Woe, woe I would say unto the disbelievers in the sublime fish taco! Down with the naysayers who think fish tacos are “weird”, “gross”, or “what the HELL have you been smoking?”.
And alla-yinz who’re in the back giggling at the name “Fish Taco”, yes, we’ve heard it before. Hey, junior high called and they want their sense of humor back.
I speak, of course , of the Oaxacan- style fish taco, which combines grilled fish in tacos with condiments. The fried versions are tasty, but I wouldn’t go as nuts over them as I do the grilled ones.
As prepared last night, my fish tacos were:
Sea bass marinated in lime juice, garlic, jalapeno Tabasco, and a little cumin
Fresh guacamole made with Herdez salsa casera, lime juice, salt and cilantro
More of aforementioned salsa casera
Pink sauce made by stirring salsa ranchera and a half-shot of tequila into sour cream
All this with a squirt of lime on fresh corn tortillas. The fish was grilled over charcoal after being rubbed down with corn oil so it wouldn’t stick. Nicely browned and crackly on the outside, falling apart in dewy white flakes inside. Refried pintos and Goya yellow rice on the side, along with three Negro Modelos. Even my wife, who’s weird about the kinds of fish she’ll eat, loved these.
You’ve sold me, FG. Your recipe, my new Rick Bayless cookbook, and the approach of Cinco de Mayo all put me in the mood for some nummy Mexican cooking this weekend. Your fish tacos fit the bill, as I am trying to avoid some of the higher fat recipes. Wonder how mahi mahi would go in that recipe?
That would be Rubio’s, Why A Duck. They mostly specialize in the fried fish tacos, not so much the ones the OP refers to.
And by the way, they stay in business because they serve great food. Not everything on the menu is fish tacos. I hate fish. I love Rubio’s.
Health-Mex Chicken Burrito…yum. Their quesadillas are pretty tasty, too.
In fact, the success of Rubio’s stores has caused a large number of knock-offs (Fin’s, for example) and some mom & pop places are adding fish tacos to their menus.
I have a friend whose sister lived in PB in one of those nasty little flats that are so popular between the asphalt and the sand. (Good location, crappy apartment.) Next door is a place that has really, really good fish tacos. I wish I could remember its name. Not that I get down to SD often, but it might be worth a side trip when I do.
If you ever visit Seattle (or the Northwest in general), make sure to visit Taco Del Mar for the best fast-food-type fish tacos on earth. Well, maybe not on earth, but they’re pretty darn tasty.
The “pink sauce” part is interesting…I’ve heard tell of Catfish Tacos down in Texas that are served in a hard shell with a kind of a remoulade.
Your marinade sounds damn close to mine…I just salt and pepper the filets, then rub 'em with lime juice and garlic. Grill and place onto steamed corn tortillas, and wrap like a cigar.
Where we diverge is in the topping: I spoon on a chopped salad of Romaine, tomato, red onion, and cilantro, dressed with lime juice, salt and pepper.
I tried fish taco’s at some wierd ass art deco looking howard hughes mall/theater when I was in LA a while back. I actually threw up into my wallet as I was trying to pay for it. FIsh do not belong in tacos. Period. end of story. Tacos should only be made out of dead bovine.
I’ve been known to ladle salsa AND sour cream (in that order) onto various Mexican tortilla thingies, but I’ve never stirred the two together. Sounds a little bit like that peanut butter and jelly that comes mixed in the same jar.
I had never tried one–they sounded too gross-- at all prior to Jan. 2002. But then I had some at Hidalgo’s in Fullerton (Orange County) and they were actually more like wraps, and with halibut. They were pretty darn good.
Then I had some at Pancho’s in Orange and they weren’t so great, but only because of the tartar sauce. It just doesn’t work in a taco.
4 large ripe tomatoes, peeled, chopped
4 serrano chile peppers, seeded
3 cloves garlic, peeled
2 tablespoons oil
1/4 cup diced onion
Salt
Place the tomatoes, chiles, and garlic in the jar of a blender. Pulse a few times to break up the biggest pieces.
Heat the oil in a skillet. Add the onion and saute for about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook over medium heat until thickened. This should take about 10 minutes.
I’ve substituted half as many chipoltes for the serranos.
Uke, this recipe for pink sauce was my grandmothers, who was from Nogales in Sonora,Mex. I’ve heerd tell that some heathens use mayonnaise, but that just doesn’t have a place in fish tacos de Oaxaca.
And I can attest that the leftover fixin’s made a wonderful breakfast tostada. Layer of beans, layer of cheese, fish, lettuce. sauce, guac, then salsa. Fine breakfast for quittin’ a job. (On Monday, I start Foreign Service training, so I didn’t care who said I had fish breath.)
I happen to like the fried fish tacos (I like Rubio’s but there are tons all over LA). Beer battered fish, crisp cabbage and that sauce that nobody knows…yum. Squeeze some lime onto it and just inhale the thing.
There’s actually something called a “fish taco”? I always thought that was just a crude way of refering to a woman’s genitals. (I hang out with weird people.)
I miss Rubio’s fish tacos… We lived in San Diego for 8 years and I became hooked on them. Now we are back in Virginia and I really, really miss them. I also liked Rubio’s beans and chips. <sigh> Now I’m all hungry.