Fried Grouper Tacos
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Recipe by:
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 1 cup rice flour
  • 2 cups yellow corn meal
  • 1 tablespoon garlic powder
  • 1 tablespoon onion powder
  • 1 tablespoon cayenne
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon lemon pepper
  • 2 cups peeled and diced mango
  • ¼ cup diced tomato
  • ½ cup diced red onion
  • ½ cup diced cucumber
  • 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
  • 1 tablespoon diced fresh jalapeno
  • 4 tablespoons lime juice, freshly squeezed
  • 1 cup thinly shredded cabbage
  • 1 cup thinly julienned carrot
  • 1 cup thinly sliced white onion
  • 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon Creole mustard or coarse-grained mustard
  • 2¼ cups mayonnaise, divided
  • ¼ cup horseradish
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon hot sauce
  • ½ cup ketchup
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 3 pounds fillet Gulf finfish, such as grouper, cut into bite-sized chunks
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • Dash of hot sauce
  • 1 gallon peanut oil, for frying
  • 8 flour tortillas
Instructions
  1. In a large mixing bowl, combine the rice flour, corn meal, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne, salt, and lemon pepper. Stir and move to the side.
  2. In a large mixing bowl, add the diced mango, tomato, red onion, cucumber, cilantro, and jalapeno. Add the lime juice and stir to incorporate. Cover and refrigerate.
  3. In a large mixing bowl, add the cabbage, carrot, and onion along with the vinegar and mustard. Fold in ¼ cup of the mayonnaise and stir to combine. Cover and refrigerate.
  4. In a mixing bowl, combine the remaining 2 cups of mayonnaise, horseradish, lemon juice, and hot sauce. Begin slowly adding the ketchup while stirring with a whisk. Once the white mayonnaise base begins turning pink with the ketchup, stop. Season with salt and pepper. Pour the mixture into a plastic squeeze bottle.
  5. In a large mixing bowl, add the fish pieces and pour over the lemon juice and hot sauce coating all the pieces.
  6. In a large pot, pour in the peanut oil and heat on medium to a temperature of 375ºF.
  7. Inspect the fish fillets to make sure all pin bones have been removed. Dredge the fish pieces in the fish fry dry mixture and drop into the hot oil. Be careful not to crowd the pan or let the temperature drop. You will probably have to fry in two or three stages depending on the size of your pan. When golden brown, remove to a platter covered in paper towel. Keep the platter warm while you fry the remaining fish.
  8. For assembly, place two flour tortillas on a plate. Spread each with the slaw mixture and place a serving of the fried fish on each. Spoon on the salsa and add a squeeze of sauce over each.
  9. Serve this dish with a side of black beans.
Notes
Be sure to find fresh fillets of fish. Fish choices are endless: Gulf snapper, Mahi Mahi, or thin-cut catfish could easily stand in for grouper. To source the freshest, buy Louisiana seafood online at Louisiana Direct Seafood. A trick I learned from Asian recipes is the inclusion of rice flour. Not only is it gluten free, but it fries up crispier than regular wheat flour. I like the extra crunch from rice flour and cornmeal combined in this fry recipe.
Recipe by Acadiana Table at https://acadianatable.com/?p=4937