Fish Tacos with Coleslaw and Chipotle Sauce make a healthy, delicious family-friendly meal. My kids love almost anything served taco style. I think they just like eating with their hands. I like tacos because they are easy to make and can provide a one-dish meal for a casual summer dinner, or for a busy night.
Fish Tacos with Chipotle Sauce
Now that grilling season is in full swing and the lazy days of summer are coming, these fish tacos will be making a more frequent appearance at our dinner table. My boys are not big cooked fish eaters. In fact, there is only one cooked fish dish that I’ve come up with in addition to these fish tacos that my boys will eat – Grilled Salmon with Thai Coconut Curry Sauce.
Last month, I made another version of fish tacos and shared it on Facebook. You can find a picture of those fish tacos there. I remember being in a hurry to make dinner that night and just quickly sprinkled some chili powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and olive oil on top of fresh tilapia fillets.
After a quick grilling, the boys enjoyed the fish served taco style, with fresh avocado, tomato, lettuce, cilantro, scallions and Wickedly good fish taco sauce (made with 0% Greek yogurt). This most recent version of fish tacos that I made used a similar seasoning, except I added some Spanish smoked paprika and decided to serve some coleslaw on top. Vegetables always seem to go down easier for my boys when served in a fun style. So, here are some tips for making kid-friendly fish tacos:
- Choose a firm white fish such as tilapia, catfish, barramundi, or orange roughy. Flounder would be too delicate.
- Come up with fun toppings such as tomatoes, avocado or guacamole, shredded lettuce, tomato salsa, fruit salsa, or coleslaw (recipe below).
- Serve with a tangy sauce like Wickedly Good Fish Taco Sauce or Chipotle Yogurt Sauce (recipe below)
- Put all the toppings out on the table in little bowls so the kids can help themselves.
- After heating tortillas up in a pan or on the gas burner, keep them warm and soft in a clean cloth towel.
Eating tacos can be messy…that’s ok. Let the kids use their fingers to pick up the extra little pieces that fall out.
Here are some more light grilling recipes that are all gluten-free:
- Pollo Asada and a Chicken Taco Recipe
- Thai Chicken Skewers
- Grilled Asparagus (simply toss asparagus spears with a little olive oil, salt and pepper and grill; this works great with zucchini, summer squash, eggplant)
Fish Tacos with Coleslaw and Chipotle Sauce
Ingredients
Coleslaw
- 4 cups coleslaw mix or shredded cabbage and carrots
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
Fish
- 2 pounds white fish fillet such as tilapia
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon Spanish smoked paprika
- salt to taste
Chipotle Yogurt Sauce
- 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, seeds removed
- 1/2 cup non-fat Greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons lowfat mayonnaise
- salt to taste
To Serve
- 12 corn tortillas
Instructions
Coleslaw
-
Mix all Coleslaw ingredients together in a medium bowl. Cover and chill until time to serve.
Fish
-
Drizzle olive oil on both sides of fish fillets, using your fingers to lightly cover all the pieces.
-
Sprinkle chili powder, smoked paprika and a little salt on each piece.
-
Grill on top of a lightly greased piece of foil until done (this keeps the fish from sticking to the grill). Flip the fish halfway through cooking, or just leave it alone and let it finish cooking without turning. Alternatively, bake in the oven at 375 degrees for about 12-15 minutes until cooked through.
To Serve
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Lightly toast corn tortillas over gas flame or in a cast iron pan. Let everyone serve themselves by topping the corn tortilla with some Grilled Fish, Coleslaw and a drizzle of Chipotle Yogurt Sauce.
I can’t blame your kids, I love eating with my hands too! These look wonderful.
Totally doing this – love making a mess and adults love eating with their hands also. (Plus it’s packed with goodness and flavor).
Pass me a taco! This and a margarita would be the most perfect summer meal.
It’s always good to have another take on fish tacos. My first taste was coming out of Yosemite, at Mono Lake, where we joined a huge queue at a petrol station – of all places – for a gourmet version. A happy food memory. I do mine in cornmeal and with a ginger and lime slaw and a mango-avocado salsa, but also with chipotle yogurt. Love fish tacos!
Kellie, your version sounds delicious – love the idea of ginger and lime slaw, and mango-avocado salsa is a favorite in our house.
You know, I’ve never had fish tacos. But that chipotle sauce sounds amazing!
These look amazing, so fresh and healthy. I love the spice on the fish paired with the creaminess of the yogurt sauce and the crunch from the slaw — perfection!
Thanks Faith – my kids did enjoy the combination of spices, creaminess and crunch, all wrapped up in a taco.
Looks delicious Jeanette. The chipotle yogurt sauce is a lovely healthy addition. Beautiful photos as always.
Thanks France – I love to add some spiciness to sauces. This creamy yogurt sauce went really nicely with the tacos.
Brilliant!! But I do wish my kids ate tacos like yours…. they are slowly coming around though. My husband and I could literally live on fish tacos though! We do lost of mahi and salmon. I’ve not found a good slaw that I really like, so yours is up next!! Well done!
Thanks Kim – my kids didn’t used to eat fish tacos, but now they do, so you never know. The fish I used is very mild, so combined with the spices and the crunchy coleslaw, this was an easy way to have them eat fish.
Wrap healthy ingredients in a tortilla. Smart!
Donna, my kids love anything wrapped in a taco. I love the fact that they like coleslaw when it’s wrapped in these tacos!
These tacos are fantastic and I just love that wonderful sauce!
Hope you are having a lovely Sunday 🙂
tacos is one of my favorites to make too for entertaining. i haven’t made fish tacos before, but i would love to try!!! thanks for the tips on various types of fish. 🙂
Hi Junia, if you’ve never tried fish tacos, you have to try it at least once. Very light.
These fish tacos sound delicious. I know this is a meal I would enjoy any time of year!