Taco night at home doesn’t have to be synonymous with ground beef and pre-packaged seasoning (although we have nothing against that). Upgrade your dinner with these crispy baked fish tacos with cabbage slaw, which are easier to make than they appear and taste as though they came from your favorite restaurant.
There are two tricks to making crispy fish without busting out the deep fryer: One, the breaded fish strips get a quick mist of cooking spray to help them brown nicely (we like to use a refillable aluminum oil spritzer for eco-friendliness) and two, flipping the strips halfway through the bake will keep those dreaded soggy bottoms at bay.
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Crispy Baked Fish
2 large eggs
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons store-bought taco seasoning
1¾ pounds tilapia, cut into 1½-inch-wide strips
Cabbage Slaw
2 cups shredded red cabbage
2 cups shredded green cabbage
2 carrots, peeled and shredded
1 red onion, thinly sliced
1 jalapeño, minced
Zest and juice of 1 lime
¼ cup rice vinegar
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Tacos
¾ cup sour cream
Zest and juice of 1 lime
12 taco-size corn tortillas
¼ cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro, for garnish
1. Make the Crispy Baked Fish: Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spray it generously with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a wide, shallow bowl, whisk the eggs until homogenous. In another wide, shallow bowl, whisk the flour with the taco seasoning to combine.
3. Working in batches, dip the fish strips into the egg and then into the flour mixture, tossing well to coat. Place the breaded fish on the baking sheet. Repeat until all the strips are breaded. Spray the top of the fish with nonstick cooking spray.
4. Bake the fish until golden brown and very crisp, 20 to 25 minutes, flipping with a spatula halfway through. Remove from the oven and set aside.
5. Make the Cabbage Slaw: In a large bowl, toss together the red cabbage, green cabbage, carrots, red onion, jalapeño, lime zest, lime juice, rice vinegar and olive oil to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
6. Make the Tacos: In a small bowl, whisk the sour cream with the lime zest and lime juice to combine. Set aside. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Working in batches, place 2 or 3 tortillas in the pan and heat until lightly browned on both sides, about 1 minute per side. Repeat until all tortillas are toasted.
7. To serve, place 3 tortillas on each plate, and fill each tortilla with 1 or 2 pieces of fish. Place 2 to 3 tablespoons of slaw on top of each taco and drizzle each taco with 1 to 2 teaspoons of the reserved sour cream. Garnish each plate with cilantro.