Tender, flaky cod piled onto tortillas with a homemade Mexican coleslaw and a quick sriracha lime crema, these fish tacos are ridiculously delicious!
The husband loves fish tacos more than almost anything in the world (except me, football, and sushi!). So like a good wife and a good food blogger, I made a fish taco recipe that will blow your mind! I simply bake cod with a big squeeze of lime and a sprinkle of salt for the base of my tacos. Then it’s time to make the greatest slaw of all slaws, with a wicked good chili lime vinaigrette. Top it off with a 3-ingredient crema that’s tangy, a little spicy, and oh-so-creamy. Slap a slice of avocado on there, and you’re ready for taco time of a lifetime. Whether it’s taco Tuesday, or any day of the week, there’s no going wrong folks.
Video: How to Make Fish Tacos
The Best Kind of Fish for Fish Tacos
While pretty much any fish would work for these fish tacos, I love fresh cod. Cod is a mild, flaky white fish that’s relatively inexpensive and is the perfect base for all of those punchy Mexican flavors in the slaw and crema. Fresh cod fillets cook quickly and are available in most supermarkets and fish markets. If you can’t find fillets, you can also use loins which will require a longer cook time since they are thicker. Can’t find cod at all? You can also use haddock, pollock, tilapia, or halibut!
Ingredients
Here’s what you need to make amazing fish tacos. I’ve separated the ingredients into 3 categories, the fish itself and components to assemble the tacos, the Mexican slaw, and the sriracha crema:
For Fish and Taco Assembly:
- Fresh cod fillet – fresh fish for fish tacos can’t be beaten! A cod fillet is the best option. Cod is mild, flaky, and relatively inexpensive.
- Taco-sized flour tortillas – I like flour tortillas but you can also use corn. Look for “taco-sized” tortillas that are small.
- Lime – lime juice helps flavor the fish.
- Avocado – creamy avocado is the perfect taco garnish.
For Mexican Slaw:
- Pre-shredded cabbage – you can shred your own red cabbage or buy pre-shredded cabbage to save time!
- Shredded carrots – buy pre-shredded carrots to mix into your slaw, adding color and a pop of sweetness.
- Scallions or chives – for a little onion flavor and pop of green, use scallions or chives.
- Garlic – garlic makes everything better!
- Extra virgin olive oil – olive oil helps create a vinaigrette.
- Sherry wine vinegar – sherry wine vinegar is complex, not too acidic, and a great vinegar for a Mexican coleslaw dressing. Can’t find it? Use white wine vinegar.
- Lime – lime juice adds fresh, citrusy notes.
- Grainy mustard – grainy mustard adds texture and a punchy kick to the dressing.
- Chili powder – chili powder is a blend of Mexican spices that’s great to flavor the vinaigrette.
- Chipotle powder or smoked paprika – while chipotle powder is moderately spicy, smoked paprika is not spicy. Both add a smoky element. You choose which to use!
- Honey – a little honey balances the slaw vinaigrette.
- Cilantro – cilantro is the perfect herb to bring the slaw together! Don’t like cilantro? Use parsley!
For Crema:
- Sour cream – for a quick crema, sour cream is a great base.
- Lime – lime adds citrusy, tart notes.
- Sriracha – sriracha is the perfect kick!
- Water – water thins out the crema to the perfect consistency.
Toppings and Sauce
This fish taco recipe includes some very special toppings and a crema sauce that’s to die for! Here’s what’s included in the recipe:
- Mexican Coleslaw
- Super easy sriracha crema
- Sliced avocado
- Lime wedges
How to Make Fish Tacos
To make the best fish tacos ever, follow these steps! The full details with ingredient quantities are listed in the recipe card below!
Make the slaw by placing cabbage, carrots, scallions, and cilantro in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together olive oil, lime zest and juice, vinegar, garlic, mustard, chili powder, chipotle powder or smoked paprika, honey, and salt. Pour vinaigrette into the cabbage mixture. Toss.
Place cod in a large baking dish, and squeeze the juice of a lime over the entire fillet. Sprinkle with salt. Let marinate for 5 minutes and then bake at 400 degrees for 11-16 minutes. Make the crema by mixing together sour cream, the juicy of ½ a lime, sriracha, water, and salt. Warm tortillas in the microwave for 30 seconds by wrapping them in a damp paper towel. Cut fish into 8-10 even pieces. Lay out tortillas, and use a slotted spatula to place fish on tortillas. Add a small scoop of slaw and an avocado slice to each taco. Enjoy!
What to Serve With Fish Tacos
Serve fish tacos with your favorite Mexican side dishes, including:
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Ingredients
For Fish and Taco Assembly:
- 1 ½ pound fresh cod fillet
- 8 taco-sized flour tortillas
- 1 juicy lime, juiced (plus more wedges to garnish)
- 1 ripe avocado, cut into 8-10 slices
- Salt, to taste
For Mexican Slaw:
- 4 cups pre-shredded cabbage, or 1 small red cabbage, shredded
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- 1 bunch scallions, chopped (or use chives)
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon sherry wine vinegar
- ½ juicy lime, zested and juiced
- ½ tablespoon grainy mustard
- ½ tablespoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon chipotle powder, moderately spicy, or smoked paprika (not spicy)
- ½ teaspoon honey
- Handful of fresh cilantro leaves
- Salt, to taste
For Sriracha Lime Crema:
- ½ cup sour cream
- ½ juicy lime, juiced
- 1 tablespoon sriracha
- 1 tablespoon water
- Salt, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400℉. Make the slaw by placing cabbage, carrots, scallions, and cilantro in a large bowl.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together olive oil, lime zest and juice, vinegar, garlic, mustard, chili powder, chipotle powder or smoked paprika, honey, and salt.
- Pour vinaigrette into the cabbage mixture. Toss. Let marinate while making tacos.
- Place cod in a large baking dish, and squeeze the juice of a lime over the entire fillet. Sprinkle with salt. Let marinate for 5 minutes before baking for 11-16 minutes until the fish is flaky and opaque.
- While baking, make the crema by mixing together sour cream, the juicy of ½ a lime, sriracha, water, and salt in a bowl.
- Warm tortillas in the microwave for about 30 seconds by placing them on a plate and wrapping the tortillas in a damp paper towel.
- Cut fish into 8-10 even pieces. Lay out tortillas, and use a slotted spatula to place fish on tortillas (you may want to pat dry fish to prevent soggy tortillas). Add a small scoop of slaw and an avocado slice to each taco. Serve with lime wedges, and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- You can use cod loins instead of fillets. If using loins, they are thicker and will require 5-10 more minutes of baking.
- Feel free to use corn tortillas instead of flour.
- You’ll have some extra slaw to serve on the side!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Most fish taco recipes seem to favor red snapper, but this cod recipe is far superior to my taste. The texture of the cod is a better foil for the crunch of the slaw, and the flavor is a better match with the sauce components.
Truly delicious!!!!!
I totally agree about cod. I’m so happy they turned out well!
Grace
These fish tacos are as delicious as they look. Bright flavors and contrasting textures set them apart from your average fish tacos and put them on par with the best restaurant versions.
Yum!!!
Wow I am flattered! Thanks for your review!!
Grace
I am a fish taco FANATIC. And this recipe did not let me down. I love my crema spicy so I added a splash of sriracha 🙂 hope that’s okay lol.
LOL definitely ok! I’m glad I didn’t let you down! 🙂
Grace
These are absolutely the best fish tacos! Worth every minute making!
Woohoo! I’m glad you think they’ll as good as I do!
Grace