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Grilled fish tacos are a fast, flavorful, and healthy dinner! Top them with shredded cabbage, a creamy white sauce also known as “crema”, and slices of avocado.
Grilled fish can’t be beat for a fast, flavorful, and healthy dinner! Be sure to try this chipotle maple grilled salmon and honey sriracha salmon with pineapple avocado salsa.
Grilling season is upon us and to say I’m excited is an understatement! I love to grill just about anything. Meat on skewers, like my favorite Greek Lemon Chicken Skewers with Tzatziki Sauce. Vegetables to go in salads and side dishes. This Grilled Zucchini Corn Tomato Salad and Lemon Parmesan Grilled Asparagus are a must for spring and summer.
I’ll even occasionally grill something for dessert, like this Grilled Pineapple with Rum Sauce or Grilled Peaches with Cinnamon Honey Ricotta.
It shouldn’t be a surprise that these grilled fish tacos are making an appearance just as the weather is warming up. What makes my grilled fish tacos special, is that they’re marinated in chili powder, cumin, garlic, and lime juice. It gives them incredible flavor and they only need to marinate for 30 minutes, which is enough time to prep the toppings and flavorful Mexican crema!
In my opinion, a good fish taco needs that signature creamy white taco sauce. It’s creamy, tangy, and a little spicy. You can even mix it together with the cabbage and make a cabbage slaw topping.
Ingredient Notes
Cod Fillets – Cod is a mild tasting white fish that holds up well on the grill. It also soaks up the flavor of the Mexican spices and lime juice well without a strong fish flavor competing with them. You can use frozen or fresh cod for these tacos.
Limes – You will want to use fresh limes versus bottled juice for the best flavor. Look for limes at the grocery store that aren’t rock hard and have smooth skin. These will likely yield more juice.
Hot Sauce – This is an optional ingredient, but if you like a little spicy flavor add it in. Cholula hot sauce is my go-to.
Chili powder, ground cumin, garlic powder, smoked paprika – A blend of spices used to season the cod. It’s a combination I use often in both Mexican and Southwest inspired recipes.
Greek Yogurt – Instead of using just mayonnaise or sour cream for the fish taco sauce, I like to use 2% plain Greek yogurt. It keeps the sauce a little lighter, but you still get a rich, creamy, flavor and consistency.
Honey – Adds a touch of sweetness to the taco sauce. You can also replace the honey with agave, sugar, or maple syrup.
Mayonnaise – Mayonnaise is generally the main ingredient in creamy fish taco sauce. I like to combine it with the Greek yogurt for a lighter sauce. *NOTE* – If you are opposed to mayonnaise you can omit it and just use Greek yogurt.
Corn Tortillas – To keep the corn tortillas from falling apart, warm them over an open flame on a gas stove or grill. You can also wrap them in a damp paper towel and heat them in the microwave or wrap them in foil and warm them in the oven.
Shredded Cabbage – A classic topping for fish tacos. It adds a fresh and crunchy element to them. You can use red, green, or a combination of both types of cabbage.
Queso Fresco – A mild flavored, crumbly Mexican cheese. Similar to feta, but not nearly as salty. You can substitute queso fresco with cotija cheese.
Tips for Making Grilled Fish Tacos
- Allow 30 minutes to marinate the fish. It adds incredible flavor! Don’t marinate it much longer than that or the acidity of the lime juice will start to “cook” the fish.
- If you’re short on time, buy a bag of coleslaw mix rather than shredding the cabbage yourself.
- Since cod is lean, make sure that the grill grates are well oiled so the fish doesn’t stick and fall apart when you flip it.
- Cod cooks quickly on the grill. My cod fillets took about 3-4 minutes per side. Use a meat thermometer to ensure you don’t overcook the fish. It will flake easily when it’s done.
- The crema or white sauce for the grilled fish tacos can be dolloped on top or you can toss it together with the shredded cabbage and turn it into a cabbage slaw.
- Warm the tortillas before assembling the fish tacos. I recommend warming them on the grill for a minute so they get a nice char.
What Kind Of Fish Is Best For Fish Tacos?
A mild white fleshed fish such as cod, halibut, mahi mahi, or tilapia are all great for fish tacos. You can also use salmon for fish tacos like I did with these Grilled Salmon Tacos with Strawberry Avocado Salsa.
How To Grill Fish For Fish Tacos
Preheat your grill to 400° F. or about medium-high heat. I let the grill heat for at least 10 minutes before adding the fish to it.
Be sure to oil the grill grates well so the fish doesn’t stick to them. Since white fish is so lean you’ll want to rub the fillets with a little oil or make sure your marinade has oil in it.
White fish cooks pretty quickly on the grill, especially if you are using fillets. The cod fillets that I used took about 3-4 minutes per side. You’ll know the fish is done when it flakes easily in the middle with a fork.
Let the fish rest for a few minutes before flaking it apart with a fork to use in the tacos.
Serving Suggestions
I love to make a side dish or have some sort of chips and dip situation to serve with tacos. My Mexican Street Corn Salad and Mexican Quinoa Salad with Honey Lime Vinaigrette are delicious salads to serve with tacos.
This Black Bean and Corn Salsa Salad doubles as a dip to serve with tortilla chips. And you must try this Mexican Corn and Green Chile Dip and my green chile guacamole, which can also be added as topping to the grilled fish tacos.
Grilled Fish Tacos
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds cod fillets
- 2 tablespoon fresh lime juice
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon hot sauce, optional
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
White Sauce (Crema)
- 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt, 2% or whole milk work best
- 1 tablespoon mayonnaise, optional, but recommended
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
- 2 teaspoons honey
- Several dashes of hot sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
For Serving
- 8 corn tortillas, warmed
- 2 cups shredded cabbage
- 1 avocado, peeled and sliced thin
- crumbled queso fresco
- cilantro
- lime wedges
Instructions
- In a bowl or freezer bag add the lime juice, olive oil, hot sauce, spices, salt and pepper. Whisk together and add in the cod. Coat the cod in the marinade and let it marinate for 30 minutes.
- Preheat your grill to medium-high heat, about 400° F. While the grill heats, shred the cabbage, slice the avocado, and make the white sauce.
- To make the white sauce combine all of the ingredients in a small bowl and whisk together. Taste for seasoning.
- Once the grill is hot, oil the grates and then place the cod fillets on them. Grill for 3-4 minutes and then flip them over and grill another 3-4 minutes or until it flakes in the center easily with a fork. Remove the cod from the grill and let it rest for several minutes before flaking it apart with a fork.
- To assemble, fill the warmed tortillas with some of the cod and top them with sliced avocado, shredded cabbage, crumbled queso fresco, white sauce, and cilantro. Serve with lime wedges.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
More Taco Recipes
Fish and shrimp tacos are perfect for summer and grilling. I absolutely love these Grilled Salmon Tacos with Corn Salsa, Shrimp Tacos with Creamy Slaw, and Shrimp Tacos with Avocado Salsa Verde.
Ground beef tacos and, turkey tacos, and baked chicken tacos are easy weeknight dinner options and kid-friendly, as are my slow cooker Creamy Green Chile Chicken Tacos.
If you’ve never had breakfast tacos, you’re missing out! Try these Sweet Potato, Bacon and Egg Breakfast Tacos and Egg, Green Chile, and Cheese Breakfast Tacos.
Delicious fish tacos. Saving the recipe to make again another day.