Hiking off Mulholland in Studio City: Fryman Canyon Park
The Wreckoning Is Coming at You: Inside the Trainwreck Studio
Found in L.A.: Medical Marijuana Ditched in the Curb
-thumb-110x110-461780.jpg)
Simply Wrong Food: IHOP's Holiday Pancakes
-thumb-110x110-461916.jpg)
Alice Cooper, Ace Frehley @ Nokia Theater 10/28/09
We've been a little bit crazy about tacos lately here at LAist, even venturing to the far reaches of Culver City and San Pedro to find the city's best. But what with gas prices skyrocketing and food prices doing much the same thing, sometimes even a quick trip down to Pedro can really be a bigger budget-hassle than it's worth.
Lucky for you, the intrepid foodies of your favorite city blog have been conducting intensive research into the feasability of creating really fantastic fish tacos at home! (When we say "intensive research," we mean "making fish tacos every weekend and force-feeding them to our boyfriend until he begins to develop gills and express interest in mermaid-roleplaying sex games").
We've determined TWO key elements to fish taco magic: the fish (duh!) and the sauce, or should we say, the crema. The Mexican crema that you'll find on most authentic fish tacos is a south-of-the-border version of creme fraiche, a thick, slightly tangy heavy cream used most often in French cooking. We have not been able to find a good crema Mexicana at the grocery store, so we've improvised and come up with a low-fat but spicy jalapeno-cilantro version. (Have we mentioned how much we love cilantro and use it in everything? No? Well, we do, and we do, and it's awesome.)
The other factor is, of course, the fish. Halibut is ideal: it's light, flakes nicely, and works well with spicy condiments. The only problem? It's expensive - a quick tour of our local Bristol Farms priced halibut at about twenty dollars per pound. GAH! A more reasonable alternative is tilapia - which you can definitely find at most markets for under ten dollars a pound, if not less. One pound will make about eight medium tacos - more than enough for four people if you serve the tacos along with beans and rice or chips and salsa.
So impress your friends and inspire your loved ones to take up water sports this weekend: recipe for Baja Fish Tacos with Low-Fat Jalapeno Crema after the jump.
Yes, the fish can be fried, I suppose, but I prefer to bake it after letting it sit in an easy marinade for a few hours.
Prepare fish: Marinate filets in 1/2 cup of lime juice and 1/4 cup olive oil with a handful of minced cilantro and 1/4 chopped white onion, for a few hours or for however much time you've got - even 20 minutes will do the trick. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake fish in well-oiled pan (olive oil please!) for about fifteen minutes, or until it flakes nicely with a fork.
Prepare crema: Mix three parts low-fat mayonnaise to three parts non-fat plain yogurt (about three tablespoons each will do - you can make more if you need it). Add juice of one lime, three tablespoons of minced cilantro, and one minced jalapeno. Stir together; season with salt and pepper. Other options: add one minced chipotle for extra spice, or use a dash (or two or three) of Sriracha sauce.
Prepare garnishes: mince 1/2 white onion. Chop up a handful of fresh cilantro. Shred 1/2 a head of green cabbage. Heat tortillas (you can pop them in the oven, the microwave, or heat them naked over your gas stovetop). Set out crema and also some queso blanco if desired.
Build taco in the following order: Tortilla. Fish. Cabbage. Onion. Queso. Crema. Cilantro on top. Squeeze of lime. Open light beer or lager. Sit on balcony of fourth-floor Hollywood apartment; pretend car alarms going off are actually squawking seagulls, and smog over downtown is merely "marine layer." Boyfriend begins to hum "Look at this stuff...isn't it neat...wouldn't you think my collection's complete...."
Ignore; eat; repeat.
Photo by Carrie Meathrell via flickr.
add to stumble upon
add to reddit
tweet this
post to facebook
ummm, no on the crema and battered fish stick style. Wahoo's is mo' better.
What's up with the lack of the corn tortillas?
ewwwwwwwwww flour tortillas for fish tacos? grody! gag me with a spoon!
I gotta agree with the other two comments - what's up with the flour tortillas?
Here's my tortilla rule: flour tortillas for halibut tacos, corn for every other kind of fish or taco-like construction. Flour also prevails for burritos and fajitas. Thoughts?
good answer!
I'm sorry but as a Mexican person, I have to tell you, those tacos do not look very appetizing. Lo siento...
Is it really that hard to find Mexican sour cream? I see it in all the supermarkets.
Well, La Ranchera, they tasted pretty good, but I'm not Mexican, so I certainly won't make any claims to ethnic authority. What do you think constitutes a tasty fish taco? And can you tell me which brand of crema you'd recommend?
And MD, who's talking about battered fish sticks? I baked that fish without batter. That's just what tilapia looks like when it's cooked. And why no crema?
WHY, people, WHY? Why can't you offer constructive critques that include suggestions for improvement instead of just off-the-cuff Valley-girl-ish expectorations??? I BELIEVED IN YOU!!!
p.s. thanks tony
you are the wind beneath my wings. or, the crema on my taco.
no problems baby
if there is one way to my heart its thru fish tacos and i too yearn to see what the nay sayers claim to be superior.
but then again im not mexican either and therefore willing to love all sorts of tacos and burritos
as a black man though i wince at praises of Roscoes, so i understand to a point peoples gripes, but whatevs, im not looking for authentic im looking for good.
i like flour tortillas!
I love flour tortillas, but IMO fish tacos taste better with corn tortillas, preferably two tortillas per taco. The texture and taste seem to match the other ingredients better. I do think the photos are lovely, though. Thanks for sharing the recipe! I'll give it a try.
As for Roscoes, I'm not a fan. For better results, I recommend buying good syrup, getting Church's takeout, and making your own waffles from scratch (very easy). Good stuff!