Easy-to-make spicy fish tacos with pan-fried white fish, slaw, and chipotle mayo. A healthier alternative to fried fish tacos ready in just 15 minutes!
A few years ago, there was a Mexican restaurant in Miami that had the BEST estilo baja tacos!
Beer-battered deep fried fish, Mexican slaw, and chipotle aioli.
YUM!
Of course, not the healthiest taco but OMG SO GOOD. Literally was my favorite lunch spot. Until they closed. (hello darkness, my old friend)
So bummed. But hey, that just means I had to learn to make them at home in a WAY healthier way. Because as you know, I HATE frying at home.
If you’ve been a reader for a while (thank you!), I’m sure you’ve read about my hatred for frying here and pretty much everywhere on the blog.
I digress.
These spicy fish tacos are BOMB. If I do say so myself. They are tender, flavorful, juicy and the creamy, spicy chipotle mayo just makes them extra DELISH!
I mean, who doesn’t love a kick in their tacos?!
You can totally adjust the spice levels in the recipe. If you want more chili powder, go for it! Maybe just add in 1 teaspoon at a time. Just to be safe. ;)
If you want more chipotle mayo, by all means, help yourself!
I used Sir Kensington’s Chipotle Mayo for this recipe but you can use any brand you’d like, or even make your own! (There’s a simple recipe in the notes section below.)
Best part of this recipe? Uh, everything. Duh. No wait, there’s more! It all comes together in just 15 minutes!
YASSSSS.
What are you waiting for?!
I hope you make these and LOVE them!
15-Minute Spicy Fish Tacos with Slaw
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 4 fish fillets (any white fish like cod, mahi mahi, halibut)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 12 corn tortillas , warm
- 2 tablespoons chipotle mayo (store-bought or simple recipe in notes)
- Fresh lime juice
- Tomato , chopped
- Red cabbage , thinly sliced
- Cilantro , roughly chopped
- Lime wedges for garnish
Instructions
- Combine the cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Lay the fish fillets on a clean work surface and sprinkle the spice mix evenly over each filet, rubbing it on all sides.
- In a non-stick skillet set over medium-high heat, heat 1 tablespoon of oil. Add 2 of the fish fillets and cook, undisturbed, about 4 minutes. Flip the fillets and cook for another 4 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the pan and swirl to coat. Repeat the cooking process with the remaining 2 filets. Set aside.
- Make chipotle mayo using the recipe in notes. If using store-bought chipotle mayo, mix two tablespoons of the chipotle mayo with 1 tablespoon of lime juice to slightly thin it out for drizzling over tacos.
- Using a fork, shred the fish fillets. Divide into 12 corn tortillas, top with red cabbage, tomato, cilantro, and chipotle mayo. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Looking for other sauce ideas?
- Avocado Chimichurri
- Homemade Honey Mustard Sauce
- Cilantro Garlic Sauce
- Homemade Lightened Up Chipotle Mayo
- Lemon Yogurt Sauce
- Avocado Sauce
- Cilantro Garlic Chimichurri
- Avocado Crema
- Mango Rum Sauce
- Lightened Up Big Mac Sauce
- Arugula Pesto
- Homemade Lightened Up Caesar Dressing
- Mango Mojito Dressing
- Avocado Dill Dressing
- Homemade Honey Whiskey BBQ Sauce
- Guava BBQ Sauce
SHOP THE RECIPE
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These look delicious!!
Thank you so much!
Love how quick and easy this dish is. It looks delicious!
Thanks Alyssa!
Super love that these come together in 15 minutes! Chipotle mayo is one of my favs, can’t wait to try out this recipe!
Thanks Erica!!!
Oh man, I have been looking for a good fish taco recipe! This one looks amazing, and I love how fast it comes together. Definitely pinning this one to try!
Hope you LOVE it, Riva! :)
It looks delicious! thank you!
Thank you!
It looks delicious!
I have made these twice now, and they are for dinner tonight. These tacos are SO SO good! We made the fish just as directed. I like that there is NO breaded coating. The chipotle mayo was actually chipotle yougurt here, with lots of the adobo sauce, we like things spicy! We skipped the veggies listed and topped it with cabbage and jicama slaw (from Epicurious.com). Delicious! A favorite for us, and it will be served often here! Thanks for sharing!
Hi Jamie! I love your recipes! Just wanted to drop you a line that I love this recipe so much that I linked to it (https://lunchwithleah.com/9-easy-quick-healthy-weeknight-meals/) in a recent recipe round-up post I wrote about healthy weeknight meals for busy families.
This recipe is in constant rotation at our home, sometimes with variations but always yummy. Thanks for creating delicious recipes!
Leah @ LunchwithLeah.com
Hi Leah! Thanks so much. Glad you liked it! :)
This was amazing! I can’t wait to make it again. I was surprised at how easy it was – it really was 15 minutes!
So happy you LOVED it! :)
Excellent recipe! So easy, healthy and flavourful
So happy you loved it, Sam!