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Fish Tacos with Sweet-tea Brined Pollock and Grilled Slaw

Posted on | May 30, 2009 | 4 Comments

A famous joke in Boston goes a little something like this:

A man goes on a business trip to Beantown and for three days all he hears from colleagues is that, before he leaves, he has to try Scrod – a whitefish known in the area. Day and and day out, scrod, scrod, scrod – yet none of the lunch or dinner joints serve it.

So, on his last day in town he finds he has some time to spare before his flight. He jumps in a cab and tells the cabby, “listen pal, I really need to get Scrod before I leave Boston.”

The cabby tips his cap and says “Mr., I’ve been driving a cab in this town for 20 years, but that’s the first time I’ve ever heard anyone ask for that in the plu-perfect subjunctive.”

I considered this joke carefully as I stood at the seafood counter in Boston last week looking at a healthy looking collection of Scrod next to an equally healthy, and strikingly-similar looking, collection of Pollock, the fish, not the artist.

The Scrod – 12.99/pound
The Pollock – 6.99/pound

When I asked the fish monger the difference, she shrugged, leaned over the counter and whispered, conspiratorially, “They taste the exact same to me.” Not exactly the breakdown I was looking for, but at least she was trying to save me money. Furthermore, Pollock was in the “Best Choices” category within my handy wallet-sized Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch Guide (I’m not quite I-phone equipped just yet.)

Both Scrod and Pollock are white fish, and most of the research I conducted upon arriving home with my discounted dinner suggested that Scrod can be a young cod, or, on occasion, can be mislabeled as Pollock. Both fish have a light-pinkish/white hue with silvery sheen on the flesh. It’s actually a gorgeous looking fish. It has a strong, but not unwelcome, smell and a slightly strong flavor.

But what to do with it? Well, after having read about his brines (a great seafood brining overview) and then interviewed D.C. local chef Barton Seaver – sustainable seafood expert and soon-to-be chef of D.C.’s new Blue Ridge Restaurant – I was anxious to apply brines to fish. Barton is a big fan, and rightfully so.

I’m amazed I’d never read about this or tried it before. So simple, brining something that comes from the sea. I don’t think I’ll ever cook  fish on the grill again without applying a simple brine to it (well, some fish certainly aren’t amenable to it, there texture or flavors being too delicate, but hey, doesn’t hurt to experiment). Better yet, you only need to brine most fish for about 25 minutes, as opposed to 8 hours-to-overnight with pork and chicken. The fish stays moist and flavorful on the grill, and it also removes, ever so slightly, any of that “fishy” taste that people don’t always love (I’m not among them – I LOVE it.)

So, brined pollock. Done.

It was a gorgeous spring day in Boston and I wanted to hit up the grill. So, I decided to go the fish taco route. Good fish, great veg and a simple sauce, rolled up in corn tortillas. Everyone wins.

My little sister had just opened a gargantuan bottle of sweet lemon iced tea and as soon as I saw it I knew that would be my liquid. I used the simple brining guidance of 2 cups liquid-2 tablespoons Sugar-1 Tablespoon salt, though I cut the sugar back to one tablespoon due to the use of the sweet tea.

I placed the pollock flesh side up in a dish and poured the brine over the top of it – covering it and then adding it to the fridge for about 40 minutes.

While the brine settled, I worked on the “slaw.” I cut up a gorgeous purple cabbage laying about into finger sized slices, then cut up a red and yellow bell pepper, and finally, cut a handful of green onions the lengthwise. I tossed the veg together with some light oil and fired up the grill. When it was smoking hot, I placed the veg on a vegetable grill pan (a fabulous addition for any grilling aficionados out there.)

After the veg had been on the grill about 12 minutes, and all the pieces had a nice char on them, I removed the fish from the fridge and the brine and gave it a quick pat dry with paper towel. I rubbed a bit of olive oil on it and placed it on the grill at medium heat. Now, Pollock is not an oily fish so it’s not THE best choice for grilling, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try it, just that you must pay attention to the heat and the timing, because if you’re distracted it could dry out quickly. I gave it a nice char on either side and left it on the grill for about 6-8 minutes.

At this point, I brought the fish and the veg inside and covered the fish with foil. I then poured all the veg onto a cutting board and gave it a rough chop with a chefs knife. Then, I tossed it back in the bowl and added a bit of salt and pepper, red wine vinegar and just a touch of olive oil. Give it a toss and cover it.

Wrap up your corn tortillas in foil and throw them in a warm oven for about 5 minutes. While they are warming, make your sauce.

I like homemade tartar sauces, and I’m pretty liberal with what I use. For this version I used Mayonaise – 3 tablespoons or so – a heaping teaspoon of catchup – 2 teaspoons of sweet pickle relish – a teaspoon of the juice from a bottle of capers, and about a teaspoon of mashed capers. What came out was a creamy-sweet-briny sauce that I knew would go well as the topper for the fish and slaw.

The next step is the best. Pull apart your grilled fish and place on a platter next to your bowl of slaw. Grab the tortillas from the oven and create your own little assembly line. Super casual, super easy, super-summery deliciousness. And, as you’re using Pollock, you’re neither Scrodding the ocean or getting Scrod at the cash register. Not that you shouldn’t try it next time you’re in Boston…

Fish tacos go well with cold beer, black beans and cold beer. Enjoy.

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