Tacos with cod tempura

For her cod tempura tacos, Mexican chef Manon Liétard adds a fennel-pomelo condiment, green mayo and trout roe.

This recipe by Manon Liétard, chef at the Beatriz restaurant in Lille, is from the 2024 edition ofBook 109: The new blood of French gastronomy. Discover the ingredients and preparation steps to make it a breeze.

Serves 6
Preparation time: 1 h 30
Cooking time: 1 h

Ingredients forcod tempura tacos

For the corn tortillas

300 g nixtamalized corn flour (an ancient Mesoamerican process in which the corn kernels are soaked and cooked in an alkaline solution)
40 g vegetable oil
3 g salt

For the green mayonnaise

1 egg yolk
1 tbsp. mustard
Greens of 2 leeks
25 cl sunflower oil

For the Thai fennel-pomelo salad

3 fennels
2 pomelos
50 g unsalted roasted peanuts
1 small chili pepper
2 garlic cloves
1 tbsp. brown sugar
2 tbsp. fish sauce
1 lime
10 mint leaves
10 coriander leaves

For the cod tempura

200 g cornstarch
30 cl cold light beer
1 tsp. baking soda
400 g cod backs

For the dressing

1 small jar trout roe
Dill leaves
1 lime

Steps for thecod tempura tacos

Tortilla dough: pour the flour into a bowl with the salt and mix. Add the oil and knead the dough, gradually adding 45 cl of lukewarm water. Continue kneading by hand or in a food processor for 10 min. The dough should be supple but never sticky. Cover with a damp cloth and leave to rest.
Green mayonnaise: heat the oil slightly (to 65°C) and add the leek greens. Leave to stand for 10 min. Blend. Strain, leave to cool and use this oil to make the mayonnaise. Season with salt and chill.
Fennel-pomelo salad: remove the grapefruit segments, finely chop the fennel with a mandolin and mix with the mint and coriander.
Place the garlic, sugar, chillies and peanuts in a mortar (or blender) and blend to a paste. Stir in the lime juice and fish sauce. Add to the fennel-pomelo mixture and mix well.
Corn tortillas: divide the dough into small balls and flatten (3-4 mm). Heat a non-stick dry frying pan over medium-high heat. Cook the tortillas for 2 min on each side, turning regularly. They will puff up as they cook. Once lightly browned, let them rest in a clean cloth, stacked one on top of the other.
Cod tempura: mix the cornflour and bicarbonate, then gradually add the beer, stirring with chopsticks to avoid breaking the bubbles. Cut 8 pieces of cod on the bias (4-5 cm). Season with salt and pepper, dip in starch, dip in tempura batter and cook for 2-3 min in a deep fryer (or oil bath at 180°C).
Arrange tacos, starting with salad, tempura, a dash of mayonnaise, trout roe and dill leaves. Serve with a wedge of lime.