The Best Easy Fish Tacos! Tender and flaky fish full of spicy flavor tucked into flour tortillas and topped with garlic cilantro lime slaw. YUM!
Best Easy Fish Tacos
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Wow these tacos were so so good!! I added the the magic green sauce. They’re just as good as brewery fish tacos in California that I gorge on every time I visit.
Jessica
The good news is this: even if it’s not summer, even if you live far away from any sort of ocean, even if you don’t really know anything about cooking… you can make EXTREMELY GOOD fish tacos at home.
Right here, right now, tonight. It’s on.
We love, love, love this recipe.
There is no love like the love I have for good fish tacos. And with these, you’re going to get that fish nice and tender and flaky and full of spicy flavor, and then you’re going to tuck it into little flour tortillas and top it with garlic lime slaw (omg), avocado, cilantro, and whatever else your fish taco heart desires.
The textures, the colors, the satisfying and crunchy I-might-be-on-vacation vibe? It’s all there.
We have plenty of other methods of making fish tacos on Pinch of Yum but these are hands-down the best easy fish tacos. They are just right for the Everyperson, which is why I love them and make them all the time.
They are:
- super fast
- super easy
- fresh and crispy
- full of flavor
- peppy and fun
- one of my favorite back-pocket weeknight meals!
TYPES OF FISH TO USE IN TACOS
We’re using cod for this recipe, but any white fish will do. You could also use:
- Mahi mahi (yum!)
- Snapper
- Flounder
- Halibut
- Grouper
And if you you’re not a big fan of the above, shrimp is always an option! In that case, these Spicy Shrimp Tacos will be your best friend.
What To Serve with Fish Tacos
Slaw, avocado, cilantro, repeat!
But also: you could serve these tacos with some yummy Mexican rice, a simple salad tossed with cilantro vinaigrette, or a Mexican street corn salad. And maybe some margaritas for good measure? Definitely margaritas.
More avocado, more garlic lime slaw, and more of that yummy, buttery, spicy, seriously-easy-to-make fish, please. MORE.
The best easy fish tacos are yours for the taking!
Check Out Our Video For How To Make Fish Tacos:
Best Easy Fish Tacos
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 2–3 servings 1x
Description
The Best Easy Fish Tacos! Tender and flaky fish full of spicy flavor tucked into flour tortillas and topped with garlic cilantro lime slaw. YUM!
Ingredients
Scale
Fish Tacos:
- 3 tablespoons butter, melted
- juice of 1 lime
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- pinch of salt
- 10–15 oz. cod or other white fish, thawed
- tortillas and avocados for serving
- slaw for serving (see notes)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix butter, lime juice, chili powder, garlic powder, and salt in a small bowl. Pour mixture over the fish. Bake for 10-15 minutes.
- Flake apart the fish and coat with the extra sauce in the pan.
- Make your dressing and pour it on the cabbage. See more in notes section.
- Prep your toppings (mashed avocado, slaw, red onion, mango salsa, whatever you like). Serve fish in tortillas with toppings!
Notes
Slaw: Make a sauce by blending 1/4 cup oil, 1/4 cup water, 1/2 cup chopped green onions, 1/2 cup cilantro, 1-2 cloves garlic, juice of 2 limes, 1/2 cup sour cream or Greek yogurt, and a pinch of salt. Pour sauce over shredded cabbage to make a slaw!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Cuisine: Mexican
Keywords: easy fish tacos, fish taco recipe, best fish tacos
Frequently Asked Questions For These Fish Tacos
What could I substitute for butter?
Ghee or dairy-free butter would be a good substitute here!
How long does leftover sauce for the slaw last in the fridge?
The sauce will keep for 3-4 days in the fridge.
How do you know when the cod is cooked?
If the fish flakes easily with a fork, it’s done! If you want to be sure, you could use a thermometer to check. Fish should be cooked to 145 degrees F.
What other types of fish could you use?
Mahi-mahi, grouper, flounder, or halibut would also work. If you want to use salmon, these Salmon Tacos are also very delicious!
How could I grill the fish?
I love these tips from Weber Grills! In short – bring your fish closer to room temperature, use high heat, and let the fish release from the grill on it’s own so it doesn’t flake off.
Could I batter the fish and make crispy fish tacos?
I’d recommend using this recipe for Crispy Fish Tacos!
Filed Under: All Recipes Avocado Dinner Fish and Seafood Gluten-Free Healthy Lime Main Dishes Quick and Easy Recipes Sugar Free January Sugar-Free Tacos Winter
January 14, 2020
Nice to meet you!
I’m Lindsay and I ♡ FOOD. I used to be a teacher, and now making food and writing about it online is my full-time job. I love talking with people about food, and I'm so glad you're here.
Did you make a recipe? Tag @pinchofyum on Instagram so we can find you!
These look amazing, and we have all the ingredients to make them for dinner tonight! Totally giving them a try!
Paige
http://thehappyflammily.com
Enjoy!
I made the fish tacos, the grilled corn salad and the Mexican rice, all 3 were delicious!! Thanks for the recipes!
Glad to hear it, Corinne!
These tacos are delicious! I added a pinch of cayenne to both the fish sauce and the green sauce and I also only used one lime on the green sauce, which made it very tasty. I think next time I’d try using less butter in the fish sauce as suggested in one of the comments to try it as a paste, but it was also good as a runny sauce too. Will definitely be making this again!
I love the new way of showing the recipe steps with the videos! Also, I can’t wait to make this!!
Enjoy, Hannah!
I love a good fish taco! Is there a sub for the butter?
Hi, Jo! We haven’t tried this without butter, but you could try using oil instead. We’d suggest using just maybe 1 tablespoon of butter to make it more into a paste instead that you spread on the fish. Enjoy!
Hi keen to make this for toddlers; is there a sub for chilli powder? Thanks!
Hi there! We’d actually really recommend chili powder here. We would say this these tacos have flavor but aren’t overly spicy. You could try cutting the amount of chili powder in half though if you’d prefer. 🙂
Thanks! We’ll give it a try.
I can’t wait to try this soon – looks so good!
Enjoy, Chris!
Super disappointing recipe for me. I usually love your recipes, but this one did nothing for me. The fish was good by itself, but not as a taco. Maybe others will like it.
So sorry to hear this, Melanie. Thanks for taking time to share this feedback with us – we really appreciate it!
I actually agree. I have probably made over 75% of the recipes on this blog ON REPEAT…I love them all so much. The fish was good, but the sauce for the slaw was flavorless and dull.
What kind of oil for the slaw dressing? My go-to is olive oil, but not sure that flavor works?
Loved this recipe, the slaw in particular. It turned out great. QQ: I had a lot of leftover slaw sauce so I have it saved in the fridge. How long do you think it’s good for?
Thanks!
We’d say the slaw sauce would be good for about 3-4 days in the fridge in a sealed container.
Do you have any recommendations for telling when the cod is done? This is my first time baking fish and I’m nervous, haha.
Good question, Cait! If you take a fork to the thickest part of the fish, it should easily flake off. Here’s more info on that!
I just made this for dinner tonight and my whole family loved it!!! (4yr old and 15mo old included) We made everything, the fish and slaw, and it tasted delicious. Thanks Lindsay, great recipe!!
Glad to hear this was a hit for you and your family, Debby! 😊
The recipe title says it all. This was super easy to pull together and will definitely be made again. Note to self…easy on the garlic as it stays raw in the dressing.
Glad to hear you enjoyed the tacos, Doris!
I was wondering if there is a substitute for the cilantro or should I just make without it? We’re not cilantro fans 🙂
You could do parsley instead for the slaw. Enjoy, Heather!
I made this tonight but used shrimp instead of fish because that’s what I had. So amazing. I made your creamy avocado green sauce to go with it. Will repeat this in a heartbeat as my husband and all of our kids loved it as well. Thank you! I always know my family will be happy when I make your recipes!
Drooling! 🤤 Sound so good, Anne!
I made these last week following the recipe exactly as outlined . . I don’t always.
It was perfect! My family loved it. A definite fav!
Thank you
So happy to hear this, Ria!
The marinade for the fish was good, the teaspoon of chili powder was barely noticeable which was a plus because I needed my kids to be able to eat the food. The fish came out good, however, the slaw dressing was way too limey and unpalatable.
I made these last night and they are super close in flavor to Wahoos fish tacos, which I LOVE!! So good! Next time I’ll add a tiny bit of Cayenne to give it a little kick. But, this will be on our rotation from now on!
Yay!
Hi, this recipe looks amazing I was wondering if for the slaw I can use coconut milk instead of sour cream or yogurt I don’t like dairy.
Thanks !
Coconut milk would probably make your slaw too runny in this case. You could try vegan sour cream or yogurt as a replacement though.
These are so good – my entire family loves them! The bonus is how easy they are!
Glad to hear it, Megan! 😊
We LOVED this recipe! It was the perfect summer meal. Thanks for always giving us great recipe ideas!
💃💃💃
Can we use frozen fish that goes directly in the oven? Could i put the sauce on top of the frozen fish? Thanks!
We’d probably recommend thawing the frozen fish first so that excess water doesn’t come out when cooking.
Hi! Just found your website and I love your recipes! Is there a dairy free substitute I could use in the slaw? I can’t have dairy. Maybe a dairy free yogurt? Thanks!
A dairy-free yogurt could work here! Let us know how it goes for you! 😊
Wow these tacos were so so good!! I added the the magic green sauce. They’re just as good as brewery fish tacos in California that I gorge on every time I visit.
Awesome to hear! Thanks for sharing, Jessica!
These tacos are delicious, my family loved them! I did use a little too much lime in the slaw but balanced out the flavors by using mango as a topping. I definitely will be making these again!
Mango would be a great topping! Thanks for sharing, Dee!
Thank you for the big turn up on my lunch! ☺️
Absolutely loveddd this!! Living on the coast, this will be on the monthly rotation- thank you!
Another winner! I love this green sauce for the slaw! I used Mahi this time but can’t wait to try this with Shrimp! 🙂