This simple baked fish recipe is a winner! With a cornmeal crust, you can transform tilapia into Crispy Baked Fish Tacos in under an hour. Especially good topped with the crema, these baked fish tacos make Taco Tuesday special.

Fish tacos are a weeknight staple for several reasons, not the least of which is how simple they are to make.  Beyond simplicity, they’re also pretty inexpensive and of course delicious.  These Crispy Baked Fish Tacos also happen to be pretty healthful as well — bonus.

You can buy boxes of cornmeal dredge at the grocery store, but I prefer to mix it up myself with ingredients from the pantry.  It gives me more control over the flavors and takes all of 2 minutes to assemble.

You can use any type of fish for these tacos but I think tilapia is a good choice because its firm and doesn’t flake apart and it’s also very inexpensive compared to some other varieties.  A pound of fresh tilapia at my grocer was $7.99 – many other fish varieties are upwards of $16/pound, so this is a very economical choice.

Cut out the bloodline (that’s the dark red area) and discard it then trim the fillets into fingers that will fit into your tortillas.  I usually use 2 fingers per taco.  Coat the fish fingers with the cornmeal dredge.

Arrange the fish on a wire rack set over a baking sheet and spritz them with a little olive oil or vegetable spray.

You can serve the fish tacos with sour cream and plain salsa, but one of my favorite accompaniments is this cilantro garlic lime crema.  Its so tangy and bright it’ll make your taste buds do a happy dance!

Some other favorite toppings include salsa verde either this authentic version or this charred one, chopped cabbage, queso fresco, fresh cilantro, avocado or pico de gallo.  My avocados weren’t quite ready, so I skipped them on this night.

We like ours on lightly charred corn tortillas, but flour tortillas are delicious too.

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Crispy Baked Fish Tacos

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Mexican

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

Servings: 4

Calories: 492 kcal

Try something healthy and delicious for Taco Tuesday!  These tacos are easy to make and loaded with flavor and texture!

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Ingredients

For The Fish

• 1/3 cup cornmeal
• 1/4 cup Wondra flour
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1 pound tilapia fillets or other firm whitefish
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• spritz vegetable spray

For the Tangy Garlic Herb Crema

• 8 ounces sour cream I used fat free
• 1/2 cup cilantro
• 1 large clove garlic
• 1 lime zested

For Tacos:

• 8-10 small tortillas (flour or corn), heated through in the oven or in a dry pan.
• 1/2 cup cilantro
• 1 cup green cabbage shredded
• 1 cup red cabbage shredded
• 3/4 cup salsa verde or other salsa
• 1 cup queso fresco crumbled (optional)
• lime cut into wedges

Instructions

For The Fish

1. Preheat the oven to 375°.  Place a metal rack over a baking sheet and spray the rack with vegetable spray.  Set aside.

2. In a shallow bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, Wondra flour, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper.  Set aside.

3. Cut the fish fillets into fingers and brush with the olive oil.  Toss the fish fingers a few at a time into the flour mixture until well coated.  Transfer fish to the baking rack.  Spray the top of the fish lightly with vegetable spray.  Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden and done.

For The Tangy Garlic Herb Crema

1. In a blender, combine the cilantro, garlic and lime zest.  Pulse until finely chopped.  Add the sour cream and blend until garlic and herbs are well incorporated and crema is slightly green in tint.  Transfer to a serving bowl and keep refrigerated until ready to eat.

For The Tacos:

1. To build the tacos, fill the tortilla with 1-2 pieces of crispy fish and top with shredded cabbage, sprigs of cilantro, queso fresco, salsa verde and Tangy Garlic Herb Crema

Nutrition Facts

Crispy Baked Fish Tacos

Amount Per Serving

Calories 492 Calories from Fat 261

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 29g 45%

Saturated Fat 12g 60%

Cholesterol 107mg 36%

Sodium 955mg 40%

Potassium 721mg 21%

Total Carbohydrates 26g 9%

Dietary Fiber 2g 8%

Sugars 7g

Protein 32g 64%

Vitamin A 28%

Vitamin C 32.9%

Calcium 27.4%

Iron 12.3%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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