One of the more popular posts on House of Annie is the pan-fried tilapia post (which reminds me, I really gotta update that page and do a proper recipe for it). When I was growing up in Hawaii, tilapia used to be known as a “rubbish fish” because it lived anywhere (fresh water, brackish water, salt water) and ate anything. We’d catch it in the stream behind our house, let it live in the laundry room sink for a week to clean out and then we’d steam it whole with black bean and ginger to mask the muddy smell.

Mmmmm.

Nowadays, tilapia is becoming more widely used around the world, especially as frozen fillets become available in local markets. You don’t have to gut, skin, or fillet it. It tastes fine, with no muddy smell or flavor. Tilapia fillets have a firm, white flesh that lends itself quite well to lots of different applications.

Here’s a semi-gourmet, muy delicioso fish taco recipe using tilapia fillets that is perfect for Cinco de Mayo, or any day of the week for that matter.

Ingredients:

2 fillets of tilapia or any firm, white-fleshed fish
1 tsp Penzey’s Adobo Seasoning
1 tsp paprika
salt and fresh ground black pepper
1 tbsp oil
4, 10-inch flour tortillas
2 grilled sweet peppers, seeded and sliced into strips (this is the “semi-gourmet” part 😉 )
1/2 cup guacamole
1/2 cup fresh tomato salsa
1/4 cup sour cream (optional)
1/4 cup shredded cheese

Season the tilapia fillets with the Penzey’s Adobo Seasoning, paprika, and salt and pepper. Heat up the oil in a pan over medium heat and then pan-fry the tilapia fillets until they are browned on both sides, but not overdone. Remove the fillets from the heat, let them cool, then break them apart into chunks.

Start by laying some tilapia chunks onto the center of the tortilla. Add a few strips of grilled peppers, then a couple spoonfuls of guacamole and salsa. If you like, you can put a spoon of sour cream on. Finally, sprinkle on some shredded cheese. Repeat for the other three tortillas.

Enjoy!