Blackened Mahi Mahi

Every week, we make a meal plan. I'm (Crystal) usually in charge of doing the meal plan every week, but for no particular reason, Tyson made one that week. He pulled up the sales ad for Kroger and went about making the list off of things that were on sale. My brain just doesn't work that way. After that week, I told Tyson he was in charge of doing the meal planning from now on because, 1) we came in way under our budget for that week and 2) we had some good eats that week! That week at Kroger, avocados and mango's were both $10 for $10 and Mahi Mahi was also on sale. I would have never thought to put any of that together, but that's why I'm not the cook ;) I do the baking. We follow the rules!

So, all that being said, we made Blackened Mahi Mahi with an Avocado Mango Salsa and Cilantro Lime Rice.

For the Mahi Mahi, we used the blackened seasoning from Big Daddy. It consists of:

3 tablespoons smoked paprika

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon onion powder

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon dried ground thyme

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Tyson mixed everything together and coated the fish. He then seared it in a cast iron pan, skin side down, in a little bit of olive oil. Our specific fish only took about 2 minutes on the skin side and about a minute and a half on the other side but it could vary depending on the thickness of the fish.

You could use this on other types of fish as well, salmon, tilapia, ect...

Mr. Bobby Flay lent us the recipe for the Avocado Mango Salsa. Ok, so he didn't personally give it to us but foodnetwork did. ;) It's hidden inside of another recipe. Here are the ingredients:

• 1 avocado
• 1 mango
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 2 tablespoons of chopped cilantro
• salt and pepper to taste

To make the salsa: Put the avocado and mango in a large bowl. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon cumin, cilantro, and salt and pepper. Toss gently to combine. Spoon the mango mixture across the top of the Mahi Mahi and garnish with some more fresh cilantro.

For the rice, we used a recipe that we found a long time ago, that claims to be Chipotle's cilantro lime rice. Who knows if it really is, but it tastes pretty similar and it's super good! We follow this recipe exactly how is says...including the no peeking part! We also use long grain white rice because it's cheaper than basmati. :)

• 1 tbsp oil (canola/vegetable)
• 2 tsp fresh cilantro, chopped fine
• 1 fresh key lime (or ½ regular lime)
• ½ tsp salt (kosher or sea salt)
• 1 cup long grain white rice (or basmati, if you can bear the funky smell)
• 2 cups water
• Sautee the rice in oil until almost translucent (as if you are making a risotto).

Add water, bring to a boil.

As soon as the water begins to boil, turn the heat down low.

Simmer, covered for 15-20 minutes, or until all water is absorbed.

Turn off heat. DON'T PEEK. LEAVE IT COVERED for 30 minutes (this is the "steaming" part.... Chipotle steams rice every hour). This is what makes the rice fluffy. You won’t be happy with yourself if you don’t do this. Be patient. Good things come to those who wait.

Remove lid, let some of the steam out. It may be helpful to transfer rice into a mixing bowl for the next step.

Mix salt and juice of key lime together until salt is dissolved.

Pour it over rice, fluff with a fork.

Sprinkle in cilantro, and toss well to evenly coat with cilantro and lime mixture.

 

This meal was a super budget friendly meal! We figured it only cost about $7 to feed the both of us! Let us know if you give this recipe a try!