Guajillo-Chile Seafood Tacos with Red Cabbage Slaw

I buy fish nearly every Tuesday from Jerry, Joe and Trish. They have the best fish in town. I went to school with Trish and every Tuesday we have a chat. Sometimes it's about fish, but mostly we talk about our school days and growing up in the same town, knowing the same people, about our kids and life in general. I never would have thought that when we were catching the school bus together and passing each other in the school yard all those years ago that we'd be laughing and joking and solving the world's problems over a fish counter one day.



Guajillo-Chile Seafood Tacos with Red Cabbage Slaw
adapted from Lisa Fain's The Homesick Texan Cookbook
Serves 4

For the Fish:
6 dried guajillo chiles, stems and seeds removed (I buy mine from Monteray Mexican Foods)
4 cloves garlic
1/2 cup coriander leaves and stems
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt to taste
250g firm white fish, boneless, skinless and cut into finger-size strips (I used Flathead)
250g raw prawns, peeled and deveined and cut down the vein-line.
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

For the Red Cabbage Slaw:
2 cups finely shredded red cabbage
1 teaspoon sea salt flakes
2 jalapenos, seeds removed
1/2 cup coriander leaves
Juice of 1 lime
1/2 teaspoon agave nectar (or honey)
2 heaped tablespoons mayonnaise
2 heaped tablespoons Greek yoghurt
Salt to taste

For the Tacos:
Flour tortillas
Salsa
Diced avocado

Make the Fish:
Heat a frying pan in high, add the guajillo chiles and cook for 10 seconds on both sides. Pour enough water over the chiles to cover, bring to the boil, then turn the heat off and leave to soften for 30 minutes.

Drain the chiles and put them into a blender with the garlic, coriander, cumin, smoked paprika, ginger, lime juice and olive oil. Blend until you have a smooth paste. Add salt to taste.

Put the fish and prawns into a bowl and pour the chile paste over, making sure all the fish is covered. Set aside in the refrigerator for a couple of hours.

When you are ready to eat, heat a large frying pan to medium-high and melt the butter. Fry the fish a prawns
in small batches for about 2 minutes a side. Pile the seafood onto a large platter.

Make the Red Cabbage Slaw:
Put the shredded cabbage into a colander and sprinkle with the salt. Leave for an hour. Drain off any liquid and put the cabbage into a large serving bowl. Add 1/4 cup of roughly chopped coriander leaves and 1 jalapeno that has been finely chopped.

Put the other jalapeno, the remaining coriander leaves, lime juice, agave nectar, mayonnaise and yoghurt into a blender and blitz until smooth. Pour over the slaw and toss to mix.

Make the Tacos:
Put a warm tortilla onto a plate and place the fish in the centre. Top with slaw, salsa and diced avocado, fold and devour.