Grilled Fish Tacos
Corn tortillas filled with deliciously seasoned swordfish and topped with a simple grilled pineapple salsa, lettuce and avocado. These Grilled Fish Tacos will make any night feel special. And they are so easy to make too. Elevate your dinner or lunch with these tasty, Grilled Fish Tacos.
Serve with Corn Salad, instant pot black beans, and cilantro lime rice, then finish off the meal with a yummy dessert like Flan or Churros for a great meal.
I love these Grilled Fish Tacos because they are restaurant quality without having to go to a restaurant. They do take a little bit of work because you have to make a marinade. But after whipping up the marinade it is just a matter of grilling everything up and assembling. It is the perfect fish taco dinner for a summery evening. It is light, refreshing, citrusy, and oh so delicious. Seriously one of my favorite meals.
While I love something classic like Griddle Beef Tacos, or Easy Chicken Tacos it is so fun to have a fancy taco like Grilled Fish Tacos sometimes. And it can be our secret that it really isn’t all that fancy.
Check out this post for Grilling Must Haves that make it easy to cook things like fish on the grill.
What You Need to Make Fish Tacos on the Grill
Although the shopping list may feel a little longer for this dish, don’t worry, some of the ingredients you may already have on hand. Plus, this recipe is worth a trip to the store!
- Vegetable Oil
- Spices: Ancho Chile Powder, Chipotle Chile Powder, Dried Oregano, Ground Coriander, Salt
- Garlic Cloves (minced)
- Tomato Paste
- Orange Juice
- Limes (for lime juice)
- Skinless Swordfish Steaks (or other fish)
- Pineapple
- Jalapeno Chile
- Corn Tortillas
- Red Bell Pepper
- Fresh Cilantro
- Head of Iceberg Lettuce
- Avocado
- Lime Wedges
Tools Needed
- Fish Spatula
- Grill Cleaning Brush
- Skillet – 8 inch
- Grill or grill pan works too!
How to Make Grilled Fish Tacos
Let’s get started on this amazing dish. First make the marinade and marinate the fish. Prepare the grill and brush with well oiled paper towels. Cook fish along with pineapple and jalapeños. Next, soften the corn tortillas by grilling them quickly. Then, make the salsa. Lastly top corn tortillas with the grilled fish, salsa, lettuce, and avocado. Serve tacos with lime wedges and cilantro. Enjoy!
Step one: Make Mixture for Marinating Fish.
Heat oil, ancho chile powder, and chile powder in the skillet. Stir constantly, until fragrant. Then add spices, and salt. Cook for about 30 seconds. Next add the tomato paste, mashing until combined. Add in citrus juice, and stir well. Then let cool completely.
Step two: Coat fish with Sauce and Marinate.
Place fish in a bowl and coat with mixture, using a rubber spatula. Refrigerate and marinate for at least 15 minutes, but up to 2 hours.
Step three: Prepare the Grill
Preheat your grill. You can use gas or charcoal, but you want a nice hot grill.
Step four: Grill Fish, Jalapeños, and Pineapple
THIS IS REALLY IMPORTANT: Once the cooking gate is cleaned, you want to oil your grill. Brush well oiled paper towels over the grill 10-15 times until the grate is black and glossy.
Then it is time to grill your fish and pineapple and jalapeños.
Step five: Quickly Grill Tortillas
Clean the grate and grill tortillas until soft (30-45 seconds per side).
Step Six: Prepare Salsa and Serve
Let pineapple and jalapeños cool and then chop. Transfer pineapple and jalapeños to a bowl and stir in bell pepper, cilantro, and remaining lime juice.
Step Seven: Assemble
Top tortillas with flaked fish, salsa, lettuce, and avocado. Lastly, serve with lime wedges and extra cilantro. Enjoy!
Tips and Tricks
Making this recipe is Eazy Peazy…
- You can make this with a variety of other fish: If you don’t want to use swordfish, no worries. Mahi mahi, halibut filets, and tuna, are all great substitutions. Make sure to cut the fish in a similar fashion as you would the swordfish.
- If using one of the recommended fish substitutes, buy 1 inch thick filets: Although you can use other fish besides swordfish, the fish needs to be 1 inch in thickness.
- Avoid flakey fish: Not any fish works as a good substitute. Avoid flakey fish like grouper, hake, cod, or snapper.
- Don’t skip oiling the grill grates: Although this step may seem insignificant, it’s not. This step is essential to the success of this recipe.
- Have all the necessary tools out and ready to go: You don’t want to be scrambling and looking for things like a grill brush or thin spatula once you start preparing the dish. Get the necessary items out before you start cooking.
Make Ahead and Storage
How to make this recipe ahead of time:
I get that the dinner hour can be stressful, so if you want to get some of the prep out of the way ahead of time, help yourself out by making the salsa prior to dinner hour.
- The morning of, follow the directions and make the salsa ahead of time. This will minimize and reduce one last minute step you have to do.
- Refrigerate the salsa in a tupperware container.
- About 30 minutes before eating, follow the recipe and cook the other ingredients.
- Fish is best fresh, but if you have leftovers you can store them in a tupperware container for a day or two and reheat the fish. However, i just say make what you need and eat it the day of with fish.
Other Great Recipes:
- Shredded Pork Mole Tacos
- Flounder Fish Tacos Recipe
- Greek Chicken Street Tacos
- Baja Fish Tacos
- Naan Shrimp Tacos
Grilled Fish Tacos
Equipment
- 8 inch skillet for preparing chili paste for marinade
- Grill brush for cleaning grill grate
- Paper Towels and tongs for oiling grill grates
- Thin Spatula for turning fish on grills
Ingredients
Marinade
- 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 Tablespoon ancho chili powder
- 2 teaspoons chipotle chili powder
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons tomato paste
- ½ cup orange juice
- 2 Tablespoons lime juice
Salsa
- 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 pineapple peeled, quartered, cored, and each quarter halved lengthwise
- 1 jalapeno chile
- 1 red bell pepper steamed, seeded, and cut into ¼ inch pieces
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro plus extra for serving
- 4 Tablespoons lime juice
The Rest
- 2 pounds skinless swordfish steaks 1 inch thick
- 18 6 inch corn tortillas
- ½ head iceberg lettuce 4 ½ ounces, cored and thinly sliced
- 1 avocado halved, pitted, and sliced thin
- Lime Wedges
Instructions
Marinade:
- In a large skillet heat 2 tablespoons oil, ancho chile powder, and chipotle chile powder over medium heat, stirring constantly. After 2 to 3 minutes, add oregano, coriander, garlic, and 1 teaspoon salt and continue to cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds longer.
- Add tomato paste and, stir with spices until combined, about 20 seconds.
- Stir in orange juice and 2 tablespoons lime juice.
- Cook, stirring constantly, until thoroughly mixed and reduced slightly, about 2 minutes.
- Transfer mixture to large bowl and let cool for 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cut swordfish into 1 inch wide strips, and once cooled, add swordfish to bowl with marinade mixture. Stir to coat fish in marinade, then cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to 2 hours.
Cook:
- Heat Grill. FOR A CHARCOAL GRILL: Open bottom vent completely, and use a large chimney starter mounded with charcoal briquettes (7 quarts). Light briquettes. When the top coals are partially covered with ash (turning gray), pour your briquettes evenly over your grill. Set cooking grate in place, cover, and open lid vent completely. Heat grill until hot, about 5 minutes.
- FOR A GAS GRILL: Turn all burners to high, cover, and heat grill until hot, about 15 minutes. Turn all burners to medium-high.
- Clean cooking grate: Give it a good clean, then brush it with an oiled paper towel so your food does not stick to it.
- Brush prepared pineapple with 1 tablespoon oil.
- Place fish on one half of the grill.
- Place pineapple and jalapeño on other half.
- Cover and cook until fish, pineapple, and jalapeño have begun to brown, 3 to 5 minutes.
- Flip fish, pineapple, and jalapeño over.
- Cover and continue to cook until second sides of pineapple and jalapeño are browned and swordfish reads 140 degrees F with an instant read thermometer, 3 to 5 minutes.
- Transfer fish to large plate and flake into pieces for the tacos. Cover with aluminum foil.
- Transfer pineapple and jalapeño to cutting board. Finely chop. Then transfer to a bowl, and stir in chopped bell pepper, cilantro, and 4 tablespoons lime juice. Taste, and season with salt.
- Warm tortillas on the grill by placing them directly on the grill for 30-45 seconds per side. Wrap tortillas in dish towel or foil to keep warm.
Serve:
- Top tortillas with flaked fish, salsa, lettuce, and avocado. Serve with lime wedges and extra cilantro.
Notes
Do Not skip oiling the grates of your grill, it is essential for your recipe to turn out properly. Recipe credit: America's Test Kitchen
Nutrition
Our recipe card software calculates these nutrition facts based on averages for the above ingredients, different brands, and quality of produce/meats may have different nutritional information, always calculate your own based on the specific products you use in order to achieve accurate macros for this recipe.
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