Recipe: Catfish Tacos…Mexican Street-Food Style

Before too long, hopefully most of you will be enjoying your first taste of fresh venison this season. While there’ll certainly be plenty of deer recipes to look forward to on the blog, let’s not forget one thing–fishing season is far from over. And if there were one fish that can rival venison, I’d nominate the catfish. Which is why I’m so excited to try out this recipe for catfish tacos, courtesy of Jason and Shachar Scott, owners of The Taco Truck.

When Jason and his wife, Shachar, first parked The Taco Truck on the streets of Hoboken, N.J., last year, their tacos were a huge hit–so much so that they opened a restaurant earlier this summer. Jason and Shachar–both die-hard fly anglers who’ve fished from Montauk to Venezuela–were kind enough to share the recipe for their popular pescado (“fish”) tacos below. Enjoy. –Colin Kearns

Pescado Tacos (adapted from Roberto Santibanez at The Taco Truck)

Makes about 16 tacos (Serves 6)

Ingredients

For fish:
1 cup flour
2 teaspoons chile powder
2 teaspoons Mexican oregano
1 teaspoon salt
1 lb catfish fillets (or other white fish such as flounder or cod), cut into 3- by 1-inch strips
1 lime
1 egg
2 cups of finely ground Saltines
About 8 cups vegetable oil for frying
Salt and pepper

For pico de gallo salsa (2 cups):
1 ½ cups chopped ripe tomatoes, including seeds (¾ lb; 2 medium)
¼ cup finely chopped white onion
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
1 medium jalapeño or serrano chile, stemmed and finely chopped with seeds
½ teaspoon salt
1 to 1 ½ tablespoons fresh lime juice
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For tacos:**
16 corn tortillas
1/3 cup mayonnaise
Hot sauce
2 cups shredded red cabbage
1 lime

Prepare fish:
• Mix flour, chile powder, oregano, and salt.

• Season the fish with lime juice, salt and pepper let sit for 20 minutes.

• Dredge the filets of fish through the flour mixture to coat, then dip in the eggs to coat as well.

• Transfer the fish to the bowl with the ground Saltines and press the fish on all sides to cover well.

• Heat enough oil to measure 2 inches in a 4-inch-deep wide pot over medium-high heat until a deep-fat registers 375 degrees.

• Fry fish pieces turning fish once, until golden, about 2 ½ minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain.

• Repeat procedure with remaining fish pieces if working in batches, keeping fried pieces warm in a 200°F oven. Prepare pico de gallo salsa:

• Combine all ingredients in a bowl and let stand at room temperature while preparing fish.
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Prepare tacos:**
• Heat tortillas in a microwave or on the stovetop.

• When ready to serve, spread about 2 teaspoons of mayonnaise in middle of a tortilla, then add a piece of fried fish and top with your favorite hot sauce, shredded cabbage, and the salsa. Serve with lime wedge.