Flavorful Fish Tacos

I have to thank Aarti Sequeira for this foolproof recipe. We used to love watching her on the reality show, The Next Food Network Star in 2010, which she ended up winning. She went on to doing her own show, Aarti Party and that too, we used to watch religiously. She now hosts and/or judges food shows. Her great personality and the use of spices is what attracted me to her recipes. This awesome recipe is a creation from one of her shows. Here is her basic recipe that I use, I do switch out the spices, and use different permutation/combinations, and I also have made these tacos with different fish fillets. Of course, our family favorite for this recipe is halibut.

Fish Tacos

Recipe:

Ingredients:

Marinade for Fish:

• 1/4 cup olive oil

• 2 teaspoons coriander powder

• 2 teaspoons ancho chile powder (I sometimes use regular chilli pd/cayenne as per my taste)

• a pinch of cinnamon powder

• Salt and pepper to taste

• 1 pound meaty yet flaky white flaky (I have used Halibut, Mahi Mahi, Tilapia, and Red Snapper)

Mayo:

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise

• 1 clove garlic, roughly chopped

• 8 sprigs fresh mint

• 2 teaspoons ground cumin

• 1 lime, juiced, plus extra if necessary

• chilli powder to taste (optional)

• Salt and pepper to taste

Tacos:

• 10 corn tortillas warmed (you may use hard tacos if you prefer)

• 1/4 head green cabbage, shredded

• 1/2 cup finely chopped scallions (green onions)

• Pickled banana peppers and/or jalapeños (optional)

• 1 lime cut into 8 wedges

• Salsa of choice (optional)

Marinating the fish:

1. In a bowl, combine the oil, spices, salt and pepper.

2. Add the fish, making sure each piece is coated with the marinade.

For the mayo sauce:

1. Mix the mayonnaise, garlic, mint, cumin, and lime juice stirring it well.

2. Season with salt, pepper, and more lime juice if necessary and set aside.

Steps:

1. Warm a large nonstick pan (I use hard anodized Analon), over medium heat.

2. Once the pan is warm (test by sprinkling some water, if it sizzles and evaporates, the pan is ready), place each fish piece into the pan.

3. It should sizzle slightly, when it firmly hits the pan. Cook until cooked through, but still moist, about 3 - 4 minutes per side.

4. The fish should flake easily with a fork. Don't overcook the fish.

5. Remove the fish from the pan and serve immediately with warmed tortillas or hard tacos.

6. Put a light layer of cabbage on the bottom, then the sauce, few chunks of fish, the scallions, couple of slices of the peppers and a dash of lime. You may use your choice of salsa if you prefer. (I think the tacos are flavorful, so prefer not to add salsa) Tacos are ready to eat, so yummy!!

7. If you run out of fish, you can always make cabbage tacos - everything except the fish! That tastes yummy too.

Notes:

For a variation, I sometimes add different spices like turmeric, black pepper, ginger - garlic paste, and some garam masala for the marination.

If I don't have cabbage, I use any salad mix I have at hand for the greens.