Do you love the heartiness of swordfish? Don’t feel intimidated by cooking fish at home. These blackened Swordfish Tacos are dairy-free, can be made gluten-free (by using corn tortillas), and are made in minutes.
We love fish in my house. My husband went on a fishing trip of his life back in February and caught a 120 pound swordfish with a few of his closest friends. This resulted in over 15 dinners of swordfish! I’ve been experimenting in the kitchen with all sorts of different ways to enjoy swordfish. One of the first things I planned to make was blackened Swordfish Tacos!
Thanks to my husbands adventures I’ve been able to experiment with one of the most expensive fishes to buy at the market. I know most of my friends and readers are intimidated by cooking fish. I have a few friends that would never dare to buy an expensive piece of fish without feeling confident in the kitchen. I’m here to tell you that this is a very easy piece of fish to cook thanks to it’s “steak” like tendency.
My swordfish tacos are amazing especially topped with creamy cilantro dressing. Even better they are so easy to make. Once you make these you will want to make my swordfish steaks with garlic herb butter that I served with asparagus and baked potatoes. Both dinners prove to be easy to make and most importantly delicious.
Ingredients
- Swordfish – Fresh or frozen then thawed swordfish is what I use for this recipe.
- Olive Oil – I like the flavor that the olive oil gives off, but you can use other oils like canola, grapeseed, corn oil, etc.
- Blackening Seasoning – I love my homemade blackening seasoning, but store bought will work too.
- Flour Tortillas – If you need this recipe to be gluten free, you can use corn tortillas instead.
- Shredded Cabbage – You can hand shred a head of cabbage or save time and buy a bag of shredded cabbage otherwise known as coleslaw mix.
- Plum tomatoes – I prefer the taste and texture of plum tomatoes over vine ripe or grape tomatoes. But it’s all preference thing. Any tomato variety works.
- Creamy Cilantro Dressing – Making my own Creamy Cilantro Dressing is the key to bringing these tacos from good to great!
Directions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Pour the olive oil in a glass baking dish. Place the swordfish in the baking dish. Coat each side with the olive oil. Then, sprinkle with the homemade blackening seasoning. Massage into the fish.
- Bake fish for 15 minutes or until cooked through.
- Remove from the oven. Cut into bite-size pieces.
- Assemble the tacos: place a few pieces of swordfish on a flour tortilla. Place 2 tablespoons of shredded cabbage, 1 tablespoon of diced tomatoes in the tortilla. Pour 2 tablespoons of creamy cilantro dressing over the cabbage mixture. Repeat until all the tacos are repeated. Enjoy immediately.
FAQs
Unlike tuna, swordfish should be cooked all the way through. Swordfish as well as halibut, and salmon are fish that are prone to parasites. Thus you should always cook them fully through, so that when a thermometer is inserted in the fish the minimum swordfish internal temperature of 145 degrees Fahrenheit to kill any harmful bacteria they may have. Keep in mind that just like any other protein–it will continue to cook a little as it rests after it’s been cooked.
Like most fish, the fish should be opaque and flakey if it’s fully cooked. You will need to take the tines of your fork and poke at the fish. If the fish easily pulls apart, then you know it’s done. Another way you can check is by inserting a meat thermometer.
Because swordfish is a meaty piece of fish you have multiple ways you can cook it verse some of the lighter fish where your cooking methods are very limited.
-Grilling
-Baking
-Broiling
-Pan sear
Swordfish vs Marlin… are they the same? No, they are two different fish.
Tips & Tricks
I have made this blackened fish tacos recipe a dozen times. Here are a few tips & tricks I’ve learned while making them.
- Save time – Don’t waste time shredded cabbage from a whole cabbage unless you have it on hand. I pick up a bag of pre-shredded cabbage also known as coleslaw mix.
- Cook fish from frozen – Yes! That’s right you can cook the fish from frozen if it’s in individual pieces not a whole frozen chunk together. If you forgot to thaw the fish, no biggie. Just add an additional 20-30 minutes on to your cooking time. Place foil on top and let it cook until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Gluten Free – This is a gluten free meal minus the flour tortillas. If you want to make these fish tacos gluten free you’ll use corn tortillas instead. Or make it a salad! It’s just as delicious as a salad.
- Sauce– Whenever I make fish tacos I have to pair it with either my Creamy Cilantro Dressing or Cilantro Lime Yogurt Dip.
Sides for Fish Tacos
Here are a few of my favorite sides for fish tacos.
- Mexican Street Corn Salad
- Slow Cooker Ranchero Beans
- Black Bean, Corn, and Tomato Salad
- Creamy Cilantro Mango Coleslaw
- Bacon Refried Beans
- Churro Truffle Bombs
If you make this blackened fish tacos recipe, I would be honored and love for you to take the time to leave a star rating and comment! I spend hours developing and testing these recipes, and always love to hear feedback and user experience!
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Blackened Swordfish Tacos
Equipment
- Oven
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
- 1 tablespoon Homemade Blackening Season
- 1 lb. Swordfish Steaks
- 6 Small Flour Tortillas
- ½ cup shredded cabbage
- 1 Plum Tomatoes diced
- 1 cup Creamy Cilantro Dressing
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Pour the olive oil in a glass baking dish. Place the swordfish in the baking dish. Coat each side with the olive oil. Then, sprinkle with the homemade blackening seasoning. Massage into the fish.
- Bake fish for 15 minutes or until cooked through.
- Remove from the oven. Cut into bite-size pieces.
- Assemble the tacos: place a few pieces of swordfish on a flour tortilla. Place 2 tablespoons of shredded cabbage, 1 tablespoon of diced tomtatoes in the tortilla. Pour 2 tablespoons of creamy cilantro dressing over the cabbage mixture. Repeat until all the tacos are repeated. Enjoy immediately.
Notes
- Save time – Don’t waste time shredded cabbage from a whole cabbage unless you have it on hand. I pick up a bag of preshredded cabbage also known as coleslaw mix.
- Cook fish from frozen – Yes! That’s right you can cook the fish from frozen if it’s in individual pieces not a whole frozen chunk together. If you forgot to thaw the fish, no biggie. Just add an additional 20-30 minutes on to your cooking time. Place foil on top and let it cook until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Gluten Free – This is a gluten free meal minus the flour tortillas. If you want to make these fish tacos gluten free you’ll use corn tortillas instead. Or make it a salad! It’s just as delicious as a salad.
- Serving Size – Serving size is based on 1 fish taco.
Nutrition
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Ronnie
Excellent recipe. I used steamed corn tortillas and actually combined the creamy cilantro dressing with the cabbage to make it “coleslaw.” Clean plates, here!
Katie
Hi Ronnie–this is great to read. I also do similiar with the cilantro dressing–it’s so good and a must with fish tacos!
Jennifer
I made a vegetarian one for myself and the swordfish for my bf. This was wonderful, thank you! the sauce wooo-lawdy!
Katie
Jennifer so happy to read this. Yes the sauce is what makes the tacos really shiny. I could drink it! lol
Diane Sykes
I’ll definitely be making this sauce for our next fish taco night. We had fish tacos just the other night with fresh caught striper. Your sauce would have been perfect!
Thanks for always inspiring me!
Katie
The sauce is definitely what elevates the tacos from good to great!