Fish Tacos with Grilled Pineapple Salsa

What to do when you invite your son and his girlfriend over for dinner and he insists on a dish that isn't in your repertoir much less your recipe file? Thank heavens for the Net! Joe requested fish tacos for dinner when invited over for Sunday supper last week. Every time I suggested something else, he had a quick come back that included "fish tacos". So off to Costco I went & found a nice piece of halibut and after finding about 5 different recipes by "googling" fish tacos, and after adding a few ideas of my own, came up with the attached. I list most of the condiments as optional. Needless to say, I served them all. I must say, I was very pleased with the results.

Inspiration: Not able to say "No"
Time: 1 hour to prep, 2 hours to marinade & 30 minutes to cook
Difficulty: Easy
Special equipment: A BBQ grilling screen (not necessary, but makes life easier)
Servings: 4

For the fish tacos:

1/3 cup lime juice
1/4 cup tequila
1 1/2 teaspoons ancho chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon chipotle powder
3 cloves garlic, mashed to a paste with 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup lightly packed fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
1 pound halibut, cut into 4 pieces
taco shells (or fresh corn tortillas if you want soft tacos)
Grilled Pineapple Salsa (recipe follows)
Cojita cheese, shredded (can substitute cheddar)
Sliced avocados (or guacamole) - (opt)
Pickled Onions (opt - recipe for another time!)
Pico de Gallo (opt)
Sour cream (opt)
Chipotle Tobascco Sauce (opt)


Mix the first 8 ingredients together and put in a sealable plastic bag along with the fish. Let marinate for 30 minutes or up to two hours. (I let it sit for the two hours). Heat your BBQ & grill the fish until opaque. Place each piece on a plate and serve with the remaining condiments.

Grilled Pineapple Salsa

1/2 whole pineapple, with the skin cut off and cut in eights
1 teaspoon aleppo chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 cup red onion diced
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1/2 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped fine
Lemon (or lime) juice to taste

Mix the chili powder, salt & sugar in a small bowl. Sprinkle all sides of the pineapple with this mixture. Place on grilling screen on hot BBQ and grill on all sides until hot & grill marks show, but not soft. Remove from grill & cool. Cut into small pieces and mix with the red onion, cilantro, jalapeno and lemon juice. Let sit for 1 hour to let flavors meld. (Note: I had leftover salsa & served it with grilled pork chops the next night.)