Fish Tacos al Pastor

Recipe from Luis Herrera

Adapted by Eric Kim

Updated Oct. 11, 2023

Fish Tacos al Pastor — Chris Simpson for The New York Times. Food stylist: Maggie Ruggiero. Prop stylist: Pamela Duncan Silver.

Total Time: 2 hours
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
Rating: 4(428)
Notes: Read community notes

A chief contender for dinner party raving, these savory-sweet tacos de pescado al pastor, from the chef Luis Herrera of Ensenada restaurant in Brooklyn, are impressive parcels of celebration. Grilling the pineapple gets you close to the charred flavor of al pastor, “in the style of a shepherd,” without the traditional rotating vertical spit, a method of barbecuing lamb that Lebanese immigrants brought to Mexico in the late 19th century. In place of the more common pork are grilled, buttery whitefish fillets stained with brick-red chile sauce. This knockout adobo, redolent of raisins and raked with warm spices, is a labor of love for the people you love, so lean into the process. You can make the adobo and pineapple pico de gallo a day ahead, and even marinate the fish the night before. Then, on taco day, just grill the fish to serve, complete with grilled corn, a cooler of lagers and the best corn tortillas you can find — the kinds that slacken and steam over the fire. Enjoy these DIY tacos with your favorite salsa or hot sauce, and don’t skip the lime wedges; they provide the acid. Any leftover adobo can be used to marinate chicken, pork and vegetables throughout the week, or kept frozen for up to three months. —Eric Kim

Featured in: These Fish Tacos Couldn’t Be More Brilliant

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Ingredients

Yield:8 to 10 servings

For the Fish

8 to 10skin-on white fish fillets, such as branzino, snapper or sea bass, or 4 to 6 swordfish steaks (2 ½ to 3 pounds total)
Kosher salt
1pineapple, trimmed, peeled and cored (or 2 pounds store-bought cut pineapple)
4plum tomatoes
1small white onion, cut into large chunks
4garlic cloves
5guajillo chiles (1 ounce); see Tip
5ancho chiles (3 ounces); see Tip
Grapeseed or other neutral oil
2cinnamon sticks, preferably Mexican
5whole cloves
1teaspoon cumin seeds
1teaspoon black peppercorns

For the Pineapple Pico De Gallo

1cup finely diced red onion
½cup finely chopped cilantro
½cup extra-virgin olive oil
1serrano chile, finely chopped
Kosher salt

For Serving

Whole cilantro leaves and thinly sliced serrano chile, for garnish
About 40 corn tortillas, warmed, for serving
Lime wedges, for serving

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

Step 1
Prepare the fish: Season the fish on all sides with salt and refrigerate until ready to cook. Prepare an outdoor grill for direct high-heat cooking or heat an indoor grill or grill pan over medium-high.
Step 2
Make the pineapple adobo: Cut one-third of the trimmed pineapple into large chunks (about 2 ½ cups) and cut the remaining into ¼-inch-thick slabs. Place the pineapple slabs and chunks, tomatoes, onion, garlic and dried chiles on a large sheet pan.
Step 3
Grease the grill: Use tongs to grip a wadded paper towel dipped in oil and rub the grates. Using a grill basket if you have one, grill the pineapple, tomatoes, onion and garlic (cover if using a gas grill) and turn occasionally until charred in spots and tender. The garlic will take about 5 minutes; the pineapple slabs and onion 8 to 12 minutes; the pineapple chunks 12 to 15 minutes; and the tomatoes 20 to 25 minutes. Toast the dried chiles directly on the grill, turning once, until fragrant, just a few seconds to a minute. Turn off the heat.
Step 4
Wearing gloves, remove the stems and seeds from the dried chiles. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil, add the dried chiles and cook until softened, 3 to 5 minutes, then transfer to a plate. Save the cooking water.
Step 5
Meanwhile, toast the cinnamon sticks, cloves, cumin seeds and peppercorns in a skillet over medium heat, shaking the pan occasionally, until fragrant, about a minute.
Step 6
To a blender, add the grilled vegetables, pineapple chunks (save the slabs), rehydrated chiles, toasted spices and 2 tablespoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt or 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt and blend until very smooth, adding a splash or two of the chile water if needed to blend. Pass the adobo through a fine-mesh sieve. Taste and add salt as needed.
Step 7
In a large, deep pot or Dutch oven, heat ½ cup grapeseed oil over medium-high until wisps of smoke start to appear. Carefully add the adobo to the hot oil (watch out for splattering) and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant and emulsified, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the heat.
Step 8
Make the pineapple pico de gallo: Finely dice the grilled pineapple slabs, then add to a bowl along with the red onion, cilantro, olive oil and serrano chile. Season to taste with salt and stir to combine.
Step 9
Cook the fish: Heat the grill or grill pan to medium-high. Grease the grates again. Generously brush both sides of the fish with the adobo. Grill the fish, skin side down, until the skin is slightly charred and comes off the grates easily, 4 to 7 minutes on the first side and 30 seconds on the second side. Grill swordfish for 4 to 5 minutes per side. Transfer to a large platter.
Step 10
To serve, top each fillet with some of the pineapple pico de gallo and garnish with the cilantro leaves and serrano chile slices. Serve with tortillas and lime wedges.

Tip

Mild in heat with rich, Christmasy fruitiness, dried guajillo and ancho chiles can be found at many supermarkets, Mexican grocery stores and online. The bright red guajillos are non-negotiable, Mr. Herrera says, but if you really need to, in place of the dark, raisiny anchos, you can substitute the same weight of pasilla chiles or 2 tablespoons chipotle en adobo.

Ratings

4 out of 5

428 user ratings

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Cooking Notes

Patk.1 year ago

The pico needs lime juice.

Michael1 year ago

Grilling swordfish for 4-5 min per side will result in overcooked swordfish. Try 2-3 min per side

Jude1 year ago

This recipe is confusing as written. Is the adobo only used on the fish as it cooks?

Radigan1 year ago

Used cod as that was what we had available. It did not have the skin but worked great. Really liked the rich, deep flavor of the adobo and the pico was delicious prepared per the recipe. The sweet heat of the serrano was great. Only change we made was shallots instead of red onion. Definitely make this again.

Brooke McMurray1 year ago

I’m confused too. Do you stir to blend the ingredients to make the adobo or puree in a blender or food processor? Is the adobo—- after all that work making it— used only to baste the fish? Or also as a taco topping?

stephanie1 year ago

use a blender if you have one, but you can also get by with an immersion blender, since you strain the sauce anyway. you use the portion that has drained through the sieve, and discard any solids/remaining pesky chile skins in the sieve. for the pineapple, grill it all, and then use the chunks in the blended adobo sauce and the slabs are diced for the pico de gallo.

Fay Wouk1 year ago

read step 6 carefully - add everything (grilled veggies, pineapple, spices, etc) to a blender and blend. that seems pretty clear to me.

Leesie1 year ago

I would think cod or haddock would work in that it'll hold up.

MTJ1 year ago

I did add lime to the pico de gallo. The pineapple pico de gallo is fantastic. I also used cod and it worked great too. The adobo is worth making. Several people added it as a sauce too and loved it.

Alice1 year ago

This recipe sounds great but is not written well: Step 6 states: "...blend until very smooth..." is this blended in a blender, or by hand? "Pass the adobo through a fine-mesh sieve." Which portion of the adobo do you use, in the end? What one is meant to do with the pineapple, and when, is also confusing.

Matt11 months ago

Really good. The adobo is worth making on its own and there's lots left over -- add to the fish here, or cook a pork chop the next night and spoon over. Avo oil works fine as a sub for grapeseed. In lieu of gas grill, used the convection mode of the oven at 400 for tomatoes and pineapple chunks, and the griddle of the stove at 400 for the pineapple slabs, onions, and garlic. Leaving the pineapple slabs untouched for 10 minutes on the griddle imparts caramelization and roastiness. Delicious.

Shirley11 months ago

I made these tacos today and they are amazing. For those confused: first you grill all the vegetables and the pineapple, then blend it all and finally brush the adobo Just before grill the fish. Just don’t forget to reserve the pinneaple for the pico de gallo. And yes, the pico de gallo needs some lime juice.

Davo11 months ago

Wow! That was delicious and lots of fun, although cleanup was a bit of a chore - my grill basket will never be the same. Had no trouble following the recipe so no idea what that’s all about. Just so happens I smoked a pork butt two days ago so now really looking forward to using the leftover adobo and pico to make some tasty pork tacos tomorrow.

stephanie1 year ago

you need a skillet to toast the spices. now, depending on how large your skillet is and how much sauce you have, you could use that same skillet to fry the sauce (once blended) and forgo the dutch oven. this is what i usually do, using a quart size mason jar and an immersion blender for the blending step. splatter is a necessary evil because cooking the sauce in oil is known as "seasoning" and it is an important last step in salsas. pati jinich always warns it will be "jumpy" :)

Kentfield Barbara1 year ago

Even though I made only 1 lb. of swordfish for two I prepared the entire amount of adobe sauce, freezing half for next time. It would be great with chicken as well. Served the tacos also with crema and avocado slices.

Beth1 week ago

This was delicious and perfect for celebrating an engagement, but very time-consuming. Luckily we made the adobo the night before. I apparently need a more powerful food processor so that the straining isn’t such a pain. Next time I’ll use lime juice and no olive oil on the pico (as I normally do pico!) and mix some of the adobo with some crema as another topping. We grilled red snapper along with some chicken tenders for the less fish-enthusiastic family members.

Alicia on Sterling Place4 months ago

This was delicious. Yes, blend the adobo in a blender, slather it on the fish (in my case it was pan seared tofu). You will likely have extra to top off the taco with and then add the pineapple pico!

L8 months ago

I have never seen this dish with pineapples. Would like a classic recipe.

Andy Gustafson9 months ago

Hilarious recipe. Unbelievably complex for fish tacos. Whew. Results do not approach time (real) investment. Less of this pleases.

Don N10 months ago

Very good. Wanted something with good flavor that would be lighter and less messy than traditional baja-style fish tacos, and this recipe delivered! Next time, I'll add some spicier peppers to the adobo as we really like heat and found the adobo on the sweet side.

Anne west-valle11 months ago

The words “To a blender…” in Step 6 were added after the recipe was printed. Hence the confusion of cooks who made this recipe soon after publication.

Dave11 months ago

Delicious. Made so much I used it on chicken, cod and on egg sandwiches!

Meredith11 months ago

This was! Incredible!! I made this for my friend birthday dinner and it was a hit. The sour sweet pineapple pico with the deep burny adobo is sooo good The pico doesn't need lime juice, and the recipe isn't confusing don't listen to these people. Just read it carefully through before you start as there are many steps.

JP11 months ago

We loved this. It was complicated and time consuming - but absolutely delicious and satisfying. We froze half the adobo and just used it again and it was equally lovely. Yes-Mexican cinnamon sticks. And you need very little of the weird boiled pepper water! Worth the effort. Subtle and sublime.

Davo11 months ago

D Thomases11 months ago

It took me, (an experienced cook), 3 hours to prep the adobo and salsa. It was good but not great and I don't think it was worth the effort. It took some time to find the guajillo chiles. I finally found some at a Mexican grocery store. I wasn't able to find any fish with the skin still on it, (other than salmon which didn't seem like the right kind of fish). I ended up using Rockfish, which was too delicate to cook on the grill so I broiled it.

Theresa Fulton11 months ago

I should have read through the recipe more carefully before trying it. 2 hours just to get the basting sauce and pico de gallo, and despite my doubling the amount of peppers as usual, as we like things spicy, it really wasn't. It was good but definitely not worth the time and steps involved. But my fault for not pre-reading more carefully.

AW11 months ago

Definitely tasty but I made this recipe for 8 people (with a side salad) and it was NOT enough fish. Scale up if in doubt!

Shirley11 months ago

itsjjclark11 months ago

I loved it. My only note is that Im going to use half as much oil for the pico next time. I can’t wait to make it again.

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