Kahawai Fish Tacos
Kahawai Fish Tacos
Ingredients
Salsa
1 tablespoon olive oil
3-4 cloves garlic, whole
and unpeeled
1 large green chilli
1 green tomato
handful coriander, stems
and leaves separated
sea salt
juice of 1 ripe lime
2-3 spring onions, finely
shredded
Kahawai
4 tablespoons plain flour
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 packet plain corn tortilla
chips, smashed into
crumbs
skinned and boned fillets
from one large kahawai
(approx. 2-3 kg), cut into
finger-sized pieces
To serve
8 soft corn tortillas or
tacos (the Tio Pablo brand is very good if you do not wish to make your own)
butter, for frying
sea salt
1 ripe avocado, smashed to a rough guacamole with the juice of 1 lime
half an iceberg lettuce, very finely shredded
Method
Salsa
You’ll want to make the salsa first, to give it a little time for the
full flavour to develop. In a small pan or skillet, heat a tablespoon
of olive oil and add the garlic, chilli and the whole green tomato,
turning to coat everything evenly in the oil before roasting in a
medium oven until everything is browned and slightly softened.
This will take about 10-15 minutes. (This stage could also be done
on a barbecue - the desired end result is for the tomato to have
a charred skin and softened flesh.)
Allow everything to cool, and then peel the skins from the garlic
and the chilli. Cut the green tomato into wedges and set aside until
serving.
In a mortar and pestle (or small food processor), grind the
coriander stems, peeled garlic and chilli with a little sea salt, until
you have a thick, green, aromatic paste. Add the lime juice, spring
onions and coriander leaves and mix well, without losing any of the
texture of what you have just added.
Kahawai
To crumb the fish, set out three bowls: one containing the flour,
one the beaten egg and one the tortilla crumbs.
Pass the pieces of fish through these in that order, making sure
that each coating is even but not excessive. The flour will stick to
the fish, the egg to the flour and the crumb to the egg.
Put the crumbed fish pieces back into the refrigerator for half an
hour, or overnight, to chill, firm up and to allow the crumb coating
to set before cooking.
To serve
Wrap the soft corn tortillas in foil and place in a medium-low oven
to warm through. They will only need a couple of minutes, while
the fish cooks.
Heat a skillet with a little sizzling butter, and cook the kahawai
pieces until golden brown and crispy all over. Season the fish with
a little sea salt after it has been cooked.
Take the warm corn tortillas from the oven, spread with a spoonful
of guacamole, add a piece of fish, some roast green tomato, a
spoonful of salsa, and then some finely shredded lettuce.
Enjoy two tacos as an entrée or four as a generous main course,
with extra limes and ice-cold cervezas on the side.