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–+ servings
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Beer-battered fish tacos with cabbage and white sauce

Ingredients

For the beer batter
  • 2½ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for drying the fish
  • ⅔ cups cornstarch
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp yellow mustard
  • ¼ cup fresh Mexican oregano, chopped
  • 12 oz bottle beer, preferably a Mexican pilsner such as Pacifico or Bohemia Clara
  • 2 to 4 cups frying oil, lard is traditional, but any frying oil will do
  • 1 pound shark or meaty white fish such as cod or halibut, cut into 10 pieces, each between 1 and 2 ounces and about the size of a lumberjack’s finger, or 1 pound large shrimp (no smaller than 26/30 size)
For serving
  • 10 corn tortillas
  • ½ head green cabbage, shredded
  • Baja white sauce, see recipe below
  • tangy red salsa, see recipe below
  • pico de gallo, see recipe below
  • 4 limes, cut into wedges

Instructions

  • To make the beer batter: Combine the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, mustard, and oregano in a large bowl. Mix well.
  • Add the beer to the bowl and stir to combine. (Depending on the flour and other circumstances, you may need to adjust the amount a little from what’s stated in the ingredient list. You know you have the right amount of beer mixed in when you start to see small reflective ribbons in the batter. The best situation is if you need just a tiny bit more than one bottle of beer, so you have almost a full bottle remaining that you then must drink while cooking.)
  • Push the batter through a fine-mesh strainer into a small casserole dish or serving-size bowl. Discard the solids.
  • Put the frying oil in a wok or Dutch oven. You will need enough oil to fully cover the battered fish pieces. Heat the oil to 365°F. Line a plate with paper towels.
  • Dry the raw fish pieces with paper towels, then lightly flour them, just enough to wick away any remaining moisture.
  • One by one, dredge each piece of fish in the batter. The batter should fully coat the fish and hang off it a little. Working in batches as needed so as not to crowd the pan, submerge the fish in the oil and fry the pieces until golden brown, 4 to 8 minutes. Remove each piece of fish from the oil and set it on the paper towel–lined plate.
  • Heat the tortillas on your grill or in a pan. (You can use a comal or plancha if you have one.) Don’t use any oil on the tortillas.
  • Place one piece of fish in each tortilla. If using shrimp, use two to three per tortilla, making sure to distribute them more or less equally across each taco. For maximum authenticity, let each diner apply the cabbage, white sauce, red salsa, and pico de gallo to their own tacos according to their taste. Put a lime wedge on the side of each plate when serving.