Baked fish tacos with lime yogurt

Phase & care: P1 for the cod, tortillas, low-fat yogurt, lettuce, carrot, peeled tomato, lime and coriander. Cucumber is phase 2 for me and optional here. If your seasoning has onion or garlic powder in it, that part is phase 2 too. Tolerance varies per person.

Restaurant fish tacos are often battered and fried, then finished with sour cream. Bake the fish instead and swap the cream for lime yogurt, and you keep everything that makes them good.

Taco night is also the easiest dinner to share. Everyone builds their own.

Serves 4 (2 tacos each). About 6 g fat and 330 kcal per serving.

Prep 15 min · Cook 12 min · Total 27 min

Ingredients

• 500 g (about 1.1 lb) skinless cod fillets, or another white fish such as hake or tilapia
• 1 tablespoon of my taco seasoning, the one with no chilli, or 2 teaspoons ground Roman cumin (the earthy one, rather than caraway) and a pinch of salt
• 2 limes
• 8 small soft tortillas, about 15 cm (6 in) across. Check the label and look for 2 g of fat or less per tortilla.
• 150 g (about 2/3 cup) plain low-fat yogurt
• 2 large handfuls (about 60 g / 2 cups) shredded lettuce
• 1 medium carrot, finely grated
• 1 tomato, peeled and seeded, diced
• 1/4 cucumber, peeled and seeded, diced (optional, phase 2)
• A small bunch of fresh coriander (cilantro), chopped
• A pinch of salt

Method

1. Heat the oven to 200 C (400 F). Line a tray with baking paper. No oil needed.
2. Lay the fish on the tray. Squeeze the juice of 1 lime over it, then sprinkle the seasoning and a pinch of salt.
3. Bake 10 to 12 minutes, until the fish flakes when you press it with a fork. Thick fillets need a couple of minutes more.
4. While it bakes, stir the yogurt with the zest of both limes, the juice of half the second lime and a pinch of salt.
5. Warm the tortillas in a dry pan for 20 to 30 seconds a side, or wrap them in foil and put them in the oven for the last 5 minutes.
6. Flake the fish. Build each taco: lettuce, fish, carrot, tomato, a spoon of lime yogurt, coriander and a squeeze from the last half lime.

Notes

For everyone else at the table, put grated cheese and sliced avocado out in separate bowls. They can load up. Avocado is a phase 2 item for me, so I add a slice or skip it depending on the day.

Tortillas vary more than you’d think. The fat per tortilla is the one number worth checking on this whole recipe.

Stepan’s Rule: taco night is the easiest dinner to share. Everyone builds their own plate, and mine just stops before the cheese.

Not medical advice. I’m a patient sharing what works in my own kitchen.

The fat budget I use to decide how many tacos is a “yes” on a given day is in the book, along with 75 tested low-fat recipes. Get PancreasZen: the patient’s manual.