Fish Tacos Done Proper

You just can't beat the SoCal fish taco. The Southern California fish taco is New York pizza. It is the Chicago hot dog. It is the Philly cheesesteak. And just like the other three, authentic fish tacos are hard to find outside of their SoCal home. Here on the East coast you can find them on the menus of some chains like Houlihan's and once in a while as specials in local restaurants. But they are never done right. Usually it's the equivalent of a Taco Bell soft taco with a Fillet-O-Fish substituted for the beef. Total crap. So what makes a good fish taco? Let me break it down.

The Tortilla - First, it's gotta be a white corn tortilla. Heated in a skillet until soft. Save the flour tortillas for your bean burritos. And I'm not talking the corn tortillas that are pre-taco shaped rigid yellow cardboard in a box. Get the fresh flat round ones. If they are flimsy, use two tortillas per taco right on top of each other treating the two as if they were one to help keep it all together. Corn tortillas are the perfect small size for fish tacos and have the right texture and flavor. Most outsiders stumble on this first step.

Green Cabbage - Required, not optional. Lettuce? I don't think so. Julienne the green cabbage into super-thin long strips.

The Fish - Any mild white flaky fish will do. I prefer tilapia because it is easily found in the super market and less expensive than cod. Most of the fish taco I have had in Southern California had battered and fried fish. While I love them this way, I don't go through that trouble at home. What I do is dredge them in flour spiced up with salt, pepper, and cumin. Then I use a cast iron skillet with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and throw in a whole clove of garlic leaving the skin on that just sits in the pan while cooking the fish. Pan frying them this way gives them some of the crunch of deep fry without the mess and I think they come out more flavorful this way.

Jalepenos - They have to be fresh, not canned. Cut the tops off, cut in half length-wise and then slice across into semi-circles. I take out most of the seeds before slicing, but leave some for a little heat.

Cilantro - Also has to be fresh. Don't confuse parsley for cilantro, they look very similar. Pick off a leaf and taste it in the store until you know how to spot it by sight. After rinsing pick a handful of leaves from the bunch (no stems) and coarse chop.

The Sauce - I mix a little mayo and sour cream and add water to thin it out. You don't want it to be thick. I add to this some fresh jalepeno, cilantro, salt & pepper and mix with a hand blender. It's best to let the sauce sit for a while to let the liquid absorb the flavors.

Lime - Enough said.

Raw Onion - Red onion is best. A little goes a long way. Slice don't chop.

Tomato - Completely optional, but I like it. One thin half-moon slice per taco.

In addition to the above mentioned lettuce and flour tortillas some other items to avoid are black olives, shredded cheese and scallions. If you want nachos make nachos, these are fish tacos. Some like hot sauce but if you use the jalepenos right you'll get all the heat you need without destroying the flavor of everything else.