I love the flavor of mahi mahi it has such a nice flaky texture to it and doesn’t require a lot of fuss to cook it. It’s even better when you know you caught it yourself. Well I say yourself, but I mean my hubby haha. He had caught this on our last trip to Mexico so it was nice to relive our trip again over dinner. So a couple notes on this recipe I just used the packaged hazelnuts you find on the baking isle and toasted them I recommend chopping them smaller to even the flavor our and not have big chunks of nuts in there. I also added a sprinkle of Old Bay on the fish before adding the stuffing and also added Old Bay as well as some Cajun seasoning to the crab stuffing. On the sauce I didn’t have fish base so I left that out and also added some red pepper flakes and spice to kick it up a little. I served it on top of roasted garlic mashed potatoes, but you could use anything you like with it.
Mahi Mahi w/Crab Stuffing & Cream Sauce
(Adapted from Hawaiian Style)
4 8-10 ounce mahi mahi or white fillet
Salt & Pepper to taste
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoon olive oil
Crabmeat Stuffing
1 pound blue crabmeat
1 stalk celery, minced
1/4 onion, minced
1 teaspoon parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup Island Princess macadamia nuts, toasted & chopped
1 whole egg, beaten
1 teaspoon lemon juice
splash Worcestershire sauce
3 tablespoons butter
Salt & Pepper to taste
Sauce
1/4 cup butter
1 teaspoon flour
1 clove garlic, finely minced
1 teaspoon paprika
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 teaspoon better than bouillon fish base
1/8 cup white wine
salt & pepper to taste
juice of 1/2 lemon
Prepare Fish
Add oil and butter to sauté pan over high heat.
Wait until the oil gets really hot and add the fillet, one at a time (2 if the pan is large enough). Do not overcrowd as you want to quickly sear the fish and create a crust. Cook for about 2 minutes on each side and remove from heat and place on plate. Continue cooking each fillet until they are all cooked. You might have to add more oil/butter to the pan before cooking each fillet.
Stuffing
In a sauté pan on medium heat, melt butter. Add minced celery and onions to the pan and cook until onions are opaque.
Add parsley, bread crumbs, lemon juice, Worcestershire, crabmeat and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Remove from heat and put mixture in a bowl deep enough for mixing.
Allow mixture to cool for 5 minutes. In the same pan, toast macadamia nuts until golden brown. Add macadamia nuts, beaten egg and mayonnaise to slightly cooled stuffing and mix stuffing thoroughly.
Set aside.
Sauce
Melt butter to sauté pan on medium heat. Add garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add flour and cook until flour turns into a golden brown hue. Add white wine and cook for 2 minutes. Add bouillon and whisk into mixture. Add remaining ingredients and continue whisking until completely smooth. Finish with juice of 1/2 lemon.
Assembly & Baking
Assemble fish fillets in a non-stick or ceramic baking dish that has been sprayed with non-stick spray or oil. Divide them into 4 portions and mound stuffing on each piece of fish.
Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to sit for 2 minutes. You can also opt to broil the tops of the fish/stuffing to get more of a brown color. Take each plate and put some of the sauce on the plate and carefully put a piece of fish over the sauce. Garnish with parsley flakes.
