Baja “fish” tacos — but hold the fish! These tacos are made Ensenada-style with plant-based ingredients instead. Freshly made corn tortillas are filled with beer-battered cauliflower, creamy chipotle mayo, fresh pico de gallo, and shredded cabbage. Enjoy these with a watermelon margarita!

Each bite is packed with crunchy, fresh, and tangy flavors. You’ll be hard-pressed to stop at just one taco. Enjoy yours with a refreshing watermelon margarita, a Cerveza, or an agua fresca.

The cauliflower creates an equally delicious texture to fish, but it has the added benefit of fiber, vitamin K, and vitamin C. Now that is a great reason to serve these plant-forward tacos for your next party!

Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 25 minutes
Total time: 45 minutes

Cost: $8.60 recipe | $0.54 serving

Baja Cauliflower Tacos

Makes 16 tacos

Ingredients

Corn tortillas

  • 2 cups masa harina ($0.25)
  • 1 ½ cups hot water ($0.01)
  • ¼ teaspoon salt ($0.01)

Chipotle mayo

  • ½ cup egg-free mayo ($1.52)
  • 1-2 tablespoons adobo* ($0.08)
  • 1 clove garlic, minced ($0.04)

Other toppings

  • Pico de gallo, homemade or store-bought ($1.39)
  • Shredded cabbage ($0.10)
  • Lime wedges ($0.10)

Cauliflower

  • 1 small head of cauliflower ($2.40)
  • 1-2 cups neutral vegetable oil ($1.60)

Batter

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour ($0.08)
  • ½ cup cornstarch ($0.16)
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder ($0.01)
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder ($0.01)
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder ($0.01)
  • 1 teaspoon salt ($0.01)
  • 1 teaspoon cracked black pepper ($0.01)
  • 1-1 ½ cups Mexican-style beer (cerveza) or sparkling water ($0.80)
  • 1 teaspoon yellow mustard ($0.01)

Instructions

Tortillas

  1. Combine masa harina, salt, and warm water in a bowl. Knead to form a dough that sticks together, but isn’t coming off on your hands too much (add more water or flour as needed).
  2. Roll pieces of dough about the size of a golf ball (~35-40 grams). Press until thin using a tortilla press, a rolling pin, or the bottom of a flat dish.
  3. Preheat a seasoned cast-iron skillet or comal up to medium-high. Once hot, cook the tortillas on the first side for 10-15 seconds, flip and cook another 45-50 seconds, then flip once more and wait for them to puff.
  4. Transfer to a tortilla warmer or tea towel to steam. Continue the same process with the rest of the dough.

Chipotle mayo

  1. Combine the mayo, adobo, and minced garlic in a bowl or container. Cover and transfer to your fridge while you prep the other toppings.

Other toppings

  1. Make pico de gallo, shred the cabbage, and slice the lime wedges. Set aside.

Batter

  1. Heat vegetable oil in a deep pot over medium. In the meantime, whisk the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl.
  2. Add the mustard and enough beer or sparkling water to make a pancake batter consistency.

Frying

  1. Once the oil has reached 350-375 degrees F (or a piece of batter floats to the top), coat the cauliflower florets in batter and fry in batches of 2-4 until golden, about 4 minutes.
  2. Transfer to a cooling rack over top of a baking sheet or a paper towel-lined plate to drain excess oil. Continue the same process with the rest.

Assembly

  1. Add 2 pieces of cauliflower to a corn tortilla, then cabbage, pico de gallo, chipotle mayo, and a squeeze of lime. Enjoy!

Notes

  • *Use the extra sauce from a can of chipotles in adobo.
  • You can use store-bought corn tortillas, but make sure you heat them before serving.

Nutrition: 1 of 16 tacos
Calories 145 | Total Fat 4.9 g | Saturated Fat 0.6 g | Cholesterol 0 mg | Sodium 431 mg | Total Carbohydrates 22.3 g | Dietary Fiber 1.8 g | Total Sugars 0.9 g | Protein 2.5 g | Calcium 46.5 mg | Iron 0.7 mg | Potassium 124.1 mg |

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