The menu was grilled mahi mahi tacos with southwestern slaw, southwestern rice and avocados. I was going to do a vegetable and couldn't think of anything to go with the theme.
I prepped all my veggies, thawed my fish and planned the timing of the meal. Alexsei had guitar lessons at 7:00 and needed to leave by 6:30. I started the rice and prepped the fish and waited for Glen. I waited for Glen some more. Finally, I looked up the best way to broil fish.
Glen got home at 5:45 which was not enough time to get the grill going and have dinner ready so I broiled the fish and slapped things together. I had to plate quickly so Alexsei and Glen had time to eat. The final plate wasn't great and I needed sauce. I also had some fresh pico for a garnish, but Dakota ate most of it, so the plate was lacking some color.
I prepared one taco with the slaw and one without.
This was the verdict:
Glen does not like fish, but he ate the tacos because he loved the slaw. He thought the rice was fine. He prefers the red rice that I usually make.
Dakota loved the tacos and loved the slaw. He ate some of the rice but did not love it. He also voted for the other rice. He also loved the fish.
Alexsei did not like the slaw. She did not like the rice. She loved the mahi mahi. She ate a whole piece of fish and not much else.
Savana ate one fish taco. She didn't love it, but she would eat it again. She also did not like the rice.
What about Alaric? Typical Alaric. He wouldn't try the rice. He tasted one bite of fish and declared that he doesn't like fish. I didn't even have him attempt the slaw. He made himself a quesadilla. Good thing he is resourceful.
I loved the fish. It would be better grilled, but it was very mild. The slaw was delicious. I liked the rice. I like stuff in my rice. The avocados were fantastic!
Recipes:
Fish Tacos: I scoured the internet for recipes. I found recipes using all sorts of different types of fish and many different slaws. I opted to go with mahi mahi because I had fish tacos in a restaurant using that particular fish. I seasoned the fish with salt and pepper, squeezed fresh lime on the fillets and brushed both sides with olive oil. Instead of grilling the fish, I broiled it for 5-6 minutes a side in a preheated oven. I used corn tortillas for the tacos. I filled each shell with fish and topped with southwestern slaw and garnished with fresh avocado.
Southwestern slaw: I looked at several recipes. Then I was shopping at HyVee, and they had fish taco samples. The taco itself wasn't much to speak of, but I loved the slaw. I loved it even better because it was super easy. I used shredded green and red cabbage. I added shredded carrots and for the dressing: Hidden Valley Farmhouse Originals Southwest Chipotle dressing. I mixed it in the morning so it really had time to flavor the cabbage.
Southwestern Rice Pilaf: This came from a recipe I found on the Internet. Fine Cooking Southwestern Rice Pilaf.
I will probably make the tacos again. I would prefer the fish grilled. The three older children will eat the fish plain so I don't even have to do the tacos with the mahi mahi. I will make the slaw again, but only for a group activity since only 3 of us ate it. I could make a smaller batch. I won't make the rice again unless I bring it for a potluck.
