Halibut Fish Tacos with Dairy Free Sour Cream

Halibut fish tacos are perfect for an easy weeknight meal. This recipe takes only ten minutes to make and is both dairy and gluten free, along with paleo, Whole30 and low carb. The homemade dairy free sour cream in this recipe is incredibly simple to make and works perfectly with the halibut fillets. Fish tacos are perfect to make for family meals, large and small, or to meal prep for the week ahead.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Fast: Halibut fish tacos clock in at about 10 minutes from start to finish.
• Easy: With only a handful of ingredients and one skillet this recipe is about as simple as it gets.
• Custom: You can mix and match your favorite toppings and ingredients to make the fish taco that works best for you and your family.
• Easily Scaled: Halibut fish tacos are an easy recipe to scale for more meal prep or to feed a larger gathering of people.

Ingredients to Make Halibut Fish Tacos

For the halibut in your fish tacos you will only need two or three halibut fillets, a tablespoon of avocado oil (or olive oil), and the juice from half a lime which will be around a tablespoon if you’re using lime juice from a bottle.

The last thing you will need is one and a half tablespoons of taco seasoning. You can use whatever you like or have on hand or if you want a quick and easy homemade taco seasoning recipe you can use our homemade taco seasoning recipe here.

Ingredients to Make Dairy Free Sour Cream

The homemade dairy free sour cream for this recipe is simple. All you will need for this part is a half cup of canned coconut cream. You will want the thicker portion of the coconut cream in the can and you can discard the liquid.

Note: If the can of coconut cream hasn’t separated you can just refrigerate the can for a few hours and that will do the trick.

Beyond the coconut cream you only need two teaspoons of lemon juice, a quarter teaspoon of salt, and one to two tablespoons of water. The water will be variable to a degree. You will use more or less depending on your preference of how thick or thin you will want your sour cream.

Serving and Assembly Ingredients

Of course the ingredients you will want on hand for assembling and serving your halibut fish tacos will vary somewhat depending on what you like for your tacos. I’ve listed a few of my favorite go to’s and options here:

• Cilantro
• Shredded green cabbage
• Red onion
• Avocado
• Pico de Gallo (our Mango Pico de Gallo recipe works amazingly on these tacos)
• Cotija cheese or pepperjack cheese
• Green onion
• Salsa of your choice (this homemade mango habanero salsa is great for fish tacos also)

Don’t forget the tortillas or lettuce depending on if you’re crafting tacos or salads. Rice works for tacos and salads, too, but it could be counted as essential for halibut fish taco bowls!

How to Make Halibut Fish Tacos

Start the recipe by patting the halibut fillets dry gently with a paper towel. Brush the oil onto the fillets and coat them well with the taco seasoning mixture.

You will next heat up a skillet over medium-high heat. Once the skillet is hot, lay the fillets down into the skillet and cook for four minutes undisturbed. This will form the crust on the first side. Then flip the fillets and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes to cook the other side. The time will depend on the thickness of the halibut fillets. The fish is fully cooked when it flakes easily with a fork.

While the halibut it cooking, we make the dairy free sour cream. In a bowl, combine the thicker part of the coconut cream with the lemon juice and salt. Use a fork to whisk it together until there are no clumps in the coconut. Then slowly add in water one tablespoon at a time while mixing until the dairy free sour cream is the consistency you prefer. Remember more water makes for a thinner sour cream. Refrigerate your homemade dairy free sour cream until you are ready to use.

Once the fish is done, remove it from the skillet, begin to assemble your halibut fish tacos, and dig in.

Assembly and Serving Instructions

Assemble your halibut fish tacos anyway you like or see fit. That being said some of my preferred ways I assemble these to serve besides the classic fish tacos consist of:

• Burrito style: Flake the halibut fillets and wrap them into large tortillas with lettuce, pico, and other toppings.
• Salad style: A bed of greens and either whole or flaked fillets with toppings.
• Bowls: Generally I do a bed of rice (of your choice) with the fillets flaked and toppings.
• Lettuce wraps: Normally I do these similar to the bowl but wrapped up into lettuce wraps for the crunch.

Remember if you choose to flake the fish apart to only break up what you need at the moment since it makes storage easier for leftovers.

Storage and Meal Prep Instructions

To store the leftover halibut fillets, let them cool to room temperature and gently place into an airtight container and refrigerate. They will keep well for about 4 days. Remember to store them separate from the rest of the toppings and assemble right before eating to keep everything fresh and wonderful.

For Meal Prep

If you are doing meal prep with these halibut fish tacos you will still let them cool to room temperature. Keep the fillets separate from your extra toppings and place them into an airtight meal prep container and refrigerate. If you are pairing these with rice or roasted veggies, place the halibut fillet to the side of on top of the side and refrigerate. They will reheat well together and it will be easy to assemble your fish tacos when you’re ready.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why halibut versus other kinds of fish?

Halibut is considered the “steak of seafood” with its gentle taste and lean cuts. Halibut works well with a variety of flavors because you can add a bolder seasoning due to its gentle flavor and thicker, denser fillets.

Halibut can be one of the more expensive fish on the menu but you can save some money by making it on your own. Dues to its leaner cuts you just want to make sure to not overcook it and you come away with a tasty and versatile fillet of fish at home without the higher price.

Can you really use other kinds of fish?

You can! You will want to choose a whitefish such as a round fish, cod, haddock, pollock, or flounder. The differences in fillet size and the density of the fish may require some adjusting to the cooking times.

Do you use frozen or fresh fillets?

You can use both frozen or fresh fillets. You will want to be sure to safely thaw the fish before you cook it, as always.

How do halibut and Cod compare?

Halibut is usually a thicker fillet than cod. The Cod and has a more “sweet” taste to it. It is a little leaner and more “gentle” tasting which makes it a good candidate to add some bolder flavors to. Also Halibut will retain its moisture well if you don’t overcook it!

Other Seafood Recipes You’ll Love:

• Shrimp Stuffed Salmon
• Air Fryer Teriyaki Salmon
• Spicy Salmon Bowl
• Whole30 Greek Salmon
• Cajun Salmon Pasta

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