Our all-time favorite Fish Tacos recipe! These are loaded with fresh ingredients and perfectly seasoned plump fish. Don’t skip the best fish taco sauce – a garlic lime crema that you will want it on all your tacos!
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This is our go-to recipe for family get togethers and company because it comes together quickly and it always gets rave reviews. These fish tacos are so flavorful and satisfying but you will feel good and light at the end of the meal.
This recipe is party sized and can be scaled down to feed a smaller crowd. It was developed by my brother-in-law, Slavik and it has been adopted by pretty much everyone in our family. I have had so many requests to publish the recipe so here it is! It’s an easy, excellent fish tacos recipe. Thank you Slavik for sharing your awesome fish tacos with us. I’m pretty sure it’s impossible to ever get tired of this recipe. P.S. They just happen to be gluten free fish tacos!
Seriously though, be generous with that fish taco sauce! The sauce recipe was adapted from Kaylee on All Recipes. We simply doubled it because there never seems to be enough of the sauce ;).
Ingredients for Fish Tacos:
We used tilapia but you are welcome to use any white fish. Salmon or shrimp would be amazing as well!
Fish Taco Toppings:
*Cotija cheese is a Mexican cheese that crumbles when you grate it; similar to feta but much milder in flavor and not nearly as salty. It is inexpensive and found in the refrigerated cheese section of the grocery store.
Ingredients for Best Fish Taco Sauce:
For the fish taco sauce, all you need is sour cream, mayo, lime juice, garlic powder and sriracha. The sriracha gives it a little kick of spice so you can add more or less based on your preference. This taco sauce is essentially a lime crema – the perfect blend of tanginess and heat (print the recipe below).
How to Make Fish Tacos:
1. Line a large baking sheet with parchment or silicone liner. In a small dish, stir together seasonings: 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper, 1 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper and evenly sprinkle the seasoning mix over both sides of tilapia.
2. Lightly drizzle fish with olive oil and top each piece with a dot of butter. Baked at 375˚F for 20-25 min. If you want it to get a little browned around the edges, you can broil for 3-5 minutes at the end if desired.
3. Combine all the Taco sauce ingredients: 1/2 cup sour cream, 1/3 cup Mayo, 2 Tbsp lime juice (from 1 medium lime), 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp Sriracha sauce, or to taste in a medium bowl or a large measuring cup and whisk together until well blended. It’s really fun and feels like dining out to serve the sauce in a squeeze bottle like this one.
4. To serve the tacos, toast quickly toast the corn tortillas on a large dry skillet or griddle over medium/high heat.
5. To assemble: start with the fish then add remaining ingredients finishing off with a generous sprinkle of cotija cheese and finally that awesome taco sauce! Serve with a fresh lime wedge to squeeze extra lime juice over tacos.
Mmmm so much sauce! I’m so crazy about this taco sauce. Seriously the best!
⬇ Print-Friendly Fish Tacos Recipe:
Fish Tacos Recipe with Best Fish Taco Sauce!
Ingredients
Fish Taco Ingredients:
Fish Taco Toppings:
- 1/2 small purple cabbage
- 2 medium avocado, sliced
- 2 roma tomatoes, diced (optional)
- 1/2 diced red onion
- 1/2 bunch Cilantro, longer stems removed
- 4 oz 1 cup Cotija cheese, grated
- 1 lime cut into 8 wedges to serve
Fish Taco Sauce Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/3 cup Mayo
- 2 Tbsp lime juice, from 1 medium lime
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp Sriracha sauce, or to taste
Instructions
- Line large baking sheet with parchment or silicone liner. In a small dish, combine seasonings: 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper, 1 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper and evenly sprinkle seasoning mix over both sides of tilapia.
- Lightly drizzle fish with olive oil and dot each piece with butter. Bake at 375 for 20-25 min. To brown edges, broil for 3-5 minutes at the end if desired.
- Combine all Taco sauce ingredients in a medium bowl and whisk until well blended.
- To serve the tacos, toast quickly toast the corn tortillas on a large dry skillet or griddle over medium/high heat.
- To assemble: start with pieces of fish then add remaining ingredients finishing with a generous sprinkle of cotija cheese and finally that awesome taco sauce! Serve with a fresh lime wedge to squeeze over tacos.
Nutrition Per Serving
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
Love Tacos? Don’t miss our most popular taco recipes here (the beef bulgogi and shrimp tacos are completely swoon worthy!)
I’m so tempted to make these again for dinner tonight. I will never stop loving this recipe! I hope you all love it as much as we do.
It’s just for my husband and myself. Is there any way to cut down the recipe?
Hi Judi! Yes, you can scale down the recipe by changing the number of servings at the top of the recipe card.
Have you reheated for left over or should this be eaten in one sitting? Not sure how the fish is reheating! Thanks!
Hi Ashley! We enjoy it best fresh, but that may work! I would recommend finding a way to reheat it without overcooking it. Perhaps the oven or a skillet.
Hi Natasha!
Would frozen tilapia work? If so, would it need to be thawed prior?
Thank you!!
Hi Jaime! Yes, you could use frozen Tilapia. You’ll need to bake it longer. Insert a food thermometer (amazon affiliate link) into the thickest part it should register 145° when done.
Amazing! I used Hellman’s low fat mayo and spray olive oil to save a few calories. Better than restaurant tacos!
Natasha, as a native San Diegan, where fish tacos rule, I have to say, these are AMAZING! I did a combo of your shrimp from your shrimp tacos and the crema from this fish taco recipe. Oh my! They were absolutely delicious! THANK YOU for recreating the flavors of home here in Idaho. I love your recipes (also your fettuccini alfredo…wow! french dip sliders…so good!) and look forward to many more delicious meals thanks to you!
Hi Rebecca! Thank you so much for sharing that. I’m so glad you’re enjoying the recipes!
Excellent! I baked wild rockfish and it was wonderful. Also used green cabbage and flour tortillas. Sauce is fantastic. We have a new favorite!
That’s great, Lauren!
Hi Natasha, could I use Greek yogurt in place of sour cream and mayo?
Hi Jan! Sure, that would be fine. It will lack some of the flavor but feel free to modify it to your preference.
Just wondering if you could use plain yogurt instead of sour cream for the sauce?
Hi Johanne. Yes, that should be fine.
First time making fish tacos, these tasted restaurant made! Thanks so much
Love it! Thanks so much for your wondeful feedback, Dee.
The seasonings on the fish (I used salmon) were perfect. I’ve never made this before, & it got a big thumbs up from my husband! Personally, he preferred a green chili salsa to the sour cream mix. (I liked both) I served it with tomatoes, cilantro, avocado, and lime
This is so good! Thank you Natasha for making such an amazing recipe!
I’m so glad you loved it, Erin! Thank you for sharing.
My 2 year old grandson loves anything fish related, so his 2nd birthday party had to involve fish! These tacos (made them with both fish and shrimp) were a huge hit with everyone, as well as the birthday boy! I so appreciated the details for the accompaniments, which took them to restaurant quality…so tasty and fun!
Hi Barb! Happy 2nd birthday to your grandson! I’m so excited to hear you served my fish tacos at a birthday celebration and everyone loved them! It warms my heart to know the birthday boy enjoyed them as well! Thank you for your awesome review!
Made for the first time. I really liked the flavor of the tilapia and the special fish taco sauce. I think I make fish alone sometimes as it was really flavorful.
Thanks for sharing, Sandy!
I actually was planning on pan frying my fish and I really just came to your page to look to see what blend of spices you used. Then I saw put in oven. It was DELICIOUS!! Thanks 🙂
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it, Suzie!
It was delicious and so easy!!
I used mahi mahi fish and paired it with cilantro lime rice 👌🏼
Thank you for the recipe!
Glad to hear that you enjoyed it!
I made these yesterday for brunch, and my friends and I absolutely loved them. They’re so easy to make and so delish that they’ll become part of my weekly rotation. I used salmon, because it’s my favorite fish.
Thank you for sharing, Carol!