Delicious Fish and Seafood Tacos

This recipe is an example of a well-balanced meal with a little fat, a good protein source (fish, shrimp and cheese), fiber (beans, vegetables), good carbs (lettuce, tomato, vegetables) with an abundance of vitamins and minerals. And even a novice in the kitchen can follow the 6 easy steps.

You can use any type of pepper: sweet peppers, pablano, or something hotter like jalapeño and the hottest the habanero. Remember when you remove the seeds and cut hot peppers to wear gloves, or wash your hands thoroughly.

Shopping/to do list - serves 4:

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 pound white fish of choice, cut into bite size pieces

1/2 pound shrimp, peeled

1 Tablespoon Mexican or Taco seasoning

1 cup pepper mix, chopped

1/2 cup onion, sliced thin

1 cut tomato, diced

1 cup black beans, washed and drained

4 tacos and 4 tortillas

1 cup cheddar cheese, grated

2 cups lettuce, shredded

Preparation:

1 - Heat oil in skillet. Season fish pieces with Mexican seasoning.

2 - Add fish to the skillet. Stir around for ± 2 minutes. Pre-heat the oven to 375°F.

3 - Add peppers and onion. Stir around for ± 1 minute.

4 - Add tomato and black beans. Stir around for 1 minute.

5 - Place tacos and tortilla on a cookie sheet and place in the oven for 10 minutes.

6 - Stuff tacos and tortilla with 1/4 of the mixer, cheese and lettuce.

Serve family style, which means place food on some colorful platters and sit around the table together, chatting about the daily things, being grateful for the gathering and the great food.

Article by Chef Yvonne Stephens

Secrets to Making Side Dishes For Your Favorite Mexican Recipes

Mexican food is popular all over the world and authentic Mexican food recipes are achieving a stronger foothold, despite the fact that a lot of people confused traditional Mexican foods with Tex Mex. We are becoming more aware of what is authentic and what is not.

Whether your favorite Mexican food recipe is chili, tacos, burritos, Mexican casserole, Mexican soup, or something else, there are great side dishes that you can make to go with these delicious meals.

Chili Side Dishes

Imagine a big, steaming bowlful of homemade Mexican chili. Which are the best side dishes to serve with that? Contrasting side dishes are always popular. This means that if you are enjoying a hot, spicy entree, you might like to pair it with a cool, refreshing side dish to take some of the heat away. Sour cream is technically a condiment rather than a side dish but a chunky homemade guacamole is a wonderful side dish.

Corn goes well with chili and you might like to make some cornbread or a corn salad. You can get really creative with Mexican salad recipes and you might like to use ingredients such as Mexican cheese, olives, lettuce, avocados, tomatoes and more. Mexican salads go with nearly every Mexican food recipe and you can wrap some plastic wrap over the leftovers and enjoy it for lunch the following day.

Filling Side Dish Recipes

Side dishes are meant to go nicely with the entree, rather than fill you up, but some of the best Mexican side dish recipes are filling anyway. Rather than serving rice or potatoes on the side, what about using sweet potatoes?

The Mayans used to eat lots of sweet potatoes and they feature in plenty of modern Mexican recipes too, especially in the Puebla area.

Bake diced sweet potatoes with butter, honey and a little cinnamon for a sweet and delicious dish known as "camote" in Mexico. Another filling and sweet side dish is candied pumpkin. Sweet pumpkin, orange juice and cinnamon is all you need and this recipe is fat-free.

Three Top Tips for Perfect Side Recipes

1. It might sound obvious but try to match your side dish to your entree. If you are serving a light, aromatic fish dish, you probably do not want to serve a bold flavored side dish, because this might overpower the delicate fish flavor.

2. Fresh side dishes are the best. If you are serving a hot side dish, you will need to make it just before eating it so it stays warm. Most side dishes are fine in the refrigerator but not everything, so check the recipe to see how long your side dish will stay good. If you are combining lettuce with a sauce, for example, the lettuce might go soggy within an hour.

3. Use your imagination and creativity to make contrasting side dishes. A side dish can match your entree and contrast with it. A cool, creamy guacamole is perfect with hot steak tacos and it contrasts completely too. If you were serving Mexican chicken in mango sauce, a plate of spicy refried beans with jalapeno would be great on the side.

Combine typical Mexican food and your favorite Mexican recipes with matching and contrasting side dishes and you will not go wrong. Mexican food is varied and full of bold flavors. Mixing and matching is the best kept side dish secret. Serve a variety of delicious Mexican dishes and everyone will have fun trying them.

If you enjoy making Mexican recipes, you will find that knowing a few authentic Mexican side dishes makes them even tastier. You can really liven up typical Mexican food by serving a couple of great side dishes. You can find all the best recipes for Mexican meals and Mexican side dishes at MexicanFoodRecipes.org

MexicanFoodRecipes.org When it has to be Real Authentic Mexican Food

Cancun Cuisine - Try Some Traditional Mexican Recipes

Cancun boasts some excellent restaurants where you can sample many different authentic Mexican food recipes. A lot of these restaurants cater for international tourists so you will also be able to find French, Italian, Caribbean, Polynesian, Chinese, Japanese and Cajun meals, amongst others. However, if you are only interested in traditional Mexican recipes, you will not be disappointment because there are plenty of popular recipes which the local Cancun chefs can cook to perfection.

Never be shy about sampling authentic Mexican food recipes. Cancun is famed for its cuisine. In fact, the whole Yucatan area has a great reputation for delicious cooking. If you want a break from traditional Mexican foods, there are also lots of American style restaurants in Cancun where you can eat pizza or hamburgers.

Typical Dishes From Cancun

Try tacos filled with pork skin in green sauce, beef, potato or Mexican sausage, cheese and potato quesadillas served with salsa or Tik-in-xic fish which is fish marinated in a sour orange juice and achiote marinade and baked in banana leaves. Tamales in Cancun are great and these are steamed cornmeal stuffed with pork, chicken, or beef.

Eggs motulenos is a local recipe and this comprises eggs served on a fried tortilla with tomato sauce, fried banana, and green peas. Lima soup is chicken broth with lime juice, tortilla chips and shredded chicken and the local nachos are great if you fancy a plate of crispy tortilla chips with jalapenos and cheddar cheese.

Panuchos are fried tortillas which are stuffed with Mexican beans and they decorated with shredded pork or turkey and salbutes are fried tortillas with purple onions and shredded pork or turkey.

What To Choose For Breakfast

One of the latest trends in the area is American-style brunch buffets and big breakfasts. Lots of restaurants and hotels in the "hotel zone" have begun offering buffets and these are good value if you wait until the late morning so you can have a big brunch instead of breakfast and then lunch.

There are two kinds of breakfast options for Mexicans. You can either have a "desayuno" or "almuerzo." Desayuno is usually served early in the day and almuerzo is served later. Desayuno is often something like oatmeal, a sweet roll and a milk or coffee. You can also go for an "almuerzo" which is normally an egg dish like huevos rancheros or huevos a la Mexicana.

Fruit salad, pancakes or yogurt are other options. Orange juice is always freshly squeezed. Smaller restaurants usually offer instant coffee but bigger ones have freshly brewed coffee.

Where To Go For Lunch

Bear in mind that a lot of the restaurants in Cancun's "hotel zone" are closed for lunch. Those which are open earlier in the day offer set menus which include pasta, soup, sandwiches, or salad. The set lunch menu might be the same as the set dinner menu. It is more traditional to have lunch downtown in Cancun and lunch is the biggest meal of the day for Mexicans.

A lot of businesses and shops close from 1PM until 4PM to make the most of their lunchtime and this is the time when the local restaurants are busy. Look out for "comida corrida" which is the daily special. This varies from restaurant to restaurant but it will usually be very cheap yet surprisingly large!

There is plenty of great Mexican food you can try if you are on vacation in Cancun. If not, why not make your own traditional Mexican recipes at home, following some of the easy recipes on our Mexican food website?

MexicanFoodRecipes.org When it has to be Real Authentic Mexican Food

Get Creative With Taco Recipes

A lot of authentic Mexican food recipes allow for creativity. Some people like to follow a recipe to the letter but others prefer to add their own touch, substituting one herb or spice for another or adding a new flavor element.

If you are new to making Mexican recipes you will probably want to follow the recipes until you understand Mexican cuisine a bit better. If you enjoy being creative, there is plenty of scope to alter famous Mexican foods like tacos, burritos or filled tortillas.

You can use any filling or topping you like when making a taco recipe. In Mexico, tacos can be filled with literally anything and this includes meat, fish, poultry, vegetables, cheese, beans, or any combination of those.

Mexicans even eat "salt tacos" which are tacos rolled up with salt inside. These are used in conjunction with a fork, for scooping up food, but it shows you how you can make a really plain taco filling if you want to!

Meat and Fish Taco Fillings

If you want a more interesting filling for your taco recipes than salt, what about experimenting with beef taco recipes? You can try shredded beef, crockpot cooked beef, ground beef, sauteed steak or grilled steak. Use sour cream or barbecue sauce as a tasty topping. You can also put the taco meat over lettuce to make a taco salad recipe.

Fish is another good idea if you want to get creative with tacos. What about using a flaky, white fish like mahi mahi or tilapia? If you fancy a seafood taco, saute some shrimp in garlic-infused oil for a delicious filling.

Vegetarian Taco Recipes

If your guests are vegetarian, that is no problem if you want to make inspired taco recipes. Saute some chopped bell peppers, onions, eggplant, and zucchini in a skillet. Throw in some garlic and olive oil and use this flavorful filling to make a vegetarian taco. You can garnish these flavorful snacks with slices of avocado and tomato, or even some queso fresco or grated Mexican cheese blend. Be resourceful and use up whichever vegetables you happen to have in the refrigerator.

Beans are another good idea for making tacos and you can grill some vegetables and combine them with kidney beans, navy beans, white beans, or any bean combination you fancy. Beans feature in many traditional Mexican foods and they are versatile too, complementing meat, fish, poultry, or vegetarian recipes. Beans are also a good source of protein.

Other Interesting Taco Filling Combinations

Saute some shrimp in garlic-infused oil until they are pink, then remove them from the pan and chop them finely. Saute some sliced chorizo in the same pan for five minutes, and then stir it into the shrimp.

Serve this shrimp and chorizo filling in taco shells. You might not have thought that the flavors of shrimp and chorizo would work together but they really do, and this recipe is so simple to prepare.

If you want to serve cold tacos, what about making a salad filling? Lettuce, avocado, tomato salsa, sour cream, grated Mexican cheese, cucumber, chopped tomatoes, beans and corn all work well together or you could combine a few of these ingredients for an imaginative filling.

Tacos are a great example of Mexican food but if you have only every tried Taco Bell style tacos, you are missing out! Mexican recipes can be adapted to suit your palate and easy Mexican recipes like tacos are so easy to adapt. You can use your favorite ingredients to make a delicious taco filling.

MexicanFoodRecipes.org When it has to be Real Authentic Mexican Food

Serve Your Family A Delicious Taco Recipe Prepared With Shredded Cooked Chicken

Tacos are a Mexican dish made with corn tortilla. In a traditional recipe, chefs roll or fold tortilla corns with several different ingredients. Fillings include meats, onions, lettuce, tomatoes, salsa, guacamole, cilantro, and others. Since this is a very versatile dish, one could mold a taco recipe to include many food items. The fillings can depend upon individual tastes and likings.

Making tacos is plain fun. One can fill them up with whatever appeals to the taste buds. This is the reason that this Mexican specialty has become very popular worldwide. There is not just one recipe. There are unlimited versions of the recipe that could include many items. You will come across recipes such as Beef Taquitos, Authentic Chicken Tacos, Double Layer Tacos, Beef Steak Soft Tacos, Fish Tacos, Carne Asada Tacos, Salmon Tacos, Grilled Fish Tacos, Shrimp Tacos, Zucchini Tacos, Roasted Vegetable Tacos and many more.

Would you like to try a new taco recipe? If you have not tried one before, the following is just right and easy. Many other people have tried it and they think it is wonderful. This is a chicken taco.

One requires cooked shredded chicken to make these taco types. They make a very tasty meal. Therefore, if your kids throw tantrums when taking their meals, you can serve them Chicken tacos. They will love this dish. You will be surprised if they ask for more and more taco. To make Chicken Tacos, you will need the following ingredients.

Green Onion (chopped) - ¼ cup

1 tbsp. Butter

Cooked & Shredded Chicken - 2 cups

One can - Green Chili Salsa

Cheddar Cheese (grated) - 1 cup

Salt - to taste

Taco Shells - 12 Nos.

For the filling:

Chopped Lettuce

Sour Cream

Chopped Tomato

Salsa

Guacamole

Assemble all the ingredients at one place. This way it will be easier for you to quickly prepare your tacos. It is important that you get fresh ingredients from the market. The taste of food is very different if the ingredients used are fresh and juicy. Once you have all the ingredients, follow the steps below to make delicious Chicken Tacos.

1) Heat butter in a pan. Sauté onion in it. They must become translucent and soft.

2) Add the cooked and shredded chicken and mix well.

3) Add green chili salsa and salt and toss well.

4) Flavor chicken well with the salsa. You must get good aroma from this. Give the mix about then minutes and remove from heat.

5) Place the taco shells on a big tray. In all the shells, add some chicken filling and a tablespoon of grated cheddar cheese.

6) Fill up the shells with chopped lettuce, tomato, salsa, guacamole and sour cream.

7) Serve immediately to your family

If you follow this chicken taco recipe carefully, nothing can go wrong with it. If your kids have a good meal, it will delight you and make it another day. This dish is also very healthy. It has green foods, meat, and cheese. You could even serve your esteemed guests this recipe if they will be coming soon

G. Smitty is a writer who loves to discuss many topics ranging from taco salad recipe to professional basketball. Thanks for reading!

Smoky Jalapeno Rub Recipes for Taco Salad, Venison, Baby Back Ribs & Burgers

Smoky Jalapeño Rub is great on any of these - Steak, Ribs, Roasts, Chops, Prime Ribs, Fish, Poultry, Burgers, Wild Game and Fowl

Apply Rub generously on both sides of meat, either rub into meat or allow to marinate and the moisture in the meat will draw it in. grill, fry, bake or smoke to desired doneness. Tip: If possible season meat and allow time to marinate, first wrap with plastic wrap or put in re-sealable Plastic bag 2-4 hrs or overnight

Smoky Jalapeño Grilled Vegetables

Slice vegetables like peppers, onions, mushrooms, zucchini etc. brush or spray with olive oil. Sprinkle Smoky Jalapeño Rub & Smoky Mesquite Salt over all. Let marinate 15 minutes. Grill until done.

Smoky J Scramble

Stir together 4 eggs, 1 Tbsp Smoky Jalapeño Rub, 2 Tablespoons each: Bell Pepper, Onion, chopped pickled jalapeño slices,2 Sliced fresh mushrooms, 1/2 cup shredded cheese, 1/2 tsp Smoky Mesquite Salt, Heat skillet with 1 tablespoon Butter, Scramble mixture till done.

Smoky Ham

Rub down a Ham with our Smoky Jalapeño or any of our Just Simply Good Stuff! Rubs for that matter. and a little Smoky Mesquite Salt then Smoke or Bake. No need for additional seasoning it's already in there!

Taco Salad

1 can black beans 15oz rinsed and drained

1 can refried beans 15oz heated

2-3 cps Cooked Meat chicken, beef or pork, shredded or ground

4 cp shredded lettuce

1 lg tomato; chopped

1 1/2 cps shredded Cheddar or Monterey jack cheese

1/4 c whole pitted black olives

1/4 c green onion chopped

1/2 red onion separated into rings

1 lime quartered

1 avocado peeled and sliced

1/2 c dairy sour cream

1 can chopped mild green chilies 4oz drained

10-15 pickled jalapeños slices more if you like hot

2 cloves garlic; minced

1 Tbsp Smoky Jalapeño Rub

2 Tbsp Beyond the Border

2 tsp Lemon Lime salt

1 bag tortilla chips yellow corn

Directions

In small bowl mix Smoky Jalapeño Rub, Lemon Lime salt and Beyond the Border seasoning, set aside. Reserve small amount of tomato, jalapeño, olives and cheese for garnish. In a 3-4 quart clear glass bowl, layer black beans, refried beans, jalapeños, lettuce, minced garlic, tomato, cheese, avocado slices, onions, mild green chilies, olives, sprinkle small amount of Smoky Jalapeño Rub, Lemon Lime Salt and Beyond the Border seasoning on every other layer as you go, put spoonfuls of sour cream in a ring around top edge of salad, making smaller rings as you work inward sprinkle tomato, cheese, olives and jalapeño on top for garnish. Cover the surface with plastic wrap and chill for 1-2 hours. Serve over tortilla chips with Lime wedges. Salad will mix as you serve it.

Easy Venison Roast

2 - 4 lbs. Venison Roast

3 med. Red or White Potatoes

1 Onion

2 Cloves Crushed Garlic

3 Carrots

2 Tbsp Flour

2 Beef bouillon Cubes

Smoky Jalapeño Rub

Smoky Mesquite Salt

2 - 3 Cups Water

1 Lg. Reynolds Cook n Bag

Directions

Sprinkle Smoky Jalapeño Rub on all sides and ends of roast. Lightly sprinkle with Smoky Mesquite Salt, remember it's a salt. Put 2 Tbsp flour into Cook n' Bag, add roast close top and shake to distribute flour over roast, set aside. Wash and cut potatoes, onion and carrots into ¼'s add to bag, add garlic crushed & chopped, pour 2cups water, careful not to wash off all of your seasoning on roast, add bouillon cubes Close bag with tie provided. Cut slits in bag about 2"- 3" below tie closure, place bag in 9" x 11" baking pan. Bake @ 375 degrees until desired doneness. Remove from oven. Remove bag from pan when cool enough hold at top of bag. Hold over sauce pan, poke 1 hole in bottom of bag, let juice drain into pan. Put bag back in pan and back into oven w/heat off to keep warm. Place pan on stove bring to medium boil meanwhile mix 2-3 Tbsp. Flour or corn starch into 1/2 cup cold water stir till smooth. Stir gravy rapidly while slowly adding flour/water mixture cook to desired thickness. Slice Roast put on platter surround w/ potatoes, carrots and onions serve gravy on the side. ENJOY!

Corn on the Cob

Butter corn, sprinkle with Smoky Jalapeño Rub & Smoky Mesquite salt. Wrap in foil, grill or bake.

This recipe is especially handy when you're feeding a crowd. Just unwrap the corn and you're good to go!

No need to pass around all of the butter and salt & pepper it's already done!

At http://www.justsimplygoodstuff.com we offer superior hand crafted, all natural spice mixes and naturally grown chile products with no added coloring or artificial preservatives. We grind and mix individual herbs and spices to create our own unique blends. If you limit your salt intake or just prefer to add your own salt we have three no salt blends. We're committed to doing our part in offering quality ingredients for your meals as well as for your lifestyle At JSGS! we like to think of our products as green friendly as well as healthy.

Robin Carter creates intriguing spice blends at Just Simply Good Stuff! in Sagle, Idaho. She decided when she turned 50 she wanted to continue living in north Idaho and start a business doing what she loved and that was cooking! Having no formal training she just "went for it" knowing it was now or never! Part of the criteria was that the product had to be unique, tasty, light weight and easy to ship. Voila! A business was born. For more recipes and information http://justsimplygoodstuff.com/cart/index.php?main_page=page&id=8&chapter=0 also look for Just Simply Good Stuff! "Beyond the Border Bean Dip" Recipe in the 2008 summer issue of Coeur d'Alene Magazine by Hagadone Corporation from Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.

Traditional Mexican Recipes and How to Make Them

Mexican food in Mexico often bears very little resemblance to the Mexican food recipes that you might find in the United States. Mexico is so huge that there are lots of regional differences and what a Mexican family might eat for dinner in Veracruz might be completely different to a typical Mexican meal served in the Yucatan.

In the Puebla area, traditional Mexican recipes include mole sauce, which is a thick, spicy and herbal sauce containing chocolate, which is poured over turkey or chicken. Oaxacan chefs like to add bananas to their mole sauce and they use cinnamon to make a typical Oaxaca coffee. Oaxaca's cuisine is similar to the traditional Mexican foods you find in Puebla.

Fruity sauces are more popular in the Yucatan region, with oranges being very popular to make sauces for fish and meat. Food in this area is sometimes served in a banana leaf, instead of on a plate.

Veracruz is near the sea, so fish and seafood are often served for lunch and dinner there, either in stews or salads or grilled whole and served with a sauce. Fish is used as a taco filling along in this region, and served with olives, chilies and tomatoes.

Making authentic Mexican food recipes, as opposed to the Tex Mex style of food you might be more accustomed to eating in Mexican restaurants north of the border, means that you can try traditional Mexican foods that Mexicans enjoy eating. Whether you prefer fish, meat, poultry, vegetarian food or a combination, the enormous range of Mexican foods and Mexican cooking styles means there is something for everybody.

Recipe for Chiles en Nogada

This delicious recipe is often served on Mexican Independence Day and it consists of stuffed green chilies in a walnut sauce. The green of the chilies, white of the sauce and red of the pomegranate seeds used to garnish the dish are the Mexican flag colors. Use mild chili peppers or even bell peppers if you really do not like spicy food.

What you will need:

1/4 chopped onion
6 big, fresh green chili peppers
3 garlic cloves
1/2 teaspoon sugar
3/4 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon vegetable oil or lard
2 tablespoons chopped unsalted almonds
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
Seeds from a pomegranate
Chopped bunch of fresh parsley
3 eggs
2 tablespoons raisins, soaked for 20 minutes in warm water
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 lb ground beef or ground pork
1 chopped, peeled, cored apple
1/4 cup evaporated milk
Salt and black pepper, to taste
How to make it:

Roast the green chilies, and then remove the seeds and skin. Warm the lard or oil in a pot over a moderate heat, then brown the meat. Add the apple, cinnamon, onion, almonds, garlic, nutmeg, cinnamon, salt, pepper and cumin and cook for five minutes.

Beat the egg whites until they form stiff peaks, then fold in the yolks and a little salt. Dip the chilies in this egg mixture, and then saute them until they are tender and golden brown. Stuff each chili with the stuffing mixture. Combine the sugar, walnuts and sour cream and pour this over the hot chilies. Sprinkle the pomegranate seeds over the walnut sauce and serve hot.

It is fun to make Mexican recipes at home and there are plenty to choose from, since Mexico is a vast country and the cuisine is so varied. traditional Mexican recipes rely on fresh produce as well as herbs and spices, making it nutritious as well as very tasty.

MexicanFoodRecipes.org When it has to be Real Authentic Mexican Food