After a recent fishing trip in Hawkes Bay, we returned to Wellington with a stack of fish. Fish and chips go down a treat, but after a few days of this I thought it would be nice to mix it up a bit. The core of this recipe is adapted from New Zealand’s very own Masterchef, Chelsea Winter, with the addition of some other recipes that I have amended slightly. All of the proportions are decent; so I invited a bunch of people over and we had a wee taco party! Yum, fresh, colourful and delicious – they went down a treat.

Collect for the fish

• 2 T olive oil
• 2 t cumin
• 2 t ground coriander
• 2 t paprika
• 1 t smoked paprika
• 1 T dried oregano
• 1 T lime zest
• 600 g fish

Collect for the tacos

• 1/4 c mayonnaise
• 1/4 c sour cream
• 2 garlic
• juice of 3 – 4 limes
• 2 – 3 cups of red cabbage (or check out my Asian Slaw recipe)
• 6 – 10 tortillas
• 2 avocados
• hot sauce
• 25 g butter
• fresh coriander
• chopped jalapenos (optional)

Create

1. Preheat the oven to 100°C.
2. For the fish, combine the oil, cumin, coriander, paprikas, oregano and lime zest in a bowl. Coat the fish and place it in the fridge.
3. For the dressing, whisk the mayonnaise, sour cream, garlic and juice of 1 lime and season with salt and pepper. Place the red cabbage in a bowl and mix with dressing.
4. Wrap tortillas in foil and bake in oven for about 10 minutes.
5. Mash the avocado with juice of 1 lime, salt, pepper and a dash of hot sauce.
6. Cook the fish in butter.
7. Serve with Mexican Rice, Black Bean mix and Pineapple Salsa (recipes below).

Mexican Rice

Collect

• 2 T butter
• 1.5 c long-grain rice
• 1 small onion
• 1 green pepper
• 1 garlic
• 2 c water
• 1 chilli
• 1 t chilli powder
• 1 can tomatoes
• 1 t salt
• 1 c cheddar cheese

Create

1. Melt the butter, add the rice, onion, peppers and garlic. Cook until the rice is browned.
2. Add water, tomatoes, chilli and salt – bring to the boil.
3. Simmer covered for about 15 minutes.
4. Stir in cheese and ensure it is melted before serving.

Black Bean mix

Collect

• 1 tin black beans
• 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 1 small onion
• a dash of apple cider vinegar
• 1 t honey
• 1 t smoked paprika
• 1 t ground cumin

Create

1. Cook everything except beans until aromatic.
2. Add beans.

Pineapple Salsa

Collect

• 1 small pineapple (we used 2 tins because pineapples weren’t in season)
• 2 chillis
• 1/2 bunch mint
• 1 small red onion
• 2 limes
• extra virgin olive oil

Create

1. Fry pineapple pieces (dry) for about 4 minutes, turning occasionally.
2. Chop finely and add the chilli, mint and onion (all chopped finely).
3. Squeeze in lime and drizzle with oil.