Grilled Fish Tacos with Cucumber Slaw, Basil Salsa, and Watermelon Granita - The Bend Magazine

Grilled Fish Tacos with Cucumber Slaw, Basil Salsa, and Watermelon Granita

The flavors of the Coastal Bend achieve their perfection.

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By: Justin & Kayla Butts  Photos by: Rachel Benavides

You can use speckled trout, redfish, or flounder in your tacos, or you can use black drum,brwhich is becoming increasingly popular. Blackbrdrum are easy and fun to catch, and you don’tbrneed a boat to find them. We got our blackbrdrum filets from Charlie at Morgan StreetbrSeafood, 1602 Morgan Street, Corpus Christi. The drum werebrcaught that very morning and delivered to Charlie. You cannotbrget fresher fish unless you catch it yourself.br

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Grilling your fish to perfection is easy with a nonstick fishbrgrilling basket. Your fish basket will fold over your filet on topbrand on bottom, gently holding the filet together. You can leavebrthe basket on the grill to cook and easily turn the fish. CuisinArtbrmakes an excellent grilling basket for less than $20. You canbralso grill shrimp, okra, and other delicate or smaller foods thatbrwould otherwise fall apart on the grill, or fall through the grate.br

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Cucumbers grow to vine-ripened perfection. Our favorite cucumber is thebrMarket more variety–an excellent slicing cucumber. We pickedbrred and orange bell peppers to give the slaw bright colors as wellbras a deeper flavor.br

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We prefer cherry tomatoes for the pico de gallo as they explode with flavor. 

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Granita is a frozen dessert similar to Italian ice or sorbet, exceptbrwith granitas the ice crystals are larger and coarser. Granita isbrpopular in Italy, where every little town has their own uniquebrversion. We served our granita on a Turkish coffee servingbrplatter, but you can also serve your granita in the hollowed outbrwatermelon rind.br

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These dishes are perfect for a deck party, or for an easy weeknight meal for the family. We picked the produce for thesebrrecipes fresh from the garden, and the fish was caught the samebrday. When the ingredients are this fresh, you can keep thebrrecipe very simple, and let the flavor of the Coastal Bend shinebrthrough.br

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The tacos are delicious and healthy, and the granita may be thebrbest guilt-free dessert you ever taste—you will not believe howbrsweet and good they are. Feel free to go back for seconds, againbrand again, and enjoy these flavors.br

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GRILLED CUCUMBER WATERMELON FISH TACOS 

Serves 4br

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Prep time: 

25 minutesbrCook time: 15 minutesbr

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Ingredients:br

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4 corn and flour blend tortillasbr1 lb fresh black drum, filet
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Salt and pepper, to taste
br1⁄4 cup olive oilbr

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Cucumber slaw, see recipebrBasil pico de gallo, see recipebr

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Directions:br

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First prepare cucumberbrslaw and basil pico de gallobr(see recipe) to allow flavorsbrto develop while fish cooks.brPreheat grill. Brush fishbrwith olive oil and seasonbrliberally with sea salt andbrpepper. Place fish in a grillbrbasket. Grill over low directbrheat for 3-4 minutes perbrside. Garnish with slaw andbrpico de gallo. 

 CUCUMBER SLAW 

Ingredients:

1 cucumber, grated (Market- more variety recommended)

1⁄4 sweet bell pepper, grated 1 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tsp sugar
1 large pinch salt

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in a medium-sized bowl. Let sit for at least 15 minutes to allow flavors to develop.

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BASIL PICO DEbrGALLO

Ingredients:

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1 cup tomato, diced (sweetbrcherry tomatoes recommended)br

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1-2 jalapenos, seeded andbrmincedbr

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1⁄2 cup onion, diced (1015brvariety recommend)br

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1 tbsp lime juice
br1 clove garlic, minced
br1 small bunch basil, choppedbr

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Directions:br

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Combine ingredients in abrmedium-sized bowl. Letbrrest for at least 15 minutesbrto allow flavors to develop. 

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WATERMELON GRANITA 

Serves 12br

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Prep time: 15 minutesbr

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Inactive prep time: 1 hour, 40brminutesbr

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Cook time: 2 minutes 

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Ingredients:br

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3⁄4 cup waterbr1⁄2 cup sugarbr

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7 cups watermelon, peeled andbrcubedbr

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4 tbsp lime juice, or juice ofbr2 limesbr

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Small bunch fresh sweet basilbr(about 6 large leaves) 

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Directions:br

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Place 9×13” glass or metalbrdish in freezer.br

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Place water and sugar in a small sauce pan overbrmedium-high heat. Simmerbrwhile stirring with a whiskbruntil all of sugar is dis-brsolved and liquid reaches abrsyrup consistency, about 2brminutes. Let cool to roombrtemperature.br

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Combine watermelon,brsimple syrup, lime and basilbrin a food processor andbrpulse until smooth. Pourbrwatermelon mixture intobrcooled pan and place in thebrfreezer. Using a whisk, stirbrmixture every 20 minutes,bruntil desired consistency isbrreached. Enjoy immediately after serving. 

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