Wrapping a piece of battered, fried fish in a tortilla has always seemed a little decadent to me so I’ve never actually eaten a fish taco let alone made one at home. But friends often rave about them so when Terri suggested fish tacos as I was trying to figure out what to do with the nice piece of skate I picked up on my Sunday trip to the Greenmarket, I agreed to make some. They ended up being delicious and though I still contend they are a bit decadent, I’m now a fan.
I order skate at restaurants almost every time I see it on the menu but I’ve never prepared it at home. The skate wing doesn’t have any bones but has cartilage that runs through it. The fish monger had skinned it but I needed to filet it to get strips of meat for frying. I would rate this task as moderately difficult. Experience would make it a lot easier and I think I could have gotten a bit more meat out of it after some practice. I ended up with enough meat for Terri and I but a dinner party would demand several more skate wings.
Any kind of fish you like that fries well would work, of course. You could also poach or broil the fish to avoid the extra fat but the fried fish was so good that I have to recommend the “bad” version.
The slaw was the highlight anyway. Even if you don’t like slaw you need to give this a try. It had exactly the right amount of bite and complimented the fish perfectly.
Beer Batter:
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
8 oz. of beer (any kind you like)
Spicy Slaw:
1/2 head green cabbage chopped
1/2 head red cabbage chopped
1 small bunch of cilantro chopped
2-3 Tbsp mayonnaise
1 tsp pureed chipotle in adobo
1/2 tsp salt
juice of one lime
Preparing the slaw: Toss chopped cabbage and cilantro in a large bowl. Mix spices, chipotle puree, salt and lime juice with mayonnaise in a small bowl. Once mixed, add to cabbage and mix until cabbage is coated. Chill for at least a half hour. Can be made a day or two ahead. Toss before serving.
For the batter: Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl. Whisk in enough beer to get the batter to the consistency of pancake batter (around two thirds of the bottle).
Heat about 1/2 inch of oil in a skillet. Oil should not be smoking. Test temperature by coating a small piece of bread in the batter and dropping it carefully into the oil. The bread should seal immediately and brown in 1-2 minutes. Dredge fish strips in flour and coat with batter. Drop carefully into the oil and cook for 1 1/2 – 2 minutes each side until batter is browned and fish is cooked through. Put on paper towels to soak up extra oil.
Wrap fish and slaw in flour tortillas.