by Holly
Easy Fish Tacos make a great family meal because you can have it on the table in about 20 minutes!
This recipe starts with white fish fillets (such as tilapia or cod) rubbed with a flavorful spice mixture and baked until tender and flaky. Add your favorite toppings, some fish taco sauce or a side of Fresh Mango Salsa for the perfect weeknight meal!
Fish Tacos are one of those easy meals I just don’t make often enough. They’re fresh and flavorful and everyone loves them, not to mention…. 20 minutes from fridge to table. Win/win!!
How to Make Fish Tacos
These fish tacos start with white fish, we like tilapia (although if you don’t like tilapia, please feel free to choose your favorite white fish such as cod or haddock).
I like to dab the fish dry and rub it with a simple homemade spice mixture. You can also use your favorit pre-made seasoning or cajun seasoning but mixing your own spice mix takes just a few minutes and you can control the salt and spice levels.
Next the fish for these fish tacos bakes in the oven for about 15 min… super fast! In those 15 minutes, I chop and prep our toppings (and make my daugther set the table). By the time the fish is done, the toppings are ready and we have a super quick meal in minutes!
I like to break the fish into large chunks and then add in our toppings.
What to Serve With Fish Tacos
Fish tacos are a complete meal in one and don’t require a lot of extras on the side! I love to add tons of toppings for everyone to dress up their own and a couple of fresh simple sides.
If I do serve sides with fish tacos, it’s usually something simple like a corn salad or some delicious Spanish Rice!
What to put on fish tacos
- Diced tomatoes
- Diced onion
- Shredded lettuce
- Coleslaw (or onion slaw)
- Cotija Cheese
- Avocado or Guacamole
- Homemade Salsa
- Chopped Cabbage
- Fresh Mango Salsa
How to Make Fish Taco Sauce
I often serve fish tacos with a classic coleslaw or onion slaw (recipe below) but if you’d like a sauce, the following is one of our favorites!
Combine 3 tablespoons each mayonnaise and sour cream in a small bowl. Add the juice from 1/2 fresh lime, a pinch of garlic powder and cumin and about 1/2 teaspoon of sriracha. Stir until combined and drizzle over tacos.
These just take a few quick minutes to prepare so they are perfect for a busy weeknight and just taste so delicious and light.
Easy Fish Tacos
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs fillets of tilapia or cod/haddock
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Rub
- 1 tbsp chilli powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
Tacos
- 8 6-inch corn or flour tortillas
- 1 sliced avocado
- 1 lime wedged
- toppings to taste
Fish Taco Sauce (optional)
- 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 3 tablespoons sour cream
- 1/2 lime juiced
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon sriracha or to taste
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Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
Combine all fish taco sauce ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.
- Combine rub ingredients and rub into fish fillets. Place fish on a parchment lined pan and drizzle with olive oil.
- Bake for 12-15 minutes or until flaky and cooked.
- Heat tortillas according to package directions.
- Break fish into large chunks and divide between tortillas. Top as desired and serve.
Recipe Notes
(Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.)
REPIN This easy weeknight meal here
More Easy Fish Recipes You’ll Love
Made these last night for dinner, and my family loved them. My husband who typically gives me the side-eye when I mention tilapia for dinner especially enjoyed these tacos. The sauce was easy, fresh and delicious. This recipe will remain on the dinner menu for here on out
That is so awesome Carla! Turning him into a Tilapia lover one fish taco at a time!
Awesome Recipe I am your blog’s biggest fan.
This.recipe uses everything I.have in my kitchen.I like that.
I hope you enjoy it Marie!
This was a perfect week day healthy meal. The rub was delicious but it could be substituted with taco or blackening seasoning if you did not feel like pulling out all of those spices. I used my own coleslaw, I kept the jalapeño and cilantro on the side. The fish sauce was AMAZING! You must try it! ENJOY!
I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe Maria!
Yummy Yummy Yummy and very easy. Thank you
We agree Cathy, these fish tacos are yummy and easy to make!
I made this last week and about the only mod I did was to use hot paprika. The rub was fantastic my wife and I ate a 1.3 lb cod filet, and she only had barely enough for her lunch the next day. Hands down my favorite go to fish taco recipe from now on.
I forgot to mention, this was also the easiest recipe to follow and clean up was a breeze..bonus
Yay! So glad it was a hit for you Dennis… and even better when the clean up is easy!
Awesome post, thanks you so much for sharing.
We loved everything about this recipe! We used leftover mahi mahi from the previous night and just warmed it up in the skillet with the spice rub….worked perfectly! For the lime sauce (which was awesome!), we didn’t have shiracha sauce, so I added about 1/8 t. of cayenne and could’ve added more. We used iceberg lettuce instead of cabbage and it added just the right amount of crunch. A little onion and tomatoes along with cilantro and YUM!! This is going on our regular rotation. Thank you!
Yay Beth, so glad you loved this as much as we did!
Loved this! My fish of choice was halibut and salmon (yes, salmon works) because that is what we caught and had in the freezer. I went light on the rub because the fish was, well, wild caught. The sauce is awesome!! I didn’t do the slaw but I did use finely shredded cabbage for crunch.
So glad you enjoyed it Terri, thanks for letting us know how to works out with salmon!
This recipe was Awesome! My family loved the great flavors. The cabbage and taco sauce sealed the deal Will be making again, Thanks for a Great easy recipe.
So glad you loved it Carrie!
My daughter and I tried your recipe for easy and quick tacos. We both loved them. It was exactly as you labeled it, “Quick & Easy” The sauce was delicious, much better than plain sour cream. We will definetly make this again! I also look forward to trying some of your other recipes too. You get 2 thumbs up or should I say 4? ;)
LOL! Thank you for the 4 thumbs up ladies ;) So glad you loved these as much as I do!
Made these tonight – so easy and incredibly delicious!!
So glad you enjoyed them Greg!
This has garlic powder included twice in the ingredients list… is one supposed to be onion powder? Which?
Sorry about that, yes, it should be 1/2 teaspoon of each garlic powder and onion powder. I have updated the recipe.
I am not a skilled cook so I couldn’t believe how well this turned out. It really was an “Easy Fish Taco Recipe,” which is exactly what I Googled to find it.
Thank you!
I”m so glad you enjoyed this recipe!
Made these tonight and they tasted just like a restaurant’s fish tacos that we love! My husband ate and ate…and was silent. Says a lot since he talks all the time! We loved them! Thank you!
Awesome, so glad your family loved these Dee! :)
I made this tonight and it was delicious!! Would definitely make again. The fish sauce was yummy on the tacos and I made a Normal cole slaw to put on top. Rub was great on the tilapia super easy to throw together. I’ve made a couple of your recipes and have enjoyed everything. Next on our list to make is beef stroganoff and the herb crusted salmon!
Thank you Kristin. I’m sure you’ll love the stroganoff and salmon too!
I am so allergic to fish of any kind. Wish I could figure something out without fish. Maybe deep fried avocado? Something like that.
You could use the same seasonings for either chicken (it will need to cook a bit longer) or shrimp if you can have it.
Tacos is my favorite food!! :-)
My husband likes the fish tacos, i never tried it before. was looking for a recipe, this one looks easy.
My husband has been looking for a fish taco recipe with slaw to try. Going to try this one out. Thanks
I have never tried fish tacos but these sound interesting
Oh that looks delicious. My family loves fish tacos but ours are a little boring. Your recipe is one that I’m going to try soon!