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Naples Fishing Recipes: Snapper Fish Tacos

By March 4, 2016March 2nd, 2018Fishing Recipes

In the mood for some Mexican? Fish tacos are a popular item in restaurants these days, so why not make them at home too? Here is a simple, fresh take on snapper fish tacos:

Snapper Fish Tacos

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients:
1 Tbs. vegetable oil, plus more for brushing
2 jalapeño chilies, quartered lengthwise and seeded
6 boneless, skinless snapper or other firm white fish fillets, each 4 to 5 oz.
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
12 to 16 corn tortillas, each 6 inches in diameter
2 limes, cut into wedges
1/2 head iceberg lettuce, shredded
1 1/2 cups fresh salsa
Chopped onions for serving (optional)
Chopped tomatoes for serving (optional)
Chopped cucumbers for serving (optional)
Chopped fresh cilantro for serving (optional)
Hot-pepper sauce, to taste
1 handful of hardwood chips, soaked in water for 30 minutes

Directions:
1. Prepare a medium-hot fire in a grill. Brush and oil the grill grate.
2. In a small bowl, stir together the chilies and the 1 Tbs. oil. Brush the fish with oil and season with salt and pepper. Working in batches, grill the tortillas until warmed through, 1 to 2 minutes. Wrap in foil or a kitchen towel to keep them warm.
3. For a charcoal grill: Sprinkle the wood chips over the coals. Place the chilies over the hottest part of the fire. Grill, turning once, until nicely charred, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Grill the fish over the hottest part of the fire until opaque and nicely charred, 3 to 5 minutes. Using a wide spatula, carefully turn the fish and grill until cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes more.

For a gas grill: Increase 1 burner to high. Heat a smoker box half full of wood chips until smoking, then reduce the heat to medium-low. Place the chilies over the heating elements. Grill, turning once, until nicely charred, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Grill the fish over the heating elements until opaque and nicely charred, 3 to 5 minutes. Using a wide spatula, carefully turn the fish and grill until cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes more.
4. Roughly chop the grilled chilies and place them in small bowl. Squeeze 1 or 2 lime wedges over them and stir to coat.
5. Transfer the fish to a board and flake each fillet into small pieces. To assemble the grilled fish tacos, place several pieces of fish and some grilled chilies atop 2 stacked warm corn tortillas. Top with the lettuce, salsa, onions, tomatoes, cucumbers and cilantro. Garnish with a few dashes of hot-pepper sauce and serve immediately.

Recipe courtesy of: Williams-Sonoma “On the Grill” by Willie Cooper, williams-sonoma.com

Staff Writer

I write fishing articles for Chasin' Tales Charters from time to time.