Grilled Branzino Taco Platter
Rated 5.0 stars by 1 users
Food:
Fish
Serves:
2-4 people
Prep Time:
10 min
Cook Time:
15 min
Whole branzino taco platters with perfectly cooked, moist branzino meat with crispy skin, salsa verde, creamy slaw, chopped red onion and radish matchsticks. If you've ever been intimidated barbecuing a whole fish, butterflying it and smoking it first helps make the process seamless. Give the fish a quick sear over the fire and you have the perfect cook. Build your own taco night just got better.
By:Chef Matt Basile
Ingredients
-
2 whole branzino, butterflied
-
8 tomatillos
-
1 poblano pepper
-
½ bunch cilantro
-
1 avocado
-
Salt
-
Juice from 2 limes
-
1/3 green cabbage
-
1/3 bunch cilantro
-
1 tbsp mayo
-
1 tbsp sour cream
-
Salt
-
Juice from 2 limes
-
½ red onion
-
1 large radish
-
8 flour tortillas
-
2-3 limes for garnish
Salsa Verde
Slaw
To build
Instructions
Set smoker to 375F.
Cut the head off of the butterflied branzino and pat dry both sides. Place open and flesh side down in the smoker, straight on the shelf. Let smoke 14 minutes.
Remove the husk from the tomatillos and cut in half. Cut the poblano in quarters and remove the stem and seeds. Place the poblano on the elevated grill rack and the tomatillos cut side down on the flattop. Drizzle both with oil and allow to sear, flipping midway, until nicely charred. Remove from the grill and place in a bowl.
Roughly chop half a bunch of cilantro and place into the bowl with the poblano and tomatillos. Squeeze in the juice from two limes and add the flesh of the avocado. Using a hand blender, blend all the ingredients. Season with salt and mix. Set aside.
Using a mandolin or sharp knife, shred the cabbage. Finely chop the cilantro and add to the cabbage. Add the mayo and sour cream, season with salt and add the juice from two limes. Mix well to incorporate, using your hands if needed.
Finely dice the red onion. Using a mandolin or sharp knife slice the radish into thin rounds and then cut into thin matchsticks.
Remove the elevated rack from the grill and place the centre round grill plate over the middle fire pit. Drizzle the whole grill with oil and use a paper towel to wipe it down. Add the tortillas to the grill, flipping once, then remove.
Remove the fish from the smoker and place skin side down on the centre and live-fire grill to sear about a minute. Flip and sear about 30-60 seconds more and then remove.
To plate, place the fish on a platter, slightly overlapping and skin side up. Squeeze the juice from half a lime over top. Place the tortillas in a pile next to the fish and then add the slaw, onion, radish and lime wedges to the platter. Build your tacos with whatever combination of toppings you like and enjoy.