OH hi friend. I made blackened cod fish tacos with cilantro avocado sauce. Get excited.
Quick tangent: The weather in Seattle has been absolutely gross. We've had so much smoke from wildfires all over the west coast that the entire sky has been brown with actual ash all over my car every morning. I've been having some strong memories of growing up in Los Angeles these past couple weeks!
It does finally seem to be lifting though with some bluer skies this morning. We can actually breathe the air! It got so bad it was rated unhealthy for every age group, not just kids and the elderly. Absolutely horrendous. Yet another reason why I'd love to say goodbye to summer and jump right into Autumn 😬. But before we do, I have a few more recipes to round out the season, starting with these blackened cod fish tacos!
If you haven't tried this way of cooking fish, you HAVE to because omg. You pretty much burn the top and bottom but because it's absolutely covered in spices it tastes delicious and fish stays moist and un-burnt! It's foolproof and I promise you'll love it.
Just LOOK at all that spice!!! Plus it takes 5-6 minutes to blacken the cod. Seriously. 5-6 minutes and your fish is cooked. The recipe itself takes a whopping 20 minutes. Awesome right??
PS. If you're nervous about cooking fish, a fish spatula is your best friend. It's thin enough to get right underneath the filet so you can flip and remove it without tearing! Also, they're great for flipping eggs. Double win!
To make these blackened cod fish tacos complete, you have to have some cilantro avocado sauce. And guess what?? It's the same recipe as the dressing for my grilled corn tomato salad. Throw everything in a food processor and pulse until smooth. D-O-N-E.
Oh and that 'slaw? Literally shredded red cabbage, a little olive oil, and a dash of red wine vinegar. So easy!
Put it all together and you've got some quick and delicious blackened cod fish tacos. Recipe coming right up!
Blackened Cod Fish Tacos with Cilantro Avocado Sauce
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: Serves 3-4 1x
Description
The perfect seafood and Mexican fusion weeknight dinner done in less than 30 minutes!
Ingredients
For the Spice Mix
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon thyme
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground oregano
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional - for heat)
- 1 teaspoon coarse salt
For the Cilantro Avocado Sauce
- 1 cup fresh cilantro leaves and steams
- ¼ cup plain yogurt
- 1 ripe avocado
- 1 ½ tablespoons lime juice
- 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon garlic, minced (1 clove is fine)
- ¼ teaspoon salt (more as desired)
- Pinch of fresh ground black pepper
- ¼ cup water
For the Coleslaw
- 3 cups shredded red cabbage
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
For the Tacos
- 4 cod filets (about 24 ounces)
- Corn tortillas
- Avocado slices
- Fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
- Queso fresco cheese, crumbled
- Jalapeño, sliced
- Fresh limes, halved
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, for cooking Cod
Get Recipe Ingredients
Instructions
- Mix together all spices for the spice mix in a small bowl. Pat cod dry with a paper towel. Season cod all over with spice mix. Set side to "marinate" for about 10 minutes.
- Make coleslaw: In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients for the coleslaw. Stir the cabbage to coat and set aside to marinate.
- Make the Cilantro Avocado Sauce: Combine all ingredients for the sauce in a food processor. Pulse until smooth. Chill until ready to use.
- Heat the 2 tablespoons olive oil in a non-stick skillet over medium high heat. Using a fish spatula, add cod and sear until the spices are black and fish flakes easily, about 2-3 minutes per side. Remove to a paper towel lined plate. When cool enough to touch, cut into large chunks.
- Heat the tortillas on a gas stove top or in the microwave wrapped in a damp paper towel for about 10 seconds .
- Assemble the tacos: Spread some of the cilantro avocado sauce on each tortilla. Fill one tortilla side with the coleslaw and the other side with extra slices of avocado. Top with chunks of cod, queso fresco, fresh cilantro, jalapeño, another drizzle of cilantro avocado sauce, and a squeeze of fresh lime juice. Serve immediately.
Notes
It's best to use a non-stick pan for cooking the cod. Otherwise, be careful not to tear your fish! Shake the skillet a few times while cooking the cod to make sure it's not sticking.
A fish spatula is your best friend here! When you pick up your fish from the pan to flip or remove, it won't tear as easily as it would with a regular spatula. It's also great for flipping eggs!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
Steve says
Made these this past weekend, really tasty!
Rose Ramsey says
I made the fish as directed with the exception that I ran out of chili powder so had to use a bit of cayenne. I didn't make the sauce because I already had lime crema in the fridge. We didn't even use it. I liked the flavor with the condiments suggested. Just enough heat, crunch, fat, acid. Really tasty. Will make again but be sure to pick up chili powder first.
Fay says
Made this last night. DELICIOUS!!!
Used this dressing instead because yogurt is unhealthy and unnecessary: https://jessicainthekitchen.com/creamy-vegan-avocado-dressing/
The spices for the fish were perfect.
Thanks!
Debbie says
This was incredible! I've tried fish taco's in restaurants and never had any as good as these. Excellent! I will definitely be making these again.
Iyana P, says
These tacos were SO DELICIOUS! The blackened seasoning, that AMAZING cilantro sauce, and red cabbage are the perfect way to build this fish taco. Great, GREAT recipe!
Bob says
The spice mix and directions are great. I went for sliced avocados and typical Mexican sides, but wow this was so good and easy. Like the 10 min marinated. The seasoning stuck to the fish better. Will do again for sure! Thanks.
Corina says
The best fish tacos I have ever had. The sauce was amazing. I have been looking for a good fish taco recipe for so long.
Aberdeen says
Thank you SO much! Happy you enjoyed it.
Bella says
What if I don’t have Queso Fresco? Can I used crumbled feta?
Aberdeen says
Very different flavors! I would just skip the cheese all together.
Hidde says
It actually also works really well with good feta. I have tried it and it's still an amazing recipe this way. Thanks for sharing it!
Cierra says
Hello! Would this work with tilapia as well do you think? Our supermarkets have been out of cod..
Lara B says
Delicious!! Flavors were spot on....my husband even loved it and he’s not a big fish lover. Will definitely be making again.
Kristen Abraira says
This was so good! Highly recommend. I added a few chunks of mango on top.
Elise Coburn says
Do you happen to have the nutrition facts for this dish?
Pamela A Cox says
Wow! These are amazing. I used mahi mahi. Yum o. The blackening is perfect, The slaw is light with just the right amount of dressing, and the cilantro avocado sauce is delicious. I have left overs in fridge and can't wait to dig in. Thanks so much for your recipe.
Jenny B says
Fantastic. Fish came out amazing and I now dream of that cilantro lime sauce. A new favorite in our house.
Margaret says
Delicious. The sauce is fantastic. It's hard to buy regular plain yogurt these days. It seems everyone wants low fat, greek yogurt. I used 1/2 cup greek yogurt the first time and it was too much. The next time I used 1/4 cup and it was great. But 1/4 cup greek strained yogurt is probably equivalent to 1/2 cup not strained. I did add more water though. But the taste was delicious. I am going to use the extra sauce on Nachos or taco salad. I have also used the blackened seasoning on scallops as well.
Brittany says
This is a fabulous recipe!! Each component is easy enough to make and then the finished product is really impressive! This also works well with cilantro cauliflower rice instead of tortillas as a bowl - thank you so much for sharing this amazing recipe.