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:
- 24 small white corn tortillas
- 1 1/2 lb tilapia
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 Tbsp unsalted butter
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 mayonnaise
- 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
Filed Under
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Love Tacos? Don’t miss our most popular taco recipes here (the ground beef tacos, beef bulgogi tacos 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.
Great recipe! I made them tostada style. Loved the lime sauce!
That’s a great idea!
These have been on my to do recipe so I jumped right on for July 1st challenge and so glad I finally made them. They were delicious and the sauce was an added bonus. I did the fish in the air fryer at 400 for 10mins as it was frozen. I used flour tortillas. Highly recommend these and also want to try the shrimp tacos now. The recipe was very easy and quick to fix. Thank you for all your wonderful recipes. I have not been disappointed with any of them. Already added to my favorites.
I’m so happy to hear they’ve become a favorite. Thank you for sharing your experience.
Favorite fish taco recipe on homemade tortillas!! And fresh fish from our neighbor!’
Thanks for all the wonderful recipes
Fresh fish from the neighbor and homemade tortillas sound like the absolute best way to enjoy these tacos. Thank you so much for the lovely feedback, Penny.
I liked this recipe and the food was delicious! I added a few extra seasonings to the fish (paprika, chili powder, onion powder). The fish was way overdone at 20 minutes so next time I’ll try 12 minutes next time.
Hi Penny! I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe. Did you use a convection/fan oven to bake your fish? If so, it will bake faster. Per USDA food safety guidelines, the internal temperature should reach 145° degrees. You can remove the cod from the heat when it’s around 140–143°F, as it will usually continue cooking for a minute or two while it’s resting. This helps keep it tender and juicy.
My notoriously picky son won’t eat fish. Would these ingredients pair well to do with chicken for him?
Hi Gretchen! Sure, you can definitely use chicken too.
How can you make these ahead of time? Do they need to be served warm?
Hi Jackie! You can heat them cold, but I prefer them warmed up. The fish can be reheat in the microwave, or in a skillet, covered with a little butter or oil on medium-low heat. It can easily become overdone and rubbery, so reheat it with caution.
I made these tonight and they were a big hit. I cooked the fish in the air fryer @400 for 8 minutes. Super easy & delicious.
I tried this recipe, only I used shrimp, it was so good. My family loved it. I love using Natasha’s recipes.
Using shrimp sounds like a delicious twist, Teresa. I am so glad your family loved them. Thank you for cooking with my recipes.
Delicious, crispy crunchy fresh! I live in London, no Cotija cheese here, but crumbled Wensleydale cheese is a GREAT substitute (born Texan, very familiar with Cotija)! The sauce was amazing (even tho i didn’t have any mayo). I doubled up on the taco ingredients, turning it into a ‘dry rub’ and pan fried/seared Haddock fillets in the butter. Thank you for sharing this recipe Natasha! Having fish tacos AGAIN tonight.
I’m so delighted to read this, Lisa! Thank you for your thoughtful review! The dry rub sounds amazing! I’m so glad you loved it.
Why not make your own mayo? Natasha has an easy recipe. One I started making my own, I’ve never looked back. Fresh ingredients, costs a lot less and isn’t sitting around in a plastic bottle. Although it takes a little longer, I prefer the food processor over the immersion blender as it’s just easier for me to control.
This is a favorite to serve to family and friends! I spice one end of the fish heavier than the other, so everyone gets what they like. Works great doubled for bigger groups. I always make double the sauce, as my hubby love it.
It’s a good idea to double the sauce, I’m glad you both enjoy it!
With everyone here in the comments trading out the tilapia for cod I decided I’ll have to try it that way as well! ( I’ve made it many times with tilapia) Should the cooking time, temperature, or anything else change for cod as opposed to the tilapia? Or follow recipe per usual? Thanks!
Hi Kenzy, I would always recommend using a thermometer to be safe. But the time should be pretty similar as long as the cut is not much bigger.
These are some of the best fish tacos I’ve had. Wondering dies this recipe work okay with salmon rather than tilapia?
Wow, that is such high praise—thank you so much, Anna! Yes, this works well with salmon! Here’s what a readers shared with me: “My Family just loves this recipe. I tried it with salmon last night and I actually think it tasted better”
These are the best fish tacos I’ve ever made. The sauce is a MUST.
I believe someone else mentioned this also, so I’ve been cooking for decades and try about 5-7 new recipes a week but I never got on the fish taco bandwagon. Had them in restaurants, etc. but never tried. Wellll, that all changed today!!!!
Just made them, ate them and OMG…delicious!!!!! So, so, so GOOD! Made them as written but skipped the optional tomatoes. I absolutely agree….do not, not, NOT, skip the sauce. These babies will be on repeat all summer long. Thank you so much for sharing this AWESOME recipe. Hugs!!!!
Wow, I’m honored! So glad this recipe was such a big success.
I’m an avid home chef, but for some reason never made fish tacos before. Last night I made this recipe for my family, and it was a hit! Easy ingredients, easy prep, easy cooking- and packed with flavor. Plus I love the health factor. We like things a bit spicier, so I upped the sriracha and lime in the sauce, and also doubled the cumin for the fish (used mahi mahi). Will definitely make again!
I’m so glad you gave it a try! Thank you for sharing your thoughts about the Fish tacos, great to hear that you enjoyed them!
I’ve never made fish tacos before, but I’m going to try this recipe tonight. Going to use greek yogurt for extra protein and fewer calories as I’m doing Weight Watchers. It tastes the same as sour cream anyway. Looking forward to trying!
I hope you love them!
XLNT tacos, I’ve read bad things about tilapia so used wild Alaskan cod.
Any white fish will work in its place! Cod fish is an excellent choice.
Made this last night with the neighbours. Everyone loved it! Used cod, will be doing making this again soon
We love these fish tacos! I’m so glad you got to try them too!
Delicious! So easy. Definitely will make again….probably in a few days! 😉
That’s wonderful! I’m so glad it made it onto your repeat list, Yvonne!
Absolutely delish! Best tacos we have ever eaten. I used cod, the directions cooked it perfectly. Already planning on making it for our next party.