Mint, lime, sugar, and cucumbers nod to mojitos…minus the rum. Our mint grows with abandon and this was a fresh and beautiful way to use it over some crispy fish tacos!
Mojito Slaw Ingredients: 1, 14 oz cabbage slaw mix 1/4 cup mayo 2 tablespoons sugar 1 tablespoon rice vinegar (or champagne vinegar or apple cider vinegar) 1/2 cucumber ~10 mint leaves (optional: tortillas & fish as tacos)
Directions: Dice the cucumber, chiffonade the mint, and zest the lime. Add to the cabbage.
Stir in the mayo, sugar, vinegar, and lime juice.
Refrigerate 20 minutes – an hour, but not overnight. Taste and adjust as needed.
Optional – air fry breaded fish and serve on tortillas with slaw.
It’s fresh and bright with perfect creaminess. This goes well as a side with anything on the grill too. The mint gets wilty so it doesn’t keep as well!
We most often see this crispy fish for tacos and I like to keep the kiddos on their toes. This grain bowl has an orzo base, roasted parmesan broccoli, some fresh tomatoes, and a lemon-butter-herb drizzle.
Some filling grain/rice/noodle base + a protein + a cooked veg + a fresh component + a drizzle = a perfect meal.
Crispy Fish Bowls with Lemon Herb Drizzle Ingredients: (serves 4) 1/2 pound orzo 8 breaded fish fillets 2 broccoli florets 1 tablespoon parmesan cheese 3 tomatoes 1/2 a lemon 4 tablespoons butter 1 tablespoon dijon mustard herbs
Directions: Cook the orzo until cooked through – then stir in butter and some lemon juice. Chop the broccoli, drizzle with olive oil, and roast at 400-degrees for 15 minutes. Then sprinkle with salt, pepper, and parmesan when removing from the oven. Chop the tomatoes and add to a bowl with a drizzle of olive oil & vinegar or Italian dressing. Cook the fish according to the package. Layer the bowls with orzo on the bottom, top with broccoli, and tomatoes.
In a small bowl, melt the remaining butter and whisk in lemon juice, dijon, and herbs. Drizzle on top. Enjoy!
We loved it. One kiddo said it was the best dinner ever. Ever? Roasted broccoli is a hit here but could swap with sautéed green beans or brussels sprouts or asparagus! We have this fish all the time as fish tacos with lemonade slaw or salmon would be really good too.
Leftovers dream of becoming a rice bowl like this one. Salmon, on top of rice, with edamame, and wonton strips then drizzled with a teriyaki drizzle.
Give some roasted salmon a second life with a flavorful sauce. The veggies can swap, the crunch element can too – just go for a grain + salmon + veggies + a crunch factor.
Salmon Teriyaki Rice Bowls Ingredients: (serves 2) ~1 cup brown rice, cooked 2 salmon fillets 1 1/2 cups edamame in the pods (or 3/4 cup shelled) 3 tablespoons teriyaki sauce 1 tablespoons honey 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic 1/4 teaspoon minced ginger 1/2 cup wonton strips
Directions: Warm the rice, salmon, and edamame. Whisk together the teriyaki sauce, honey, garlic, and ginger. Layer the bowls with rice, salmon, edamame, and wonton strips.
Drizzle the sauce on top. Enjoy!
This hit the spot – the salmon goes well with lots of flavors and these work together so well. Broccoli would be good, or fried onions instead of wonton strips.
We love salmon but I had some not-great salmon from the grocery store that I really needed to use. The salmon from Costco is 100x better so this sub-par stuff seemed best suited to become a crispy cake with some powerful flavors like lemon and dijon.
Swap the rice for any grain you like, just don’t forget the lemon. Swap the salmon for any flaky fish, crab, shrimp, or canned salmon/tuna. Add a drizzle of tahini, or dijon + mayo, or cracked peppercorn salad dressing.
Salmon Cakes and Lemon Risotto: Ingredients: (for 2 dinner/3 lunch portions) 1/4 white or yellow onion 1 garlic clove, chopped 1 cup arborio rice 1 cup chicken broth 1/2 cup white wine 1/2 lemon ~6 oz salmon, chopped or forked apart 1 egg, whisked 1/3 cup panko breadcrumbs, toasted 2 tablespoons dijon 1 teaspoon garlic, minced 1/2 teaspoon seasoning (I used Zatar or TJ’s Mushroom Umami or Todd’s Dirt or Italian Seasoning) 3 tablespoons olive oil 1 tablespoon butter
Directions: Prepare the risotto (in a pot for ~30 minutes, or I used the pressure cooker cooking for 6 minutes). Sauté the onion and garlic in butter and olive oil. Then add in the rice and broth/wine mix.
Mix up the salmon, egg, panko, spices, salt and pepper.
Stir well and preheat a pan with olive oil and butter.
Form into patties and pan sear for ~4 minutes on each side, flipping just once. (I used silicone egg molds to keep them together while the first side cooked.) Once seared on each side, remove from oil onto paper towels. When the risotto is cooked, remove from the heat, and juice half a lemon into it. Stir and spoon into 2 bowls. Top each bowl with a salmon cake.
I drizzled with a little lemon/dijon/mayo/peppercorn aoli and some chives. Enjoy!
This is such a great meal. I would definitely order this kind of thing at a restaurant but having at home is so special but still easy. This absolutely is NOT a pack-for-work lunch, no fish is a work lunch. I froze a portion for another time. I have visions of getting home some night after baseball and getting the kids to bed and having something delicious to unearth from the freezer when cheez-its aren’t going to cut it.
I wouldn’t put it past me to lightly dress some arugula and toss it on top, or some green beans, or some tomatoes to make this a fully balanced meal. 😉 I loved it.
Pasta is a weekly must-have at our house and most often we rotate between a few basics like tomato sauce, pesto, alfredo, meatballs and we change up noodles, tortellini, or the occasional lasagna. This was a bit different and I did a shrimp or chicken topping option (I’m the only one who likes shrimp at the moment).
The tomatoes burst and provide some sauce and the touch of cream and olive oil made it quick and light! Swap the protein for scallops or bacon or sausage or whatever you like!
Pasta with Blistered Tomatoes & Shrimp or Chicken Ingredients: (for 5-6 servings) 1 pound linguine pasta 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 3 tablespoons heavy cream 2 tablespoons butter shrimp (pealed, deveined large shrimp) and/or roasted chicken (pealed, chopped) 1 tablespoon mixed herb seasoning (Todd’s Dirt is our fav, or Italian Seasoning, or Oregano + Garlic Powder)
Directions: Bring salted water to boil and cook the pasta. In a skillet over medium heat, cook the tomatoes in a drizzle of olive oil and salt. Give them a shake every few minutes – it will take ~5 minutes to pop and release some juice. When the pasta is mostly cooked (~2 minutes less than the package instructs), drain it reserving a little pasta water and return the pasta to the pot. Add the butter, and cream in, plus a splash of pasta water (start with a few tablespoons) and toss together, then add the tomatoes in and continue to cook over low heat. Add more pasta water if needed.
In the skillet used for the tomatoes, add another drizzle of olive oil in and bring to medium-low heat. Add the shrimp in the pan and sprinkle with herbs. Cook for just a minute or two on each side to turn pink but remain a C shape not an O shape. Remove from the heat promptly to avoid overcooking. (I did some chicken and some shrimp.) Serve the pasta with chicken or shrimp on top and one last drizzle of olive oil. Enjoy!
I always need a bit more sauce than I think so keep that pasta water or a splash of broth or more cream. The kids wouldn’t necessarily request this one, but everyone ate enough and I got to have shrimp so, win-win!