This tangy and spicy Fish Taco Sauce instantly adds pizzazz to your fish tacos and more! It’s a Mexican-inspired crema that takes less than 5 minutes to make using a handful of budget-friendly, yet flavor-packed ingredients.
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Looking for more epic sauces to drizzle on your tacos? You’ll love these 9+ Tasty Taco Sauces!
A fish taco just isn’t complete without this Fish Taco Sauce. Unbelievably flavorful and easy to make using a handful of ingredients, it’s a must-have for Taco Tuesday!
Why you’ll love it
This isn’t your average white sauce for fish tacos. With the perfect balance of creamy, smoky, spicy, tangy, and savory flavors, it’s so much better!
You only need simple ingredients to make it, too. A mix of sour cream, mayonnaise, chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, and a few aromatics give this spicy crema its mouthwatering flavors and creamy, yet light consistency.
And while its layers of flavor make it the absolute best sauce to serve during Taco Tuesday, you’re not only limited to tacos. It’s also the best dressing for burrito bowls, can be drizzled on a salad, and is a delicious dipping sauce for Air Fryer Salmon Bites, Boiled Shrimp, Air Fryer Quesadillas, and more.
Ingredients
- Sour cream – Use regular or fat-free sour cream. Plain Greek yogurt also works well if you’re looking for a lighter substitute.
- Mayonnaise – Use regular or fat-free mayo.
- Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce + adobo sauce – Chipotle peppers are jalapeno peppers that have been smoked and dried. They’re packed in a smoky adobo sauce and sold in cans next to the other Mexican ingredients in most major grocery stores. The peppers and sauce have well-balanced spicy, sweet, and smoky flavors, giving this easy fish taco sauce its signature addictive flavor.
- Lime – You need fresh lime juice and lime zest. Squeeze the lime juice yourself for the best flavor!
- Garlic
- Cumin – It’s optional but will add an extra hint of smoke.
- Salt
How to make fish taco sauce
Place all of the taco sauce ingredients in a blender or food processor, then blend until smooth. Give it a taste and blend in more salt, lime, or cumin as needed.
Transfer the sauce to a jar or squeeze bottle. Use it right away or refrigerate it until it’s time to eat. Enjoy!
Variations
There are a handful of ways to play with the flavors in this chipotle sauce:
- Dairy free – Use non-dairy mayo and sour cream to make dairy free fish sauce.
- Less spice – Only use 1 chipotle pepper and/or 1 to 2 tablespoons of adobo sauce instead.
- Extra spicy – Blend in 1 extra chipotle pepper or 1 extra tablespoon of adobo sauce for more heat.
Serving suggestions
Obviously, you should serve this sauce with your favorite fish tacos. Its tangy and spicy flavors add vibrancy to salmon tacos, classic fish tacos, grilled fish tacos, baja fish tacos, shrimp tacos, and more! It’s a delicious topping on these Fish Taco Bowls as well.
You aren’t limited to fish tacos, though! You can pair the spicy crema with all kinds of tacos, such as:
- Easy Cauliflower Tacos
- Chipotle Sweet Potato Tacos
- Mexican Street Corn Tacos
- Carnitas Tacos
- Salsa Chicken Tacos
The uses for this sauce go far beyond tacos as well. Check out these other delicious ways to enjoy it:
- Drizzle some over cooked salmon, shrimp skewers, or poached fish.
- Serve it as a dip with zucchini fries, air fryer quesadillas, roasted sweet potatoes, chicken tenders, and brussel sprouts.
- Use it as a dressing for burrito bowls, buddha bowls, and Southwest chicken salad.
- Spread it on sandwiches, paninis, and hamburgers.
Storing
This sauce for fish tacos stays fresh in the fridge for about 5 days. Just keep it in a sealed jar or squeeze bottle.
The consistency of the sauce will naturally thicken as it chills in the fridge. To thin it out, stir in a little lime juice or a small splash of water until it thins out.
I don’t recommend freezing the sauce. After thawing, the dairy tends to become gritty and the consistency isn’t as creamy and smooth.
More ways to use fish taco sauce
- Mexican Meatballs
- Chicken Tortillas Soup
- Breakfast Tostadas
- Quinoa and Turkey Taco Lettuce Wraps
- Turkey Taco Zucchini Boats
- Migas Recipe
More taco sauce recipes
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Fish Taco Sauce
Ingredients
- ¾ cup sour cream (regular or fat-free)
- 2 Tablespoons mayonnaise (regular or fat-free)
- 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
- 3 Tablespoons adobo sauce
- 1 lime (zested and juiced)
- 1 clove garlic (peeled)
- ¼ teaspoon cumin (optional)
- Salt (to taste)
Instructions
- Place all of the ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Season with salt, to taste.
- Transfer to a jar or squeeze bottle and serve immediately, or refrigerate until ready to serve.
Notes
- This sauce for fish tacos stays fresh in the fridge for about 5 days. Just keep it in a sealed jar or squeeze bottle.
- The consistency of the sauce will naturally thicken as it chills in the fridge. To thin it out, stir in a little lime juice or a small splash of water until it thins out.
- I don’t recommend freezing the sauce. After thawing, the dairy tends to become gritty and the consistency isn’t as creamy and smooth.
Recipe looks so yummy! I would definitely wanna try this at home. Can I cook it without spicy?
Hi – Yes, you can leave out the chipotles if you’d like a less spicy sauce. Or, remove the seeds from the chipotles.