June 1, 2016

The Best Fish Tacos

laura.smoak@gmail.com Seafood 2 Comments

See what I just did there? I just told you this is a recipe for The Best Fish Tacos. I don’t take that statement lightly. Let me be super clear: THESE ARE THE BEST FISH TACOS. You will want to eat them 24/7/365, and when you’re not eating them 24/7/365 you’ll be dreaming about and counting down the minutes until you can have them again.

These fish tacos are made up of three crucial parts: well-seasoned fish, a spicy mayo and a citrusy slaw. It’s these three parts combined that make these the best fish tacos you’ll want every day for the rest of your life. If all three parts are not adequately represented (while still good) it just doesn’t make as much sense. You’ve got spice from the fish and the chipotle mayo, but then – oh hayyyyy!! – here comes the zippy cilantro lime slaw to cool your mouth down and give a little crunch. You guys, just trust me on this – these tacos are made up of a perfect trifecta. Do not leave one out.

I don’t know how Andy and I came to making our fish tacos this way, but we’ve been doing them for probably eight years now, and we just can’t get enough. We’ve made them for so many people over the years, and a lot of those people have made this their go-to fish taco recipe because it is just that good and it is just that easy.

We had these this past Memorial Day weekend while we were at the beach with friends, and I’m 99% sure everyone loved them. As written the recipe feeds eight adults, leaving just a little slaw leftover. (Don’t worry, you can easily half this.) Three pounds of fish sounds like a lot, and I honestly thought there would be leftovers, but I guess the fact that there weren’t just speaks to how delicious they are. Speaking of the beach – check out these three cuties that had a blast spending the long weekend in the sun and sand…so, so much sand. Fish tacos and beach babies. Does it get any better?

We served the tacos with a fresh veggie salad/side/dip thing (recipe coming soon), and it was the perfect beach slash way to start the summer meal.

You’ll get the best results if you make the slaw and mayo a couple hours ahead of time, so the flavors really have time to meld together. If you don’t have a mini food processor, no worries, just chop the chilis in adobo and cilantro really finely. If you don’t have one, though, I would really consider getting one. I make so many sauces so quickly (especially in the summertime) that it is totally worth the $35 spent. If you’re wondering – yes, I did bring it to the beach with us because I have become that obnoxious sauce person that can’t even go for one weekend without using my mini.

Serves 8

Ingredients:

3 lbs white fish (we generally use mahi mahi, but grouper is also good)
1 tbsp olive oil
Corn or flour tortillas
Seasoning mix:

• 1 tbsp EACH cumin and chili powder
• 1/2 tsp EACH paprika and salt
• 1/8 tsp cayenne (optional)

Cilantro lime slaw:

• 2 (10 oz) bags shredded cabbage
• Large handful cilantro (leaves and stems)
• 1/4 cup lime juice
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp olive oil

Chipotle mayo:

• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 3 chipotle peppers in adobo (plus about a tbsp of the adobo sauce)
• Small handful cilantro (leaves and stems)
• 2 tbsp lime juice

Directions:

1. Combine all of the seasonings in a bowl and stir to combine. Set aside.
2. Prepare the slaw: chop the cilantro, then combine with remaining ingredients. Refrigerate until you are ready to serve (this does best when made a couple of hours in advance).
3. Prepare the chipotle mayo: place all ingredients in a mini food processor and pulse until well combined. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate until ready to serve (also does best when made ahead).
4. Rub the olive oil onto the fish then season liberally with the spice mixture. (If you are making this for fewer people, just use part and save the remaining mixture for next time.)
5. *Heat your grill to medium. Starting with skin side up, cook the fish over direct heat for 5 minutes, then flip and continue cooking another 5-10 minutes until done. The fish is done when you can flake it easily with a fork. Once done, slice into strips for serving.
6. Layer each tortilla with some fish, slaw and chipotle mayo.
7. Enjoy!

Notes: this is the amount we used to feed 8 adults. The slaw can keep for an additional day or two, and the chipotle mayo for up to a week, but we ate all but a small bit of slaw. If making this for a smaller group, just cut in half.

*You can bake the fish in the oven, as well. Just google how to bake the particular fish you’re using. For mahi mahi it’s 425 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

March 23, 2016

Salmon with Mango Lime Salsa

laura.smoak@gmail.com Seafood 0 Comments

Salmon with Mango Lime Salsa. Your life is about to get 10 times better. This is one of the easiest recipes I think I’ve ever made, yet also one of the tastiest. What we have here is five ingredients that come together in 15 minutes to create the most colorful, flavorful dinner you’ll want to eat every night. Not kidding even a little bit.

Let’s break this down. First you have the salmon – fresh, wild-caught salmon. Yes, it’s pricier than farm raised, but fresh is the sustainable choice and it also tastes way better. I just season it with salt, pepper and a little dried parsley and it’s ready for the oven. (TBH the parsley is totally optional, but it just looks pretty.) While the salmon is cooking, you’ll prep the salsa: peel and dice the mango, combine with chopped cilantro and lime juice and then wait for the salmon to finish. Once the salmon is done, place it on a platter on a bed of peppery arugula and top with sriracha and the mango lime salsa. Dinner is literally done in 15 minutes (well, 20 counting time for your oven to preheat). And doesn’t it just make such a pretty dish?! The picture below is the entire cut of salmon and salsa – I just love how it looks, and have fun serving from a platter on a random weeknight. It feels fancy, but really no extra work.

If you don’t have much experience with cutting/dicing mango, here’s a handy little video that can help you out. I use a combo of his second and third techniques: I use my mango splitter and then dice it right in the skin.

But wait – there’s more! You guys, I’m giving you a bonus recipe within a recipe this week. I mentioned putting the salmon on arugula. This part’s optional because the salmon with the salsa is great on its own and works really well with other veggies. However, the salmon with salsa on a bed of arugula with the dressing I’m about to give you is all you need in life. Simply mince (like really, really finely mince) half of a shallot, add 2-3 tablespoons each of olive oil and lime juice, season with salt and pepper to taste, then whisk (or shake in my case) until well blended. <– This dressing, friends, is so fresh and poppy that I want to eat salads all day every day just so I can have more. The BEST salad I’ve had lately was this dressing, arugula and oven roasted veggies – cauliflower and sweet potatoes to be exact. The hot veggies slightly wilt the arugula, which somehow brings out more of its peppery kick.

Go now and add this salmon with mango lime salsa to your meal plan for the week. At the same time, just go ahead and pencil it in for dinner every week forever and ever. The recipe below is the amount Andy, Anna Ruth and I eat (smaller portion of salmon and no sriracha for AR), so consider the number of servings to be 2-3.

Ingredients:

Wild-Caught Salmon (about 1/3 lb per person)
1 mango
1 small handful cilantro
Juice of 1 lime
Sriracha

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place the salmon skin side down. Season with salt, pepper and dried parsley flakes. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes, or until it flakes easily with a fork.
2. While the salmon bakes, peel and dice the mango. Rinse and chop the cilantro, and combine in a small bowl with the mango and lime juice.
3. When the salmon is done, top with sriracha to taste and serve with the mango lime salsa. Enjoy!