Passport & Plate - Baja Fish Tacos
Ingredients
For the salsa (the star of the show)
3 Tomatoes
2 Jalepeno chillies
a garlic clove
1/2 onion
Juice of one lime
a handful of chopped coriander
Salt and pepper
For the fish
NB: See variation below
2 x sea bass fillets
salt and freshly ground black pepper
225g/8oz plain flour
2 free-range eggs
200ml/7fl oz water
sunflower oil, for deep-frying
VARIATION:
To make this recipe quick and easy experiment with pre-prepared battered fish from the freezer section of the supermarket. Or, my favourite and most-used alternative, a portion of battered cod from the chippy.
To serve
warm flour tortillas
shredded iceberg lettuce
sour cream
lime wedges
How to prepare this recipe1. Start by making your salsa. Roast the tomatoes, chillies and garlic in a dry heavy-bottomed frying pan until blackened and blistered in places. The tomatoes will take longer so remove the chilli and garlic after 5 or 10 minutes.
2. Combine the roasted vegetables and the remaining salsa ingredients in a food processor (about 2 minutes) until you have your salsa. If you prefer you can use a pestle and mortar. Taste for seasoning. Set aside to allow the flavour to marry.
3. For the fish, slice the fish fillets into strips 1cm/½in wide and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Make a batter with the remaining ingredients in your (rinsed) food processor, or whisk together until smooth.
4. Half-fill a deep, thick-based pan with the sunflower oil and heat until a cube of bread dropped in sizzles and turns golden in 30 seconds. Dip the strips of fish into the batter, then fry in batches in the oil for 3-4 minutes, or until golden-brown and crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper.
VARIATION: Send someone to the chippy.
5. To serve fill each tortilla with one or two pieces of fish, squeeze over a little fresh lime, add the shredded lettuce, a generous amount of salsa and sour cream. Fold up the sides and roll as tightly as you can.
6. Invite me over.
The story behind this recipeMY LIFE IN FISH TACOS
1995 - The first time I go to Mexico I am nineteen years old. The taco stand is behind the estación in Ensenada. We are hungry and brave and fresh off the bus. In a two bite explosion of lime and chilli, a crunch of fresh batter and a sweet kiss of melting fish, it is gone. I have never tasted anything so fresh. Back home the quest to recreate the recipe begins.
1999 - We decide to venture further down the Baja peninsula, on an overnight bus. A little ways into our journey the bus pulls up at a dark station for a comfort break. We are, unexpectedly, back in Ensenada. I jump off the bus. I don’t need to tell my friend why. She was with me in ’95. The taco stand is still there. We are jubilant.
2004 - In Todos Santos we are a tribe of eight. A taco stand becomes a roadside restaurant as a table and chairs are produced from thin air. A few minutes pass and a huge basket of battered fish is joined by a plate of warm corn tortillas, three bowls of salsa (one red, two green), a bowl of shredded lettuce, wafer-thin slices of peppery radish, wedges of lime. A build-your-own feast.
2009 - I am married now but luckily my husband shares my passion for Baja. In La Paz we buy wahoo from a local fisherman and experiment with the healthy grilled fish tacos of North America. An experiment we will never repeat. At home we discover battered fish fingers in the freezer at Tesco. One day, I spend three hours making enough pico de gallo to dress tacos for twenty.
2011 - Rick Stein includes a recipe for Baja fish tacos in his latest cookbook. Our secret is out.
2015 - We make fish tacos every week. The smell of cut lime transports me to Mexico every time. I am haunted by the taste of that first fish taco. Was it perfect, or was it just the first? Every chilli is different, so every salsa is unique. Even if I did stumble on perfection I doubt it could be repeated. But last night I came close.
