Destination
Puerto Vallarta
The story
The Baja fish taco is one of Mexico's few 20th-century inventions to become a national and international icon: strips of fresh white fish (dorado, mahi-mahi, red snapper or cod) dipped in a light beer-and-flour batter and deep-fried to a shattering golden crust, folded into a warm corn tortilla with a fistful of shredded cabbage, a drizzle of chipotle-lime crema, a spoon of pico de gallo and a heavy squeeze of lime. Invented in Ensenada, Baja California, in the 1950s and 60s at the small fish carts that lined the town's market — most famously by a man named Zeferino, who ran a stall next to the Mercado Negro fish market — the Baja fish taco spread up the coast to San Diego in the 1970s and 80s and became the American entry point into modern Mexican taco culture.
Method
Cut the fish into strips 8cm long and 2cm wide. Season with salt, pepper and oregano. Refrigerate 15 minutes.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, paprika and pepper. Whisk the egg into the cold beer. Pour into the dry ingredients and whisk just until combined — a few lumps are fine. Refrigerate 30 minutes; the cold batter fries crisper.
Whisk together all crema ingredients in a bowl. Refrigerate.
Combine all pico ingredients in a bowl. Toss and taste — adjust lime and salt.
Heat the oil in a deep heavy pot or wok to 180C. A small piece of bread should sizzle instantly and turn golden in 45 seconds.
Working with 3 or 4 fish strips at a time: dust with plain flour to dry the surface. Dip in the cold batter, letting excess drip off. Lower carefully into the hot oil. Fry 3 to 4 minutes, turning once, until deeply golden and crisp. Drain on a rack (not on paper — the base gets soggy on paper). Sprinkle immediately with a pinch of salt.
On a hot dry pan, warm pairs of tortillas 20 seconds a side. Stack in a towel.
Lay two overlapped tortillas on each plate. Top with a piece of fried fish. Add a heaped handful of shredded cabbage. Drizzle with chipotle crema. Spoon over a tablespoon of pico de gallo. Squeeze lime. Add hot sauce to taste.
Tips
- Cold batter, hot oil. This is the Baja fish taco rule. A batter straight from the fridge, oil at 180C. Warm batter absorbs oil and stays soggy.
- Mexican lager, not IPA. A light, crisp Mexican beer (Corona, Modelo, Pacífico) gives you a light, crisp batter. A hoppy IPA or dark stout gives you a heavy, bitter batter.
- Cabbage, not lettuce. Green cabbage is the Baja marker — it stands up to fried fish. Lettuce goes limp under a hot piece of fried fish and turns the taco into a wet mess.
- Rack, not paper. Drain the fried fish on a wire rack so the base stays crisp. Paper towel makes the underside soggy.
- Salt straight from the fryer. A pinch of salt on the fish while it's still glistening from the oil is what sets the seasoning. Salting later doesn't stick.
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