You’re gonna absolutely LOVE these grilled (no batter) fish tacos, with soft corn tortillas, crisp marinated slaw and avocado slices, topped with a creamy Southwestern flavored Baja sauce!
I recently searched for, and found several fish taco recipes on Pinterest that looked promising, and decided to try this one because the seafood is GRILLED, not dipped in batter (although those are good, too!). I wanted to go with a slightly healthier option this time! Wow!!! Let me tell you… this might be my new, absolute favorite recipe for fish tacos!
My husband and son RAVED about them! They LOVED them and said they were some of the best fish tacos they had ever tasted (and they’re both avowed fish taco connoisseurs!). Today I want to share the recipe with you, so you can enjoy them, too! Here’s how to make the:
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What Kind Of Fish Can Be Used?
I used fresh rockfish for our tacos, but any mild flavored white fish will work just fine. Cooking times will vary slightly, based on the thickness of fish used.
TIP: The tacos are really easy to prepare… ESPECIALLY if you make the slaw and the Baja sauce ahead of time (best for infusing flavors, too!). Then when you are ready to make dinner, all you need to do is grill the fish on the stove top, and assemble the tacos. EASY PEASY! Here’s how to make this absolutely DELICIOUS dish!
Make The Slaw
The slaw for the fish tacos is very simple to make. All the slaw ingredients are mixed together in a bowl, then covered and refrigerated for at least 30 minutes to let the flavors combine and become infused with great flavor (Note: do not let slaw marinade for longer than 8 hours, to ensure it stays crisp).
Make Baja Sauce For The Fish Tacos
The Baja sauce is also very easy to make. Place the ingredients in a small bowl, then stir or whisk well, to fully combine. Cover, and refrigerate for 1-2 hours, for best flavor.
I found it easy to make the Baja sauce and Slaw ahead of time, so they were ready to go when it was time to fix dinner! The recipe makes more than enough sauce for 8 tacos, so you can use the extra for other recipes (nachos, burritos, quesadillas, etc.), or another batch of tacos, if desired.
Prepare And Grill The Fish
When you are ready to fix the tacos, here’s what you do: Cut fish into 8 pieces (approx. 4 ounces each). Pat each piece of fish dry (with paper towels). Season BOTH sides of the fish with lime juice, cumin, salt and pepper.
Heat oil in a large skillet on medium-high heat. Once oil is hot, carefully place the pieces of fish in skillet. Be careful to leave space between the pieces of fish (you may need to cook fish in two batches, so you don’t overcrowd the skillet).
Cook fish for about 3 minutes, without moving pieces, until you can see the bottom turning golden brown, and the edges begin to turn white as they cook. If you have thick pieces of fish, you might have to cook them a bit longer. Once the bottom side of the fish is “done”, it will be easy to move the fish in the skillet.
Using a spatula, carefully turn each piece of fish to other side and continue cooking an additional 3-4 minutes. The fish will flake easily when done, and have a nice golden brown seared color to it! Transfer fish to a plate or platter, and keep it warm while you assemble tacos!
Put The Fish Tacos Together
To put these delicious tacos together, here’s what you do… put a warmed corn tortilla onto plate (I warmed tortillas by wrapping the stack of 8 tortillas in paper towels and heating in microwave). Place 2 avocado slices down the middle of each tortilla. Now add a couple heaping Tablespoons of the slaw on top of the avocado slices.
Place a piece of warm, grilled fish on top of the crunchy slaw, then spoon some of the creamy Baja sauce over the top. Garnish each taco with cilantro and a lime slice (optional), and serve.
Take a look at that good looking piece of fresh, grilled fish in that taco! Makes my mouth water just looking at it! Perfectly pan-seared fish, crunchy marinated slaw, cool avocado slices, and a creamy Southwestern sauce to top it all off… amazing and outrageously GOOD!
These truly were some of the best fish tacos I’ve ever had! The slaw and sauce taste amazing on the GRILLED fresh fish! YUM! Our son and my husband have already asked me to make them again… SOON!
They went out to dinner recently, ordered fish tacos, and proudly came home and announced to me that my fish tacos were better than the ones they had at the restaurant! Aw, shucks… (blushing). I loved their compliments… and am only happy to oblige! Sure hope you will consider making these amazing, delicious tacos! I think you will absolutely LOVE them! Have a wonderful day!
Looking For More Mexican Or Southwest-Inspired Recipes?
You can find all of my recipes in the Recipe Index, located at the top of the page. I have many Mexican or Southwest-inspired recipes you might enjoy, including:
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Recipe Source: www.thekitchenwhisperer.net/2015/03/12/grilled-fish-soft-tacos-with-baja-cream-sauce/
- 2 pounds white fish (I used rockfish) , cut into 4 ounce pieces (8 total)
- 2 Tablespoons lime juice
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 3 Tablespoons olive oil
- 8 corn tortillas (8" round) , warmed
- 1½ cups green cabbage , finely shredded
- 1½ cups red cabbage , finely shredded
- 2 teaspoons honey
- 1 Tablespoon lime juice
- 2 teaspoons jalapenos , minced
- 1 Tablespoon (heaping) shallot , minced
- 3 teaspoons cilantro , chopped
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 3/4 cup light sour cream
- 1/2 cup light mayonnaise
- 3 Tablespoons lime juice
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons sriracha sauce
- 1/4 cup (lightly packed) cilantro leaves , minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1½ teaspoons adobo sauce
- 2 large avocado , peeled, halved, sliced into 16 pieces
- 8 teaspoons cilantro , chopped (for garnish)
Combine slaw ingredients in large bowl, then cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to let it become infused with flavor. (Note: do not let slaw marinade for longer than 8 hours, to ensure slaw stays crisp).
To make Baja sauce, place ingredients in a small bowl, then stir or whisk to fully blend. Cover, and refrigerate 1-2 hours, for optimal flavor.
When you are ready to prepare tacos, pat each piece of fish dry (with paper towels). Season BOTH sides of the fish with lime juice, cumin, salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large skillet on medium-high heat. Once oil is hot, carefully place pieces of fish in skillet. Leave space between pieces of fish (might need to cook fish in two batches, so you don't overcrowd skillet). Cook fish portions for approx. 3 minutes, without moving them, until you can see the edges start to turn white as they cook (if using thick pieces of fish, you might have to cook them a bit longer). Once bottom side of the fish is "done", it will be easy to move in the skillet. Using a spatula, carefully turn fish to other side; continue cooking for another 3-4 minutes. The fish will flake easily when done, and have a nice golden brown sear to it! Transfer fish to a plate; keep it warm while you assemble tacos!
To assemble taco, put a warmed corn tortilla onto plate, then place 2 avocado slices in middle of tortilla. Add 2 heaping Tablespoons of slaw on top of the avocados. Place a piece of grilled fish on top of slaw, then spoon some Baja sauce over the top. Garnish each taco with cilantro (and a small lime slice, if desired), and serve. ENJOY!
Here’s one more to pin on your Pinterest boards!
These are the best fish tacos! We love them. I made them recently for company and everybody wanted the recipe – they are so good! We use tilapia or cod.
So glad to hear you enjoyed them. My hubby asks for them a lot! Never have tried them with cod OR tilapia… will have to do that soon.
I tried your Grilled Fish Tacos with Baja Sauce and they WERE delicious! I loved the slaw and the Baja sauce. They added so much flavor and texture to the grilled fish. I thought maybe the Baja sauce was going to be too spicy for my tastebuds, but it wasn’t too spicy at all. My husband and kids loved them too. I’ve been looking for a good fish taco recipe, and now I’ve found one! Thanks Grateful Girl!!
Oh, Sandy… I am so glad you guys liked them! I’ve already made them a few times, and we’re gonna have them again this week! Yay for great fish taco recipes! Love, Me