Ingredients
- 400 grams skinless fish fillets, such as snapper or sea bass
Beer Batter Cooking Method
- 125 grams flour
- 375 mL beer
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 egg
- ½ teaspoon ground pepper
- oil, for deep frying
Sous Vide Cooking Method
- 3 teaspoons olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon lime zest
- 1 sprig oregano
- salt and pepper
Avocado Cream
- 1 avocado
- 4 tablespoons sour cream
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- sea salt
To Serve
- 8 small soft taco shells
- 1 cup purple cabbage, finely shredded
- coriander leaves, to serve
- sea salt
Instructions
Beer Batter Cooking Method
- Heat the oil in a large heavy based pot over a medium heat to 190 °C.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine together the flour, egg, garlic powder and black pepper. Stir in the beer. Start by adding 1 cup of beer and then keep adding more until you obtain your desired texture.
- Add the fish to the batter and toss to coat all over. Let excess batter briefly drip off.
- Carefully lower the fish into the oil and fry for about 3 minutes. Cook the fish in batches. Transfer the cooked fish to paper towel while you cook the remaining fish.
Sous Vide Cooking Method
- Preheat the sous vide water bath to 54°C.
- Season the fish fillets with salt and pepper. Place the fish fillets, olive oil, lime zest and oregano in a vacuum bag and seal.
- Lower the fish into the water bath and cook for 20 minutes.
- When the fish is ready, remove the bag from the water bath and transfer the fish to a plate lined with paper towel. Discard any liquids from the sous vide bag.Flake the fish into bite-sized pieces.
Avocado Cream
- Place the avocado, sour cream, lime juice and a pinch of salt into a food processor and blitz until completely smooth.
To Serve
- Divide the taco shells between 4 plates. Top each taco with a small amount of cabbage and some cooked fish. Drizzle over the avocado cream and then sprinkle with fresh coriander and salt.
This is my take on a simple fish taco, that just happens to taste incredible. These tacos use a soft taco shell to sandwich soft flaky fish which is combine with fresh cabbage and an avocado cream. They are a seriously amazing way to serve up fish fillets and you seriously need to give them a try.
About these Fish Tacos
In this recipe I give two different methods to cook the fish. The first method involves a beer batter and then the fish is deep fried for an incredible crispy coating. The second method involves sous vide cooking the fish, which is the recommended method for those wanting a healthier option.
Any firm white fleshed fish works great for the recipe. I tend to opt for something that doesn’t have too strong a fish flavor such as snapper, it tends to be more kid friendly. Avoid any lean fish (such as tuna or kingfish) and delicate fish too.
Beer Batter Cooking Method
Cooking the fish in a beer batter gives an amazing crispy coating to the outside, which adds a great level of texture to the dish. Use whatever beer you have on hand, it really doesn’t matter all that much for this simple batter recipe.
Start by mixing together the flour, egg, garlic powder and pepper in a large mixing bowl. Add about 1 cup of beer and mix to form a batter. From here, keep adding in beer and mixing until you achieve the desired texture for the batter. It should be a fairly thin batter but should fully coat the back of a spoon.
Add the fish fillets and toss to coat all over. I tend to leave the fish in the batter and then transfer them directly to the oil as needed.
To cook the fish, heat about 6cm of oil in a large heavy based saucepan to 190 °C. Remove the fish from the batter, shaking off any excess and then gently lower into the oil. Always drop the fish in away from you, so you aren’t splashed with any hot oil. Cook the fillets in batches for 3 minutes, until deep golden and then drain on paper towels while you cook the remaining fish.
Sous Vide Cooking Method
Take the fish, season it and add it to your sous vide bag with a bit of olive oil, lime zest and oregano. Seal the bag and cook it for 20 minutes in a water-bath at 54 °C. Once cooked, remove the fish from the bag and flake into pieces ready to serve.
Tip: Sous Vide Fish tastes great on it’s own as a meal, you could serve with a side salad as an alternative for a simple meal.
The Avocado Cream
Place the avocado, sour cream, lime juice and a pinch of salt into a food processor and blitz until completely smooth. Ensure you scrape down the sides so the cream is completely smooth. Alternatively, a blender can also be used to make the cream.
If going for presentation when serving, transfer the avocado cream to a piping bag fitted with a plain nozzle. Otherwise, when serving, just use a spoon to spread.
To Serve the Fish Tacos
These fish tacos are best served in soft taco shells (either store bought or homemade). Heat the tacos in a dry fry pan over a medium heat for about 30 seconds on each side, this gives a bit of color and texture to the tacos.
Divide the tacos between serving plates. Scatter some shredded purple cabbage among the taco shells and then top with the cooked fish. Drizzle with the avocado cream and then finish with some fresh coriander and a sprinkle of sea salt. Serve with slices of lime on the side.
You could also try pickling the cabbage or adding in some slices of chilli as part of serving the fish tacos. Pickled ginger also works well in this recipe.
