Blackened Fish Tacos with Avocado slaw

I know it's been forever since my last recipe post. They will appear every once in a while.

The other night I made fish tacos for dinner, combining a few ideas from 3 different recipes for the fish seasoning and slaw topping. It was such a easy meal to make, and best part, the fish seasoning tasted very similar to a crab cake. Can't go wrong there!!

I used Flounder, but Tilapia or any other white fish of your choice will do. :)

Ingredients

Fish
4 Flounder fillets
1 tsp Cumin
1/2 tsp Chili powder
1/2 tsp Garlic powder
1/2 tsp dried Oregano
Pinch of Cayenne pepper
Salt
Pepper
1/2 tsp Brown Sugar
EVOO
Tortillas

Avocado Slaw
1/2 red onion, chopped
1 avocado, diced [pitted and pealed]
Cilantro, chopped
Juice of 1 Lime
Salt
Pepper

Fish
1. Combine all the seasonings in a bowl and set aside until you're ready to cook the fish.
2. Warm a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Before placing the fish in the skillet, lightly pour EVOO on one side of the fish then rub the seasoning onto that side. Place seasoned side down in the skillet, then repeat the EVOO/seasoning on top side.
3. Cook for 4-5 minutes before flipping. It's okay if it starts to break up. Continue cooking until the fish is blackened and crispy.
4. Remove fish and cut into pieces.

Avocado Slaw
1. Chop red onion, peel/pit/dice avocado, and chop cilantro. Add all ingredients in a bowl.
2. Juice 1 lime into mix and season with salt and pepper, to taste.

In a tortilla, place blackened fish down then top with avocado slaw. Wrap and enjoy!

This dish is extremely easy to make and takes almost no time. Plus, Taylor said he would like to have it again soon, so that makes me the most happy. And it was delicious. :)

Tilapia Fish Tacos

Want a quick and healthy meal? This is the one for you. It took me less than 30 minutes all together and was surprisingly very delicious! I say surprisingly because Taylor and I aren't huge fish fans, so trying a new fish dish is risky, but we really liked it!! The lime dressing was the perfect addition to the tilapia. I hope you like it too. :)

Tilapia Fish Tacos- recipe from Giada

Ingredients

3 Tilapia, cubed
Arugula, 3 cups- chopped
3 Green onions, finely chopped
1 Avocado, cubed
1 Mango, cubed
2 Tablespoons Lime juice (2 Limes)
Zest of 1 lime
Olive Oil
Dash of red pepper flakes
Salt & Pepper, to taste
Hard Taco Shells
Feta, Sour cream, or your choice of cheese (optional)

First, cube Tilapia and set it aside to cook later. Then prep everything else. Cube the mango and avocado and dice the green onions. Chop the arugula and place in a medium sized bowl. Then in a small bowl, mix 3 Tbs olive oil, lime juice, zest of 1 lime, dash of red pepper flakes, and salt and pepper in a bowl.

Heat oven to 300 degrees to warm up your taco shells (don't place them in the oven until your about to eat, it doesn't take long).

In a medium sauce pan, heat olive oil over medium-low heat. Place the tilapia down, making sure each piece is touching the pan. Salt & pepper the top of the tilapia. Let the tilapia cook for about 2-3 minutes on each side. When your ready to flip them over carefully flip each one individually.. it can/will fall apart, so be patient when doing it. Once cooked, remove the tilapia from the pan and set aside to cool off.

While your tilapia is cooking, toss avocado, mango, green onion and dressing together with the arugula. Don't over toss, you don't want the avocado to become mussy.

As the tilapia cools, heat up the taco shells. Takes only a couple minutes.

Putting it together is very easy. Just place the salad mix down in your taco shell, top with tilapia, and then top with your choice of cheese (if desired). Now, the taco doesn't need cheese... I put feta on one taco to try and I really enjoyed it, but had my other one plain and it was just as delicious. Taylor used cheddar cheese in one of his to try and said he could have done without it. So that's all up to you.

Taylor and I really liked this meal. We never had fish tacos before, so it was exciting making this meal and knowing we both enjoyed it. Taylor would prefer having soft tacos over hard, so next time I'll try soft shells, but I like the crunch of a hard shell. Luckily taco shells cost next to nothing, so you can do both easily.

This meal is healthy, light, and super easy to make and cooks quickly. I tend to go toward quick easier meals these days and I was impressed with how simple and easy this was. So have fun and enjoy!!!

Eating Fish

All my life I have hated fish! I mean never ever wanted to try it all my life - hated! With the exception of Crab [Mmmmm] & Shrimp. [I grew up eating crab all.the.time]. A few years ago, while staying with a friend, I tried Tilapia for the first time. I didn't want to be rude, and plus, she said if I didn't like it I could eat something else. I tried it, and liked it! Go figure ;)

So now, I will eat Crab, Shrimp, & Tilapia. That's it! I tried Salmon... not for me. It is now 8 months into our marriage and we have had tilapia twice! We had it the first or second month and then again recently. I enjoyed it! [With enough old bay, it sort of tastes like crab- that's my secret!!]

With being so picky on eating tilapia, it has to be cooked a certain way. Here's how we do it. :)

You will need:

Tilapia [I make 3- 1 for each of us at dinner and 1 for Tay's lunch the next day]
3 tbs butter
1 green pepper
Sea salt
Red pepper flakes
Old Bay :-D

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degree.

2. Tear pieces of aluminum foil to hold each fish.

3. Place about 1 tbs of butter on each piece of aluminum foil.





4. Cut the green pepper into slices. Then place the tilapia on top of the butter and cover with your green pepper.

5. Sprinkle a tiny bit of sea salt, red pepper flakes, and old bay to season. [Be careful not to over season, a little bit goes a long way with this meal].

6. Fold the edges of the aluminum foil up around the fish, place in the oven. Bake for about 8-12 minutes, or until the fish is white and easy to pull apart with a fork.

7. Enjoy!! 


[ Add more Old Bay if your like me ;) ]