I don’t usually follow fads. When the new “coconut oil everything” trend started I ran in the opposite direction; I wanted nothing to do with it. I like the taste of coconut but usually, when these things happen, it’s a saturation of epic proportions which for me, is a complete turn-off. Same with pumpkin spice in the Fall… I know it’s coming.

And I can’t stand it.

Now that’s it’s been a while I decided to give this coconut thing a go. A little bit with a light fish and some homemade toasted coconut over avocado sounded like the perfect meal to go with a fizzy white wine I found.

Yes, I based a whole meal around a wine. There have been worse decisions.

You will need:

• Mahi Mahi (we got our fish from Trader Joe’s in the frozen food section)
• Avocado (I used one whole avocado for one serving of fish, you decide)
• Limes (at least two, fresh)
• Coconut oil (if you get the triple distilled it will remove the coconut flavor. I wanted that flavor so I purchased virgin coconut oil)
• Coconut (shavings / flakes are easy to come by and I got them unsweetened)
• Salt and pepper

Optional, for the salad:

• Olive oil
• Lettuce (I got bagged mixed lettuce)
• Yellow mustard

First thing you’ll want to do is defrost your fish. I placed some spoonfuls of coconut oil in a pan and heated it until it melted and then placed it in a bowl and the fish in as well. Let the oil cool first so you don’t start to prematurely cook your fish. I pierced little slits in the fish (when it softened a bit) after placing in the oil so that as it defrosted more, it would absorb some of the liquid and gain additional flavor. Rinse and dry or use a new pan to heat on medium some dry coconut. Keep moving them around until you see them start to toast. Place them in a separate bowl. Take your fish, cover and refrigerate until defrosted.

Take your lime(s) and start to zest them if you’d like to add some zest to this meal. I didn’t but, I did add some to a meal after that. You can just store the zest in a container in the fridge. Juice one half of the lime into one bowl and the other into your mixer. Take your avocado and scoop the inside of one whole avocado in with the lime juice. Add salt and pepper (you will do this to taste).

Start to blend the avoacdo and lime. You will notice the mixer struggling about five seconds in. Take a spoon or spatula and push down the mixture on the sides and keep blending. I needed to do this about three times, tasting as I went to decide if I wanted to add more salt or lime juice from a new lime. In the meantime, I melted just a tad more of the coconut oil and added that liquid to the avocado mixture.

Keep working with it, it will come to a smooth mousse consistency.

When it gets to the flavor you like, set it aside with the lid on top and check on your fish. Because you’ve added the acid of the lime to the avocado it shouldn’t brown.

Add some more coconut oil to the pan and heat your Mahi on medium.

Salt and pepper your fish. When it is almost done (it will turn a clean white color), go ahead and add your toasted coconut in to absorb some of the flavor – if you want. You can certainly leave them as they are instead. Or omit entirely.

I decided to make a salad as well and bring in some more of that lime flavor. In a measuring cup or small cup, add a generous squeeze of yellow mustard, your half lime juice from earlier, salt and pepper and start whisking while adding your olive oil. Stiring everything while pouring in the oil will help emulsify it. Taste and see if you want more lime or salt…

On a small plate, place your leaves, pour some of your dressing and top with some of the coconut shreds.

When plating the fish, portion out either all the mousse (as in this case) or however much you’d like, placing the fish on top with the coconut on the fish. I halved the fish as I wanted to make sure it was done on the inside. I also think it handles better to be pre-sliced a bit (if not completely). This fish is not like salmon in that I typically need a knife when cutting into it. It has a steak-like consistency but a mild flavor.

The tang from the salad dressing was a perfect finish for this meal. The fish and the avocado mousse were light and creamy. It was a simple dish that really only took about 10 minutes to make… All based around a wine, which I have to say, I highly reccomend.