Beer-battered Fish Tacos with Native Spices

Mexican-inspired meals are always popular at our place, and one of the few dinners that makes everyone happy - mostly because it's so easy for each person to customise their own dish! This particular recipe is a riff on Baja-style fish tacos, with four different native Australian spices or spice blends used in my version.

This delicious and lightly spiced batter could be also be used for other seafood and served with chips and salad.

Ingredients

Beer-battered Fish

500 grams of firm white fish fillets, in 2.5cm slices
1 cup plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp Outback Pride Saltbush Flakes
1 tsp Outback Pride Native Pepperleaf Flakes
1 tsp Outback Pride Tanami Fire
1 cup Corona beer + 1/3 cup if needed
Vegetable oil, for deep frying

Dressing

1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tsp Outback Pride Lemon Myrtle Flakes

Tacos

1/4 small cabbage, chopped (green or red is fine)
1/2 small red onion, sliced
1 lime, halved, and one half cut into quarters
Corn or flour tortillas, warmed to serve
Chopped fresh coriander
Sliced avocado (optional)

Method

1. Place the chopped cabbage and red onion in a bowl and squeeze one half of the lime all over. Stir to combine and set aside.
2. To make the dressing, combine the sour cream, mayonnaise, crushed garlic and lemon myrtle flakes in a small bowl. Cover and place in the fridge until you're ready to serve.
3. Add the flour, baking powder, saltbush flakes, tanami fire and native pepperleaf flakes to a mixing bowl, and stir well. Whisk the mixture while adding 1 cup of beer, and continue whisking until smooth and kind of pancake consistency. Leave to rest for 10-15 minutes or so. If the batter is too thick at this stage, add the extra 1/3 cup of beer and whisk to combine.
4. Place vegetable oil for deep-frying in a deep frypan or saucepan, and heat over medium-high.
5. Lay out the fish strips and pat them dry. Test if the oil is ready by dropping a little batter in - if it bubbles around the edge immediately then the oil is hot enough.
6. In the meantime, wrap the tortillas in foil and warm in the oven. Alternatively, you can microwave them right before serving.
7. Dredge the fish strips in the batter and place in the hot oil to cook, in batches so that the pan doesn't get too crowded. When golden brown all over, use tongs to remove and drain on paper towels.
8. To serve, place a warmed tortilla on your plate and add some of the cabbage onion mix. Lay a strip of battered fish over the cabbage, and then sprinkle fresh coriander on top. Drizzle or dollop the creamy lemon myrtle dressing all over.
9. Fold the tortilla in half to enjoy!

Salmon Salad with Lemon Myrtle & Chilli

This is a great option if you enjoy a light, fresh meal with a lot of yummy flavour!

Ingredients

Mixed lettuce leaves
1/2 avocado
200gm pink salmon, drained (tin)
Handful thai basil, shredded
1/4 cup coriander leaves, shredded
1/4 red capsicum, finely sliced
Handful pumpkin and sunflower seeds
2 tbsp Outback Pride lemon myrtle and chilli sauce
1 tbsp lime juice
1/2 small lebanese cucumber, quartered lengthways and sliced
1 spring onion (or 2 small ones), finely sliced

Step One

Combine salad ingredients and herbs.

Step Two

Top with salmon, sprinkle over the pumpkin and sunflower seeds.

Step Three

Mix the lemon myrtle and chilli sauce with lime juice and dress the salad. If you have any fresh lemon myrtle leaves, slice half of one up finely to add to the collection. Enjoy :)

Smoked Salmon Lemon Myrtle Fettucine

I just love the Outback Pride pasta range, and the Lemon Myrtle Fettucine is a favourite to accompany seafood-ish sauces. Wattleseed Fettucine is gorgeous with creamy sauces of any description. The Saltbush and Native Pepper Fettucines go with anything, and the Bush Tomato Fettucine is the ideal base for a rich ragu.

This one is a recipe I created many years ago that I've given a native twist. If you use regular pasta instead, the same recipe would benefit from an extra 1/2 tsp of Lemon Myrtle Flakes to compensate.

Ingredients

1 250g packet Outback Pride Lemon Myrtle Fettucine
1 bunch spring onions, white part sliced finely
1 clove garlic, chopped finely
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
100g smoked salmon, sliced
200ml low fat cream, or evaporated milk
1 tsp Outback Pride Seafood Sprinkle
2 tbsp tomato paste
Cracked black pepper, to taste
Shaved parmesan, to serve

Step One

Boil 3 litres of salted water. Add pasta.

Step Two

Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a non-stick frying pan. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the spring onions and cook, stirring, until softened.

Step Three

Pour in the cream or evaporated milk. Add tomato paste and seafood sprinkle, stir to combine. Reduce heat and simmer for a couple of minutes before adding the smoked salmon. Add pepper to taste.

Step Four

Drain cooked fettucine and combine with sauce. Serve topped with shaved parmesan.

Serves 3.