I used to think guacamole was the epitome of sauce perfection – buttery, garlicky and kissed with lime. But have you met pico verde?
Pico verde is all that, plus a hit of fruity spice from jalapeno and freshness from green onion. Cucumber brings the crunch that most guacamole lacks, while also doing a great job to cool down the jalapeno’s heat.
Now that I’ve backed up my love to the green sauce, you can probably imagine how satisfying these fried halloumi tacos are. They’re a perfect way to celebrate warmer weather on its way.
Whether you’re cooking for 1 in quarantine (aka me, yesterday) or celebrating Taco Tuesday, these tacos bring the party.
why they’re delicious
- Refreshing pico verde is the perfect balance to the rich and salty fried halloumi.
- The heat from jalapeno is tamed by cucumber and avocado.
- The crunch from the cucumber makes for an extra satisfying bite (without needing a slaw)
meal prep + make ahead
- Halloumi tastes best if its consumed right after being fried, but you can reheat in a pan, the oven or microwave.
- Pico verde holds up pretty well over night because of the olive oil, salt and lime. I had mine the day after and the avo was still green.
- Warmed tortillas are best consumed right after preparing or they get stiff and hard.
serving options
- While these tacos are super flavourful on their own, you can take it up a notch with pickled onions, toasted pepitas and a dash of hot sauce. Extra cilantro wouldnt hurt either 😉
Halloumi Tacos with Spicy Pico Verde
Ingredients
- 6 Tortillas corn or flour both work
- 1 block Halloumi Cheese 200 g
Pico Verde
- 1 large avocado, diced
- 2 mini cucumber, diced
- 1 lime, zested and halved
- 1 garlic clove, finely grated divided
- 1/4 cup cilantro, finely chopped
- 1/2 jalapeno, deseed and finely chopped more or less to taste
- 3 green onions, thinly sliced
Chipotle-Lime Yogurt
- 1/4 cup Greek Yogurt 2% or higher is best
- 1 tsp lime zest from lime above
- 1-2 tsp chipotle peppers in adobo more or less to taste
Optional Toppings
- pickled onions
- toasted pepitas
- Mexican hot sauce
Instructions
Make the Pico Verde
- In a medium bowl, combine cucumber, jalapeno, cilantro, green onions, half minced garlic, juice from 1/2 the lime and 1 generous tbsp of olive oil. Season generously with salt and pepper. Gently fold in avocado. Taste and add more salt or lime juice if necessary.
Make Chipotle-Lime Yogurt
- In a small bowl, mix yogurt, chipotle chilis, remaining garlic, lime zest and remaining lime juice. Season with salt and pepper.
Warm Tortillas
- Heat a large pan over medium high heat. When hot, add tortillas, working in batches. Warm for 30 sec, until they are soft, pliable and blackened in spots. Wrap in a towel and keep warm until needed.
Fry Halloumi
- Cut halloumi into 1/2-inch "steaks" (I had 6, 1 per taco) Pat dry with paper towel.In a large pan, heat 1 tbsp oil over medium high heat.When the oil is hot, add halloumi to pan. Sear for 3-4 min per side, until golden and crisp on the outside.Set aside on a paper towel.
Build Tacos and Serve
- Add a peice of fried halloumi to each warmed tortillla. Top with pico verde. Sprinkle pepitas, pickled onions and hot sauce (optional) Best enjoyed right away!
Amazing tacos! Thank you so much for the recipe. When building the tacos I added a layer of refried beans before the cheese. I also used habanero hot sauce and some pickled onions with sumac I had in the fridge. Delicious!
Thank you SO much! So glad to hear that…..OMG love your additions too, definitely trying with beans!
These are SO GOOD! And super easy. I wasn’t sure about the cucumber in the pico but gave it a go and it was so fresh and tasty. Will be adding this to my go-to’s! I added some vegetarian walnut ‘chorizo’ crumbles for some extra flair and it was very good.
Thank you so much Mandy! So happy you enjoyed these – love the combo of spicy and fresh too. Walnut chorizo sounds DIVINE – must make some 😉