Blackened Mahi with Mango Salsa

I read this article once about well balanced meals, when I say well balanced I mean including different flavors, textures, temperatures, smells, etc. Apparently different types of flavors stimulate different appetite sensors in the brain. Some of these flavors can include, sweet, savory, spicy, sour etc. I believe that when all of our sensors are stimulated in one meal then we feel satisfied and do not overeat. For example, if we are having dinner and add a  sweet element to it, we will refrain from reaching for dessert post meal. Except that doesn't apply to me because I ALWAYS want dessert...I don't care if my entree was a dessert. I still want dessert to my dessert. But anyways thats just my two sense. I think a lot. Overthinker here! I have never been to culinary school either, (even though its a dream of mine), but I do believe they teach you that kinda stuff in classes. Bringing all sorts of different elements to the dish is what makes it artistic.

In keeping with my "skinny" recipe plan for the next little while and having just made a chicken dish for dinner, I decided this time I wanted a fish. We have this local seafood market called Lombardi's super close to my house and they always have specials and their mahi was the winner! I love firm white fish. Mushy is no bueno. I decided to make it blackened as I have never done this before and wanted to give it a try with some mango salsa. But let me tell you, I made a big mistake.....  When I combined all the blackening spices I went a little stir crazy with the cayenne pepper. WOOOOOOO! My mouth was on fire! Now keep in mind that I am not an extra extra spicy fan. My boyfriend ate this and liked it how it was, not even a sniffle came out of him. I was hacking up a lung... So I'm going to modify the recipe to reflect this oopsie. I'm always learning, thats what I love about food, you will never know everything there is to know. Its a beautifully life-long journey!

To add insult to injury, I decided to pair my fiery mahi with a spicy mango salsa. I think next time I will leave the pepper out of the mango salsa. What I had was a jalapeno pepper that had turned bright red. CALIENTE! I wanted to use it and I love the combination of super sweet with spicy so I chopped the pepper up small and combined it with the sweet mango, creamy avocado, basil and lemon juice. It made for an amazing salsa,... but perhaps don't pair it with something thats already on fire! I think once I tone down the mahi seasoning, the salsa would be amazing with the pepper and all. 

I paired this baby with sauteed green beans and asparagus and some white jasmine rice, which is my absolute favorite rice, so fragrant and light!  I love squeezing a little lemon on top of my fish too :) This dish would go great with a cool white wine like Sauvignon Blanc.... oh me, always thinking about the vino. Enjoy!

Servings: 2
Time: 30 mins

Ingredients: 

For the Fish:

• 2 fresh mahi fillets 
• Salt & Pepper
• Paprika
• Oregano
• Onion Powder
• Garlic Powder
• Cayenne Pepper... read above for warning!
• Cumin
• Fresh lemon juice 
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 

For the Mango Salsa:

• 1 mango, cubed small
• 1/2 hass avocado, cubed small
• 4 fresh basil leaves, julienned 
• Juice from 1/2 lemon 
• Salt & Pepper
• *Optional* 1 small hot pepper, I had a jalapeno that had turned red

Directions: 

For the Mango Salsa:

• First I made the salsa so that it chilled for a bit while I cooked the fish. 
• Simply combine all the ingredients, cover and stick in the fridge until ready to serve. 

For the Fish: 

• In a soup bowl combine your spices. Go light on the cayenne... I almost died. If you're wondering where are the measurements, I'm sorry I didn't measure, I just eyeballed this one. I would pretty much just do equal parts of everything except the cayenne unless you love it spicy. 
• Put your frying pan on medium-high heat with olive oil and allow for it to get super hot. 
• Pat your fish dry with a paper towel. 
• Generously sprinkle the spices on your fish, both sides. 
• Once the pan is hot, place both fillets on and cover. Don't move the fillets at all. Allow for a nice crust to form with the spices on one side. 
• Depending on how thick your fish is, you want to determine how long on each side. Mine was a pretty thick fish. I did 4ish minutes on each side. 
• Once one side is done, flip the fish carefully, cover and do another 4ish minutes on the other side. 
• Plate with mango salsa, veggies and jasmine white rice for a delicious well balanced meal! 
• Serve with some sliced lemons!