Baja fish tacos
Tacos de pescado estilo Ensenada — beer-battered white fish, cabbage and chipotle crema in corn tortillas
Along the waterfront of Ensenada, in Baja California, fish taco stands open mid-morning and are often sold out by early afternoon. Strips of mild white fish go into a light, crackly batter, straight from the fryer into warm corn tortillas, and every customer finishes their own with shredded cabbage, a pour of crema and a squeeze of lime from the bowls on the counter. The batter here uses cold beer, which makes it puff and stay crisp; it contains alcohol, and ice-cold sparkling water gives almost the same lift without it. Chef's tip: keep the batter fridge-cold and mix it only until just combined, so the coating stays thin and shatters instead of turning bready.
- Total time
- 40 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the fish
For the batter
For the chipotle crema
To serve
Method
0/9 doneStep 1: Toss 1 ⅓ lb skinless firm white fish fillets with 1 tbsp lime juice and half the ½ tsp salt in a bowl, cover and keep in the fridge while you prepare everything else, no longer than 20 minutes, or the lime starts to 'cook' the outside.
5 minStep 2: Stir ½ cup Mexican crema or soured cream, 3 tbsp mayonnaise and 1 chipotle chilli in adobo together until smooth and pale orange. Chill until serving.
2 minStep 3: Pour 4 ¼ cups vegetable oil, for deep-frying into a deep, heavy pan to a depth of about 5 cm (never more than half full) and heat over a medium-high heat to 350°F. Without a thermometer, a cube of bread should turn golden in about 40 seconds.
10 minStep 4: While the oil heats, whisk 5 ½ oz plain flour (keeping the 3 tbsp aside for dusting), 1 tsp baking powder, ½ tsp dried Mexican oregano, ½ tsp garlic powder, ½ tsp mustard powder and the rest of the ½ tsp salt in a bowl. Pour in 1 cup ice-cold lager and stir with a fork just until there are no dry pockets; a few lumps are fine. The batter should coat a spoon like thick cream.
3 minStep 5: Pat the fish strips dry with kitchen paper and dust them in the reserved flour, shaking off the excess, so the batter clings.
2 minStep 6: Dip 3–4 strips at a time in the batter, let the excess drip off, and lower them gently into the oil, away from you. Fry for 3–4 minutes, turning once, until deep golden and crisp. Break one open: the fish must be opaque all the way through and flake easily.
4 minStep 7: Lift out onto a rack set over a tray (paper makes the underside soggy) and keep warm in a low oven while you fry the rest. Common mistake: crowding the pan. Too many pieces drop the oil temperature and the batter soaks up oil instead of crisping, so let the oil return to 350°F between batches.
8 minStep 8: Warm 12 small corn tortillas in a dry frying pan over a medium-high heat for about 30 seconds a side until soft and lightly spotted, and stack them in a clean tea towel. Use two per taco if they are thin.
4 minStep 9: Build each taco: a piece of fish, a heap of 7 oz white or green cabbage, a spoonful of chipotle crema, then 1 handful fresh coriander, 5 ½ oz pico de gallo and hot sauce if you like. Serve at once with 2 lime for squeezing over.
3 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 590 kcal
- Protein
- 33 g
- Carbs
- 62 g
- Fat
- 23 g
- Fibre
- 7 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does baja fish tacos take?
- About 40 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 20 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- What can I use instead of lime juice?
- Lemon juice, same amount.
- What can I use instead of plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
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