spicy fish tacos with hatch chile salsa verde
Hatchie season is basically a holiday for J. Small wonder: it’s ever brief and the peppers are always at their peak when they hit grocery shelves. So why not make some hatch chile salsa verde to embrace the end of summer?
Keeping supper light and bright with these Spicy Fish Tacos with Hatch Chile Salsa Verde. This post accidentally falls on a Wednesday, so call it a nostalgic throwback to Taco Wednesday/Tex Mex Wednesday/whatever other name I lent.
These lovely tacos are quick and simple to make, with the only real effort coming from the salsa verde. A food processor, however, expedites much of this process. The fish sears in a skillet with a few seasonings until tender and moist, then gets thrown into tortillas with avocado crema, greens, roasted corn (if you choose!), and topped off with plenty of the homemade verde. If you have leftovers of the salsa, trust me – you’ll want to dip anything and everything in it. Could make it part of your own Fiesta Carnitas Tapas Board, honestly.
Fish, Please
First, you’re gonna roast up some tomatillos and hatch chiles. This process is fast, possibly too fast if you let your eyes stray from the broiler. Don’t. Both blacken fast!
Set husked tomatillos on one tray and hatch chiles on another. Broil the tomatillos about 2-3 minutes per side, and the hatches 4-5 per side. Set the hatches in a paper bag, or a ziptop bag, and seal to sweat for about 15 minutes. This allows cools them so you can touch the peppers without burning yourself. When they’re cool enough to handle, strip off the skin and deseed as much as you’d like. More seeds equals more heat. Hatches can be VERY spicy, so if you want to tone it down, scrape a larger amount out.
Place the peppers and tomatillos in a food processor along with red onion, lime juice, cumin, garlic, cilantro, and a touch of salt and pepper. Blendy blend, and taste for seasonings. I added a bit more salt a couple times until it was just right. Pour into a serving dish and refrigerate until ready to serve the tacos.
Clean out the food processor and make a quick avocado crema. Avocados, yogurt, lime juice, and salt – that’s all. Whip until creamy.
Find a white fish you like for these tacos. I chose mahi mahi for its firmness and mild flavor. Pat the filets dry and season with smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. Sear in an oiled skillet for about 3-4 minutes per side until tender and juicy. Finish with a good hit of lime juice, then move to a plate and shred into large chunks.
Assemble!
I added some roasted corn to these tacos for a bit of crunch. I buy mine frozen from Trader Joe’s, and would highly recommend this option if you don’t feel like doing your own kernels.
Grab some tortillas and warm them in a microwave for 20 seconds under damp paper towels. Spread lots of avocado crema on the bottom and plop a handful of arugula, or another green, on the crema. Sprinkle with roasted corn, set fish chunks onto the greens, and spoon as much salsa verde as your heart desires over the whole affair. Grab a fork. You’ll probably need it, because tacos rarely stay as tacos for long when they’ve got this much awesome stuffed in them.
Tried this recipe out? Lave a comment below with your thoughts, and don’t forget to come say hi on Instagram and show me what you made!
Craving more salsa verde? (I would be, too)
Crispy Salsa Verde Mushroom Tacos with Honey Jalapeno Crema
Skillet Cheesy Quinoa Enchiladas Verdes Bake
Ingredients
- 1 lb mahi mahi, halibut, or another sturdy white fish
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 lime, for juice
- 8 corn or wheat tortillas
- 2 cups arugula, or other green of choice
- 1 1/2 cups roasted corn, homemade or storebought
hatch chile salsa verde
- 1 lb tomatillos, husked
- 4 hatch chile peppers
- 1/2 red onion
- 2 tbsp lime juice
- 1 tsp cumin
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1/2 cup cilantro
avocado crema
- 2 avocados
- 2 tbsp plain Greek yogurt
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt, or to taste
Instructions
- Preheat broiler to high. Add tomatillos and hatch chiles to two separate pans. Broil the tomatillos first for 2-3 minutes per side until wilted and charred. Then, broil the chiles for 4-5 minutes per side until very black. You can do these both at the same time, just keep an eye on both to prevent particularly the tomatillos from over-roasting.
- Add the chiles to a brown paper bag, or a plastic ziptop bag, seal, and let sweat for 15 minutes. When the chiles are cool enough to handle, remove the skins and as many of the seeds as possible without ripping all of the flesh apart.
- Place chiles and tomatillos in a food processor along with the onion, lime juice, cumin, garlic, cilantro, and a pinch of salt. Blitz until smooth, with some small chunks remaining. Taste for salt. Pour into a bowl and set in the fridge.
- Clean the food processor. Add avocado, Greek yogurt, lime juice, and salt. Blend until creamy.
- Pat the mahi mahi (or whichever white fish you chose) dry. Season with smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a skillet over medium. Sear fish filets about 3-4 minutes per side, depending on the thickness, until fork tender and flaky. Squeeze lime juice overtop. Move to a plate and shred into thick chunks with a fork.
- To assemble the tacos: spread avocado crema on the bottom of each tortilla. Top with a tuft of arugula or choice green. Spoon roasted corn over the greens and arrange shredded fish. Finish with a generous heap of salsa verde. Serve with additional crema and verde.
