Blackened Mahi Mahi Tacos with Cilantro Lime Slaw and Chipotle Sour Cream

Such a crowd pleaser of a dish. And if you don't have fish, use steak, chicken or pork. Pretty much any meat can fill the space. My husband has eaten all the animal protein and I've put black beans in for leftovers. If we were still in Alaska, these would be a blackened halibut recipe. But as it is, we are now in Florida and my husband and some buddies went deep sea fishing. One of their catches happened to be Mahi Mahi. So here we are with Mahi Mahi fish tacos. The first time I made this was about 5 years ago when my sister came down to visit for Thanksgiving. We went to an authentic Mexican restaurant and they were serving a similar dish. Both of us enjoying food, we decided to recreate it. The first time around we put in some purple cabbage for color. It looked pretty, but the leftovers were a lovely (sarcasm) runny purple color since the lime juice had leached all the colors out of the cabbage. Over the years I have tweaked a few things, but it still has stayed pretty much the same. People have often asked me for the slaw recipe. The only problem is, before I started this blog, I cooked everything to taste. So my response would be "Uh, cabbage, limes, cilantro, canned jalapenos, mayo, salt, pepper and garlic powder." Apparently to most people this is wildly unhelpful. So, in case you've ever wondered, you may now recreate your very own slaw without trying to interoperate my vague useless responses. Lucky You!

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

1-1 1/2 lbs Mahi Mahi

8-12 corn tortillas

1 head of green cabbage

1 1/2 cups sour cream

1 package of feta

1 lg (or 2 sm) bushel(s) of cilantro

5 limes

1 cup diced (jarred!) jalapenos

4 tbsp mayonnaise

1 1/2 tbsp garlic powder

2 tsp salt

2 tsp pepper

1 tsp chipotle powder

blackening seasoning (I made mine, I will provide the link below, or you can purchase some)

olive oil for cooking

For the Slaw:

1. Cut up the head of cabbage. I leave out the thick, whiter core; cut off the sides that surround it, leaving a sort of cube with the base of the head behind. You're going to want to cut it as finely as possible. If you're a real stickler for measuring, I came out with roughly 10 cups of loosely packed slaw from my head of cabbage. Toss the cabbage into a large mixing bowl.

2. Cut up your cilantro. I really like cilantro. So if you have large bushel, you're probably okay with one. But if your grocer only seems to have small ones in stock, I would go ahead and grab two. Add the cut up cilantro to the cabbage.

3. Measure out 1 cup of diced jarred jalapenos. (I know its funny I use jarred, but the inconsistent heat on regular jalapenos makes them difficult for me to cook with. Plus the acidity in the jarred jalapenos adds to the slaw flavor.) Add to the bowl.

4. Juice your limes over the bowl.

5. Add the mayonnaise.

6. Add 1 tbsp garlic powder, 1 1/2 tsp salt and 1 1/2 tsp black pepper and mix together thoroughly.

7. You can set this aside and refrigerate before preparing your fish tacos. If you do this, give it a good stir again, since the liquid will have most likely settled at the bottom.

For the Chipotle Sour Cream:

1. In a sauce pan, stir together 1 1/2 cups sour cream, 1/2 tbsp garlic powder, 1 tsp chipotle powder and 1/2 tsp salt.

2. Cook on a low heat to warm to the sauce. And serve when ready.

For the Blackened Mahi Mahi:

1. Cut your fish (or steak, or chicken) into strips that are manageable for the size of your tortillas.

2. In a large Ziploc bag, prepare your blackening seasoning. As I mentioned earlier, you may purchase some from the store. Or if you have a fairly stocked spice rack, you might as well make it. I used the following recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/aaron-mccargo-jr/big-daddys-blackened-tilapia-recipe.html

3. Toss the fish into the bag and shake until it is evenly coated.

4. Put the fish into a pan or onto a grill and cook until the middle is a solid white color.

Putting it all together:

(I really hope this is all self explanatory.)

1. Lay your tortilla on a plate.

2. Add the slaw.

3. Add the fish.

4. Add the chipotle sour cream.

5. Crumble the feta. (Yes feta, trust me, I promise.)

6. If you want to squeeze a lime wedge or add extra cilantro leaves, be my guest.

7. (Tina) eat your food!