Infamous Fish Tacos

I didn't inherit my Mum's Gardening Gene or her Painting/Wall-Papering Gene, but I did inherit her Impromptu Cooking Gene, which, of the three, I'd much rather have. She always had the ability to put together a basic, quick meal. It wasn't fancy, but it was really, really good, made with whatever she had on hand and with little forethought or planning.

When I went out on my own into my very first apartment, I wanted all her recipes so I could make them for myself in my very own kitchen. There was nothing she could tell me to write down, because she didn't follow any recipes. You just do what feels right. Years later, cooking for me and DH, I totally understand the concept. I have the Impromptu Cooking Gene! (Thanks, Mum! :o)

MIL has come to stay with us for a couple weeks, and typically, when she does, she asks me to make Fish Tacos. I think I got the recipe from a lowfat cookbook of mine, but I don't follow a recipe for it anymore. They're infamous because she had a heck of a time trying to describe this goofy meal her daughter-in-law made called Fish Tacos. We think most of her coworkers and relatives thought she took a little too much of her meds...

Remember: if you make this, you do whatever feels right and it will come out perfect!

1. Preheat oven to ~350F. (The last time I made this, I probably put the temp at 325F, who knows?) Start with ~15" or so (I didn't measure) of heavy duty, nonstick aluminum foil:



2. Put maybe a couple handfuls of frozen veggies (enough to eat with the fish fillet but not too much to fit in the piece of foil you have) on the foil. I used frozen sugar snap peas, frozen petite baby carrots and fresh vidalia onion. Mix and match, have fun! Surprise your dinnermates! Pick your favorite seasonings, fresh or dried. Since MIL is diabetic, I used Mrs. Dash (sometimes I use sea salt and basil, sometimes not):



3. Put a fish fillet on top of the veggies. Some of you may be lucky enough to live near a convienient source of fresh seafood. I used a bag of frozen orange roughy from Wal-Mart. I typically select a firm white fish that's not too thick (I've also used talapia and flounder). Then I ground some black pepper (or whatever floats your boat) on top:



4. Bring the foil up on both sides of the taco filling and roll it down like you'd do to the top of a brown paper sack:



5. Secure the short ends, by folding them up twice:



6. Put the Fish Taco on a cookie sheet with it's other Fish Taco friends and bake for about ~40 minutes (really depends on the thickness of the fish and if it's frozen or not):



It's a good idea to cut a little notch in an end of the packet to drain the liquid before serving. (rather than letting your dinner companions scald themselves with the liquid - trust me) Then I cut one end off and actually put the pouches on a platter, so they can take their own tacos apart.

Congratulate yourself with a glass of wine... :o)

Sorry, I didn't get the camera out in time to catch anyone enjoying their dinner, but there weren't leftovers, so I guess it passed muster. :o)