My best childhood memories include big family BBQs at my grandparents’ house, jumping off the diving board anywhere my mom would let me, riding bikes with my brother Dana, and of course Mexico.

My grandfather’s parents were Mexican immigrants. He grew up in Texas in a bilingual home, then ultimately enlisted in the Army where he served in WWII and became a featherweight boxing champion. He was so good at boxing, in fact, that he was ultimately recruited to fight with the Marine Corps as well.

After his service, he met my blue-eyed, red-headed grandmother in LA. Together they were a spitting image of Ricky and Lucy Ricardo.

After getting married, they opened a German sandwich shop and hofbrau in LA. Grandpa was the chef, and I don’t know why he chose German food, but my guess is that he was trying desperately to assimilate into the country he loved so he and his family would not be stigmatized by his immigrant heritage. Spanish was never spoken in the home my mother grew up in.

By the time I came into the picture though, we ate Mexican food a lot. Even though my mother was the one with Mexican heritage, my father was a self-proclaimed Mexiphile, and it was a rare day that our home wasn’t stocked with homemade salsa and guacamole (pronounced wah-cah-moe-lay, please). Chips were optional.

We also traveled to Mexico frequently, most often making road trips to Baja where we would revel in fish tacos, ceviche, and homemade tortillas that bring a tear to the eye. And once I was older of course, tequila y cerveza.

Fortunately, even while we were home in Southern California, the large Mexican immigrant population made finding our favorite flavors easy (if you live near Orange in OC go to Tacos Jalisco, you can thank me later). To this day, one of the hardest things about living in NYC for me is the sad Mexican food scene.

My grandfather was an amazing human. He had an infectious laugh, loved his CA Angels even though they were terrible his entire life, and had a mean golf swing up into his 80s when cancer finally took his life.

This country, and certainly my own life, is far better off when we welcome people like my grandfather and his hard-working parents. It is also far more delicious.

Ingredients:

For the Tacos (makes 6):

1 pound snapper or cod fillets, skin and bones removed

½ teaspoon ancho chile powder

Salt and pepper to taste

Non-stick cooking spray (canola or coconut oil)

6 corn tortillas

Lime wedges

Hot sauce (optional)

For the Slaw:

1 cup red cabbage, sliced thin

½ cup (about ½ each) carrot, grated or julienned

¼ cup red onion, diced

1 Tablespoon (about ¼ each) jalapeno, sliced thin

Juice from ½ a lime

Salt and pepper to taste

For the Salsa:

1 cup (about ½ each) jicama, peeled and diced

½ cup mango, peeled and diced

¼ cup red onion, diced

2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped

Juice from a ¼ orange

Juice from ½ a lime

Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

In a small bowl, mix together the slaw ingredients. Set aside.

In a separate small bowl, mix together the salsa ingredients and set aside.

Preheat your oven to broil.

Line a sheet pan with aluminum foil and lightly spray with non-stick cooking spray.

Season the fish fillets on both sides with ancho chile powder, salt, and pepper. Place them on the prepared sheet pan and lightly spray the top with oil.

Place the fish under the broiler for about 10 minutes or until cooked through and flaky.

While the fish is cooking, wrap the tortillas in aluminum foil and warm them in the oven on the rack under the fish.

Once the fish is done, remove it from the oven and use a fork to flake it apart into bite-sized pieces.

Take the warm tortillas out of the oven. Fill each tortilla with the cooked fish, slaw, and salsa.

Serve the fish tacos with lime wedges and hot sauce on the side.