Chipotle Lime Shrimp

Oh man guys, this is truly pathetic. Last time I posted it was January! Back when I was still snowshoeing to work and fighting off polar bears for food scraps (or however you all picture Canadian winters to look). Now it's summer and as everyone knows, summer is the perfect time for tacos. So let's get back on track and pretend the last five months didn't happen.

First up, we've got a delicious Maritime/Mexican treat! Out here, shrimp are delicious and plentiful, whether you're shopping at the grocery store or out of that guy's truck on the highway (don't knock it 'til you've tried it). And since we're all a little rusty/lazy, this recipe is hella easy. Enjoy!

Seared Scallop

Here on Tee's Taqueria, I welcome all kinds of tacos. From your traditional pork carnitas to "I've never cooked this before, let's see what happens" duck, I'm all about cooking with new and exciting fillings. So when a friend of mine came to visit me in Halifax, she requested something a little East Coast-y. And since I was too afraid to cook a lobster in my tiny apartment (what if he escaped and started living under my bed and using my Netflix subscription?), the obvious choice was fresh Digby scallops.

Now I really don't know how easy or difficult it is to find these guys outside of Nova Scotia. They're a staple of our grocery stores and roadside stands, so my cooking instructions are catered to fresh scallops rather than frozen. But a little Google-fu will surely teach you how to get frozen scallops prepped for this delicious taco treat.

Seared Tuna

On the scale of difficult jobs, writing a blog about tacos is pretty low on the list - somewhere between finishing a paint-by-number and explaining the plot of a movie starring Kate Hudson (synopsis: "it was terrible"). But somehow after my last recipe post I was a little burnt out. I took some time away to make Indian food, pastas and eat out more than I should, but now I'm back and ready to bring you some more taco goodness.

For our first taco back, I chose a seared tuna taco. I'm not well versed in the preparation of fish, so I wanted a simple recipe that would be ready in a flash. Literally - you want to keep the centre of this fish raw, so you're only cooking on each side for about a minute. Ask your butcher for a tuna steak that will be okay to eat very rare. Some other recipes suggest you need sashimi grade fish, but I guess it depends on how fresh the fish is. Since I'm in Halifax, mine was basically still moving.

Cajun Shrimp

In my travels I've been to a lot of interesting places and done a lot of stupid things that probably should have landed me as the opening credits victim on one of the Law & Orders. But I've never been down south to Louisiana. I've always wanted to go, as it seems like it would be right up my alley - jazz, booze, art and history are some of my favourite things, after all. And I would love the food most of all.

In honour of the trip I've yet to take, I decided to craft a Cajun-inspired taco. I found some recipes that gave me a sense of what spices I'd need, but I also discovered the key to most Cajun cooking - mirepoix. It's a simple mix of carrots, celery and onion that forms the flavour base for many dishes. So I gave it a Mexican twist, subbing out carrots for jalapenos. It gives these tacos a great depth to offset the heat, because these tacos are HOT. If you can't handle food that will literally make you sweat, than stay away from these tacos. They made me cry, and my insides are basically cast iron at this point.

Baja Fish

Let me start out by saying my first time cooking these was a disaster. Like Twister, Towering Inferno, Poseidon Adventure and From Justin to Kelly all rolled into one. It was mostly not my fault - I just forgot that I'd cooked potatoes in my pot and neglected to wash it. So when I tried to heat the oil for deep frying the fish, the pot was not pleased. Nor was my nose, after smelling burnt starch (hint: it's the worst thing ever). After destroying my pot, I had to improvise. I used a frying pan with about 1/2 inch of oil, making sure to turn the fish after about 1.5 minutes. It worked out so well, I think I'll stick with this method. And avoid burning starch PTSD.

But back to the fish. This is a very simple recipe for a beer battered white fish. You can serve it with anything fresh and crispy - think cabbage, apple, white sauce. I did add a little Sriracha because I was missing the mouth destroying heat of my usual tacos. I think it worked out pretty well.