The Secret's in the Sauce: Green Cream Fish Tacos

One of our favorite family vacation spots is San Antonio and since we are so close, we have been three times.  The kids love Sea World and Dedrick and I love the food so its a great option for the whole crew.  Every time we go, Dedrick insists that we visit The Cove (if you haven't been there and are you are in San Antonio, you should try it, the food is amazing!) He loves their fish tacos, and he swore are the best he's ever had...until he had mine  After our first visit, he went on a mission to find equivalent tacos in the DFW metroplex, and I'm sad to say that his exhaustive search was unfruitful.  So I did what any self respecting gourmet home cook would do, I created a recipe that would his quench his craving!  I didn't eat the tacos on our trip so Dedrick had to serve as my senses and taster (he was real disappointed about that ;-) ).  After 2 tries, according to him I nailed it.  While this recipe is not identical to theirs, it's definitely an equivalent substitute according tp my hubby, a self-proclaimed fish taco connoisseur.  Give it a try, I'm sure your family will love it.  Also, for this week's tips, I provide ways to cut down the fat and make this almost completely clean and guilt free!

Prep It

• Make sure you have fresh tilapia on hand, not the individually frozen ones (trust me this makes a difference in this recipe)
• Wash and chop the cilantro the night before, store with paper towels beneath and on top so that it doesn't get soggie
• Make the marinade (recipe below) and let the fish sit in it, refrigerated, for at least 4-6 hours or overnight works too
• Roast and peel the peppers

What Goes In It

• Fish
• 3 tbls garlic
• 1 c. cilantro, chopped
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• 1 tsp cayenne
• 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 c. Tequila
• 2 lbs Tilapia
• 20 small tortillas (corn or flour)
• Cilantro Cabbage
• 1 bag of coleslaw mix
• 1/4 c. chopped cilantro
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
• 1/4 c. apple cider vinegar
• Juice of 1 lime
• Green Cream
• 1 poblano pepper, roasted, peeled and seeded
• 1/4 c. chopped red onion
• 3 tbls lime juice
• 1/4 c. sour cream
• 1 tbls heavy cream, optional
• 1 tsp honey
• Salt & freshly ground black pepper

How To Make It

1. In a blender, make the marinade by adding all fish ingredients except fish and tortillas. 
2. Place the fish into a large plastic bag and pour in the marinade.  Marinate the fish in the refrigerator for a minimum of 1 hour.
   
3. While the fish is marinating, make the cilantro cabbage and green cream.
4. For the cabbage:
   
1. In a small non-reactive bowl, add all cabbage ingredients.
2. Toss together ingredients, check for adequate seasoning and adjust as needed.
3. Cover, and place in the refrigerator while finishing the rest of the recipe.
5. For the green cream:
1. Place all ingredients in the blender and blend on high until well mixed and smooth.  Check for seasoning and add more salt and pepper to taste.  
2. Green cream can be kept refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.
   
6. After marinating, remove fish from the bag and discard remaining marinade.  Grill fish on a griddle pan or using a cast iron skillet over medium high heat.  Cook fish 4-5 minutes per side or until golden on both sides.
7. Remove fish from heat and place into a large bowl.  Using tongs or two forks, break the fish into large chunks.  Be careful not to shred your fish, you want large bite sized pieces.
   
8. Heat tortillas according to package instructions.
9. Assemble the tacos by placing 2 tbls of fish into the tortillas, top with cilantro cabbage and green cream. Garnish with cilantro leaves. Serve immediately and enjoy!
   

Extra Tips/Shopping List

What You'll Need

• Cilantro
• Tequila
• Limes
• Coleslaw mix
• Poblano peppers
• Tilapia

What You Should Have on Hand

• Chopped garlic
• Chili powder
• Cayenne pepper
• Kosher salt
• Black pepper
• Tortillas
• Red onions
• Sour cream
• Heavy cream (can be omitted)
• Honey

Tips

• If you don't have tequila, you can substitute it for a lime vinaigrette (I typically use Newman's Own Lite Lime Vinaigrette) or use McCormick's Mojito Lime seasoning packet mixed with olive oil and 1/4 cup of fresh lime juice
• Cut down calories by using a reduced fat sour cream or greek yogurt and swapping the tortillas for butter lettuce
• This recipe also works well with shrimp or any other firm white fish.

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Taco Tuesday Gone Healthy

One thing that you'll learn about me (if you continue to follow my blog ;-) ) is that I am obsessed with Mexican food, especially TexMex. In fact I secretly moved to TX to make sure I'd always have an endless supply, jk...not really, ha! What I have learned about one of my favorite genre's of food, however, is that it can be really unhealthy if you're not careful.  Sure I love queso, nachos and sour cream just as much as the next person, maybe even a little more than I should, but I also realize that if I continue to eat like this everyday, I am eating myself into an early grave.  So, I decided to start looking for ways to cut the calories, without losing all the flavor.  I've seen this done a bunch of different ways on various shows so I am not claiming to be unique, but I will say that I have added some homemade touches that you are sure to enjoy.

Prep It

• Be sure to take out your meat the night before, defrosting on the counter, especially with poultry is not always safe
• Pre-wash your lettuce when you bring it home, wrap in paper towels to provide somewhat of a water wicking effect that will prolong the life of your lettuce
• Check you pantry for spices, for this recipe you will need ground cumin, garlic pepper, kosher salt, chili powder, paprika and onion powder
• Prepare salsa roja--can be store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks

What Goes In It

• 1 lb Lean Ground Turkey
• 1 tbls garlic pepper
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tbs cumin
• 1/2 tbls chili powder
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt (you can add more after you check for flavor)
• 1 tsp dried  or fresh chopped cilantro
• Splash of lime (literally squeeze one time)
• 10 butter or living lettuce leaves
• Reduced fat shredded mexican blend cheese
• 2 medium roma tomatoes diced
• Low-fat sour cream
• Fresh Salsa Roja (recipe below)

How to Make It

1. Cook the ground meat in a large non-stick skillet over medium high heat until cooked through.  Be sure to use a large spoon or masher to break up the meat as it cooks.  
2. While the meat is cooking, chop the tomatoes and set aside.
3. After all the meat is browned, add all spices except cilantro.  Cook for 5 minutes more.   Check flavor and add more salt if needed.
4. Add cilantro and splash of lime, cook for 1 more minute then remove from heat and set aside.
5. Assemble the tacos by putting the meat on the bottom, top with cheese, tomatoes, fresh salsa and 1 teaspoon of sour cream.
6. Believe it or not, that's it!  Literally a super health twist on tacos in less than 30 minutes.  My kids adored this recipe.  The little one even asked for seconds, which she NEVER does.  She ate more than me!  I title this picture, the aftermath.

Extra Tips/Shopping List

What You'll Need

• 1 head of Butter or Living lettuce
• Dried or fresh cilantro
• Roma tomatoes
• Low fat sour cream
• Reduced fat cheese
• Small Limes

What You Should Have on Hand

• Onion powder
• Garlic pepper
• Kosher salt
• Chili powder)
• Cumin
• Paprika

Tips
My salsa roja recipe was literally born from a night where I had cooked Mexican and realized that I was out of salsa and absolutely refused to go to the grocery store.  The cool thing about these kind of recipes, is that it means that I only used ingredients I had available to me, which you should also.  If you find that you are going to the store to buy any of this stuff, you should consider reviewing my blog post on properly stocking your kitchen and pantry here.

Salsa Roja (translation: Red Salsa)

• 2 cans diced roma tomatoes, no salt added
• 1 1/2 tbls minced garlic
• 1/2 tbls dried cilantro
• 1/2 tbls cumin
• 1/4 cup tomato sauce
• 1/2 tbls kosher salt (you may need to add a touch more at the end)
• 2 tsp garlic pepper
• olive oil
• 1 cup diced onions
• 1 cup  diced bell pepper
• 1 tsp chopped jalepeños, optional
• Lime or lemon juice (again this is dependent on what you have on hand)

Cook garlic in a saute pan of medium heat until fragrant, about 2-3 mins.  Add all remaining ingredient except cilantro and lime juice and cook for additional for about 10 minutes until bubbly.  Pour everything into a food processor.  Pulse to break down the tomatoes slightly.  Add cilantro and lime juice.  Pulse to desired consistency.  I like mine fine but not totally liquid.  Taste.  Add more salt if needed.  Pulse once more if you add salt.  Store in air tight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks.  I like to keep my old salsa jars, so that what I typically use to store it but Tupperware works too!

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