BAJA FISH TACOS

 

SEASON 8 RECIPES: ASTONISHING BAJA

Classic Ensenada Fish Tacos

Tacos de Pescado "Clasicos de Ensenada"

Servings: 12tacos, enough to serve 4

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INGREDIENTS

2 garlic cloves, peeled Salt to taste 1/2teaspoonMexican oregano 1/2teaspoon fresh black pepper 1teaspoon yellow mustard (like French's) 1teaspoon concentrated chicken base or chicken-flavor powdered bouillon 1cup beer, sparkling water or water 1teaspoon baking powder 1cup all-purpose flour Vegetable oil to a depth of 1 1/2 inches for frying 1pound boneless, skinless fish filets (practically anything will work, but I like larger-flake, lighter-flavor fish best for this preparation—think halibut, sea bass, grouper and the like) 1/3cup mayonnaise 1/3cup sour cream or heavy (whipping) cream 1/4cup milk 12 warm corn tortillas 1cup (or more) thinly sliced cabbage (I like Napa cabbage best) About 1cup salsa (toasted arbol chile salsa, roasted green chile salsa, roasted tomatillo salsa or even one of the Mexican hot sauces like Tamazula or Valentina) 2 or 3 limes, cut into wedges

INSTRUCTIONS

Finely chop the garlic, sprinkle generously with salt, then mash back and forth with the side of your knife across your cutting board until crushed to a puree. Scrape into a medium bowl and add the oregano, black pepper, mustard, base or bouillon, beer or water, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Add the flour and baking powder to the wet ingredients and whisk just until combined.

Heat the oil in a heavy skillet to 370 degrees. While the oil is heating, cut the fish into pieces about 3 inches long by 1/2 inch square. Use a pair of tongs to pick up a piece of fish, dip it completely into the batter, and lay it into the oil. Continue with a few more pieces of fish, filling the hot oil with an uncrowded layer. Fry, turning the pieces regularly, until deep golden and crisp, about 4 minutes. Drain on paper towels and keep warm in a low oven on a wire rack set over a sheet pan while you fry the rest of the fish.

Mix together the mayonnaise, sour cream and milk. Set out with the cabbage, salsa, warm corn tortillas, limes and the crispy fish for everyone to make tacos6

BLUEBERRY ZUCCHINI MUFFINS

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup olive oil

• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup shredded zucchini
• 1/2 cup fresh blueberries
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease 12 muffin cups or line with paper liners.
2. Combine flour, white sugar, brown sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt together in a bowl. Whisk olive oil, milk, egg, and vanilla extract in a separate bowl until smooth; stir into flour mixture until batter is just moistened. Fold zucchini, blueberries, and pecans into batter. Fill prepared muffin cups 2/3 full with batter.
3. Bake in preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes.

OVEN ROASTED POTATOES

ngredients:

4 russet potatoes, peeled and sliced into 1 inch pieces (approximate)
Enough olive oil to lightly grease baking tray
3 springs of rosemary
4 unpeeled but lightly smashed garlic cloves*
More olive oil to toss the potatoes with
1 tbsp salt or to taste
1 tsp coarse sea salt (optional)

Close-up!


Method:

1.  Place the potato slices in some lightly salted water and bring to a boil.  Parboil potatoes for about 5 minutes.
2.  Remove and drain.  Place potatoes in a colander and toss well to make sure the slices rub against each other.  Leave the colander with the potatoes on top of the pot and allow to steam dry.  Pre-heat the oven at 180 C/ 365 F.  
3.  Add the olive oil and rosemary leaves to the baking tray for tossing of the potatoes.  Add the salt.  Add the potato slices and toss well to combine.  Add garlic cloves.
4.  Roast in oven for about 40 minutes or until tops look crispy and brown.  Serve as side dish.  Sprinkle more sea salt on the top before serving. (You can remove the garlic cloves before serving or just leave as is - I removed them.)  Please refer to * below.




* I removed the garlic cloves before serving the potatoes but I actually like eating whole unpeeled garlic (after roasting), the paper becomes soft and the garlic retains its' fragrance more.  There are some Chinese broths that also call for whole unpeeled (but washed) garlic bulbs that will give better colour and fragrance.

GARLIC FRIES

I’m never going to make garlic potato fries any other way.

These garlic fries, win hands down as the best garlic french fries I’ve ever made. Plus they are baked – so I won’t feel too guilty if I make it every time I’m craving for some potato comfort.

When I read that there is garlic infused oil involved, my heart skipped a beat (in a good way, not the way oil would otherwise treat your heart). I got down to making them immediately. I used extra virgin olive oil instead of vegetable oil because I just love the aroma that garlic and olive oil combine to impart. And added to potatoes while baking – how could it be anything short of perfect? I also used more garlic to make my fries extra garlicky!

crispy golden baked fries

These garlic fries are incredibly simple to make and are so full of flavour. They were gobbled down as soon as they were out of the oven. I had to hear a lot of “Take the photos next time!” and “Can I pick just one?” while I was trying to capture some shots of these crispy, golden babies.

crunchy potato skin

Garlic Fries 
Adapted from: Lottie + Doof

Ingredients:

8 garlic cloves, minced or grated
6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 russet potatoes (about 8oz each), each cut into 12 wedges
3 tbsp cornstarch/cornflour
1 1/2 tsp coarse sea salt
1 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
½ tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Tools:
Microplane to grating the garlic

warm and soft interior

1. Preheat oven to 225°C/440° F.
2. Combine the garlic and oil in a large bowl, warming it until the garlic is fragrant, about 1 minute.
3. Transfer 5 tablespoons of the oil (leaving the garlic in the bowl) to the baking sheet, coating it well.
4. Add the potatoes to the bowl with the garlic mixture and toss to coat. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and microwave on high power until the potatoes are translucent around the edges, 3 to 6 minutes, shaking the bowl to redistribute the potatoes halfway through cooking.
5. Combine the cornstarch, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and cayenne in a small bowl. Sprinkle over the hot potatoes and toss well to coat.
6. Arrange the potatoes in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet and bake, turning once, until deep golden brown and crisp, 30 to 40 minutes.
7. Serve with ketchup, mayo or sour cream.

Update: Given that I do not like to use the microwave for cooking (I don’t even own one), and plastic cling wrap is a little scary to use, I have tried making these garlic fries by par-boiling the potatoes and then letting them steam dry by laying them in a single layer on kitchen napkin. I proceeded with step 5 and it turned out to be SO GOOD!

Vegan Potato Pancakes

Mashed, baked, or roasted potatoes can't be beat as a comfort food. Enter crispy potato pancakes, a warming dish for fall weather and just right for breakfast or dinner. Served with a dollop of vegan sour cream or applesauce, these savory spuds from VN columnist Robin Robertson are simple to make and delightful to devour. Serves 4 What You Need: 1-1/2 pounds russet potatoes 1 small yellow onion 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, minced 1/4 cup flour 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper Safflower oil, for frying What You Do: 1. Peel and grate potatoes, then place in a colander and set over a large bowl. Using your hands, squeeze out excess liquid from potatoes. Pour off liquid and place potatoes in bowl. Grate onion and add to potatoes along with parsley, flour, baking powder, salt, and pepper, and mix well. 2. Preheat oven to 275 degrees. In a large skillet over medium heat, heat a thin layer of oil. Take a heaping tablespoon of batter and flatten it before gently placing it in hot oil. Make three or four more potato pancakes this way, and add to skillet without crowding pan. Fry until golden brown on both sides, turning once, about 8 minutes total. 3. Repeat with remaining potato mixture, adding more oil as necessary. Remove cooked potato pancakes to paper towels to drain, then transfer to an ovenproof platter and keep warm in oven until all pancakes are cooked

SCALLOPED POTATOES

ingredients

• 1 large onion, chopped (1 cup)
• 3 tablespoons margarine or butter
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 2 cups milk
• 1 cup shredded Swiss or Gruyere cheese (4 ounces)
• 2 tablespoons snipped parsley
• 6 medium potatoes (2 pounds), peeled
• 1 7 ounce jar roasted red sweet peppers, drained and coarsely chopped
• Rosemary or parsley sprigs (optional)
• In a large saucepan cook onion in margarine or butter until tender but not brown. Stir in flour, salt, and pepper. Add milk all at once. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Remove from heat and stir in cheese and parsley until cheese is melted.

  2. 

  Meanwhile, thinly slice potatoes (should have about 6 cups). In a 2-quart rectangular baking dish place half of the potatoes. Cover with half of the sauce. Add all of the roasted peppers. Repeat layers of potatoes and sauce.

  3. 

  Bake, covered, in a 350 degree F oven for 1-1/4 hours. Uncover and bake 15 minutes more or until potatoes are tender. Garnish with rosemary or parsley sprigs, if desired. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Parmesan Cilantro Corn

 

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Parmesan Cilantro Corn is a perfect summer side dish full of awesome flavors. It is quick and easy to make and it will disappear quickly.

Author: Stacey

Recipe type: side dish

Ingredients

• 3 Tbsp butter
• 4 cups fresh corn kernels (approx 6 large ears) (I used 4 cups of frozen corn)
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 Tbsp lime juice
• 1 tsp cumin
• ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
• ⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese
• ⅓ cup heavy cream
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp black pepper
• ½ cup chopped cilantro

Instructions

1. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, melt butter
2. When butter is foamy add the garlic and corn, stirring to coat with the butter
3. Cook stirring frequently for 2 minutes
4. Add lime juice, cumin, and cayenne pepper and cook for 2 minutes more
5. Stir in cheese, and then add heavy cream
6. Continue to stir so corn won't stick to pan
7. Add salt and pepper
8. Cook corn until most all of the cream has absorbed about 5 minutes more
9. Remove from heat, stir in cilantro and serve hot