allow the excess to drip off. You only want a thin coating of batter.
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Fry until golden brown on each side. It should only take a about 2 minutes per side, but cook to desired color not time.
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Once your fish is fried remove the pan from the fire and use the burner to toast your tortillas. Place each tortilla directly on the grate flipping every five seconds until they just begin to char around the edges and start to get some dark spots. Alternatively you can place them under the broiler on low for a few seconds to achieve the same effect.
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Place a piece of your fish in your tortilla, top with the mango peach pico de gallo, drizzle on some crema, and enjoy.
I was trying to come up with a great bite for the Super Bowl and I toyed with the idea of doing a stuffed pretzel, I was all ready to make pretzels using lye, but decided I needed something a little more approachable. I wanted something quick to make and easy to eat. I rummaged through my fridge and pantry and came up with hush puppies, or fried cornbread balls. There is one thing you do need to be careful about on this, make sure your oil is not too hot. If the oil is too hot, the outside of the hush puppies will burn before the inside cooks and the cheese melts. I know I have been leaning on cheddar and jalapeno lately, but for the Super Bowl it seemed appropriate.
Before we get to the fried pickles I want to say congratulations to Anita Jude of Ashland, KY. She is the lucky winner of our 
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