fins to the left, fins to the right!

Fast, Fresh and Easy

Grilled Grouper Tacos!

I thought that "fish tacos" were a fast food restaurant invention... fried fish and some kind of mayonnaise-based slaw and ummmmm, "hey, let's put it in a tortilla instead of a sesame seed bun!" But I discovered that they have been around a long time; presumably for thousands of years as fishermen cooked their catch and ate it in a tortilla-like roll. In "recorded history" the fish taco became popular in Mexico in the 1950s; both Ensenada and San Felipe claim to be the home of the finned wonders. Through the years, the fish tacos have evolved from fried fish in a corn tortilla, to all sorts of variations including grilled, which I experimented with in the Lonesome Road Kitchen.

I loosely followed a couple of recipes in cookbooks and online recipe boards, and came up with this recipe, which I think is pretty awesome!

I chose to use Tumaro's Healthy 8" Jalapeno and Cilantro Flour Tortillas (I love the Garden Spinach and Vegetables variety also). The fish I chose was grouper; nice firm whitefish without a "fishy" taste. I simply brushed a bit of olive oil on the grouper fillets, sprinkled with a bit of garlic salt and chili powder. A couple of quick flips on the grill and it was perfectly cooked in about ten minutes. Use one fillet per taco and figure on one or even two tacos per person.

Typically fish tacos are accompanied by a shredded cabbage slaw or lettuce salad. This was the fun part, experimenting with flavors and textures. I started the slaw a couple of hours before grilling the fish (so the flavors would blend well) and began with:

• a little more than two cups of shredded cabbage (cole slaw mix is fine)

and added

• eight cherry tomatoes, seeded and quartered;
• six pickled jalapeno slices, chopped;
• 3 slices red onion, diced;
• one green onion, sliced white and part of the green
• 1/3 cup chopped cilantro

The slaw is simply dressed with

• the juice of two limes
• three teaspoons of the jalapeno pickling juice.

Toss with the prepared vegetables; add salt to taste if you wish and chill for a while in the refrigerator to allow the flavors to blend.

For each taco, you may either chop up the grilled fish slightly and serve loosely, or serve fillets in one piece in a tortilla. Top with the tangy, crunchy slaw . I also like to add chopped avocado. The combination of the hot, smokey-grilled fish and the cold, crisp slaw is irresistible and it makes the perfect quick and healthy summer dinner al fresco with an ice-cold cerveza or of course, a frozen margarita.

well I've never been to Spain.... but I kinda like the chicken...

Pollo al Mattone -

Chicken Grilled Under Bricks

Actually this grilling method is reportedly Italian (specifically Tuscan); however, the marinade I used has some terrific Spanish flavors including one of my favorites... sherry!

Grilling chicken under bricks is a very old technique that keeps the meat tender and juicy while creating a crispy browned skin. Since the chicken is grilled over a medium-low grill temperature (we used the indirect method of charcoal grilling for this - coals pushed off to the sides) it doesn't burn to a blackened crust. Even so, I chose a marinade that wouldn't be too sugary, to avoid any type of overly burned spots. In addition, this method works best with an olive oil-based marinade, as the oil also works to keep the chicken nice and moist with a delicious crispy skin.
To prepare the chicken for marinating, simply place the rinsed, dried chicken (sans giblets of course) breast side up and cut through the breast bone until you can butterfly the chicken, spreading it completely in half (this might take a little extra wrangling in some areas). The point is to make the chicken flat, therefore cooking it evenly, with the additional help of the bricks weighing it down.
I used a Spanish-style "Barcelona" marinade from a Weber cookbook as the basis of my own marinade. For one chicken, combine:

• 1 small onion, roughly chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 4 serrano chile peppers, roughly chopped (leave the ribs and seeds in if you like more heat, or simply use more peppers!)
• 2 tablespoons dried basil (when gardening season is in full swing, I will be switching this to fresh basil - lots and lots of it!)
• 2 tablespoons sherry wine
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 teaspoons sea salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Blend until smooth in a blender or food processor. Marinate chicken in this mixture overnight in a resealable bag or covered glass container.

To grill:
I like to take items to be grilled out of the refrigerator and let them almost come to room temperature. Preheat a gas grill to a target temperature of 325 to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, or prepare a charcoal grill for indirect grilling.
Wrap two bricks in aluminum foil (for cleanliness, and also to make clean-up much easier). Place the marinated chicken, skin side down to begin with, on the grate and place a brick on each half. Yes, this does look pretty comical as the chicken looks like it is the victim of a horrific accident. Grill for about 20 to 25 minutes on the skin side, then carefully remove bricks with fireproof gloves or something similar, and turn chicken over on its other side to finish cooking, again placing the bricks on each half.
Many recipes claim that the entire cooking time should be around 40 minutes but I found this to be really inaccurate. Allow at least an hour or more of total cooking time, depending on the actual size of your chicken. With this cooking method, a little longer is better and it's fairly foolproof from the standpoint of overcooking (and drying out). Use a meat thermometer to determine that the chicken is cooked thoroughly; you can also see that the juices will run clear and joints move easily.


There! That's all there is to it! This is wonderful with a nice rice pilaf and a big green salad. And a beverage of your choice, of course. Don't forget to have a sip of sherry afterward also!