I hope everyone had a fun and stress free Thanksgiving! My parents hosted for the first time ever this year, and it was really fun. My mom and a few of my cousins, aunts, and uncles went running in a nearby state park, and I brought them pumpkin cinnamon rolls and coffee when they were done. Then we went back to my house and started cooking. My mom made the most beautiful turkey I have ever seen, and an amazing apple crisp. We also had cheesy mashed potatoes, dinner rolls, green beans with bacon and onions, amazing stuffing, roasted root vegetables, and pumpkin pie. I’m so happy there were leftovers for me to take back to Eugene!

I feel like I haven’t really posted in a while, so here’s a good one. My mom made this recipe for my boyfriend and I when we visited over the summer, and we LOVED it. This is saying a lot because we’re not big fish taco people, and we’re definitely not coleslaw people. This recipe is warm, crunchy, and nice and spicy 🙂

Begin by removing the skin and dark meat next to the skin from a salmon fillet. I usually have a lot of trouble with this, but today I did it while my fillet was still somewhat frozen and had a much easier time. Cut the fillet into chunks, removing bones as you go if necessary. Place in a plastic bag with a half cup of lime juice, and let sit for at least four hours in the fridge.

Next, combine the 1/3 cup lime juice, honey, vegetable oil, cumin, and cilantro in a small bowl. Set aside.

In a food processor, combine mayonnaise, chipotle peppers, adobo sauce, salt, and cayenne pepper and process until smooth. Refrigerate until needed.

When you’re ready to cook the fish, fill three separate bowls with flour, eggs, and Panko (or any other breadcrumbs).

Dip the fish chunks first in the flour, then the egg, then the Panko and set on a plate.

Once all are coated, heat the oil in a small pot or skillet. Place a few chunks of salmon at a time into the pot of hot oil and turn until all sides are golden brown.

Remove to a paper towel lined plate. Repeat until all chunks are cooked.

While they’re cooking (or after they’re done, whateva) combine the coleslaw and all but a quarter cup of the mayo-chipotle mixture. And cilantro leaves! Oops, I forgot, but you should do it!

Brush the fish with the lime, honey, cumin mixture prepared earlier. Warm the tortillas- do it, it’s worth it! Spread a thin layer of the remaining quarter cup of mayo-chipotle sauce on each tortilla. Line up three or four fish chunks in the center and top with some of the slaw. Roll ’em up! Toothpicks may be necessary here.

Yum! Nice and spicy. I love the crunch the slaw gives these. We weren’t super hungry and had leftover pie available for dessert, so I didn’t make any sides, but my mom’s spicy corn would be excellent with this.

Such a unique fish taco. The original recipe uses tilapia fillets instead of salmon, but I always have salmon on hand, and hey, it’s awesome. Halibut would be great as well.

Fish Tacos with Cilantro Chipotle Coleslaw
Modified from All Recipes

Ingredients

1 pound salmon fillets, cut into chunks
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
1/3 cup fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 chipotle chilies in adobo sauce
1 tablespoon adobo sauce from chipotle
peppers
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp cilantro
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups panko crumbs
salt and ground black pepper to taste
1 cup vegetable oil for frying
2 cups 3 color coleslaw blend
1 cup minced fresh cilantro leaves
8 small flour tortillas, warmed
Directions
Place the tilapia chunks in a flat dish and pour 1/2 cup lime juice over the fish. Cover, and refrigerate at least 4 hours.  Meanwhile, make the honey-cumin sauce by whisking together 1/3 cup lime juice, honey, vegetable oil, and ground cumin a small bowl. Set aside until needed.  To make the chipotle mayonnaise dressing, place the mayonnaise, chilies, adobo sauce, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and cayenne pepper together in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until smooth. Cover, and refrigerate until needed. To bread the fish, place the flour, eggs, and panko crumbs in three separate shallow dishes. Season the fish with salt and pepper to taste. Dip the fish pieces first in the four, coating evenly, and shaking off any excess. Dip next in the eggs, and last in the panko crumbs, patting the pieces to help the breadcrumbs hold. Set the fish aside on a plate. To cook the breaded fish, pour 1 cup vegetable oil into a skillet to 1/4 inch deep. Heat the oil to 365 degrees F (185 degrees C) over medium heat. Cook the fish, turning until all sides are golden brown, and flesh is easily flaked with a fork. Drain on paper towels. Brush the fish with the honey-cumin sauce. Mix the coleslaw and cilantro together in a bowl. Reserve 1/4 cup of the chipotle mayonnaise dressing, and pour the remaining dressing over the coleslaw mixture. Toss to coat evenly with the dressing.