Heart Healthy Fish {with Orange-Avocado Salsa}

Second in line in the Valentine's week of heart-healthy meals is a quick and easy dinner of pan-fried fish with a citrus salsa. It all went from pan to plate within 30 minutes. Because that's how eating healthy should be - manageable.

I am of the persuasion that most standard fish varieties taste great with a citrus salsa. Most recipes in this vein call for mahi-mahi. And while its sweetness certainly makes a good match, in my kitchen, this salsa has even graced the top of some cod. Snapper or bass I imagine would fit well, and even tuna would round out the flavours plus give all those tuna-y health benefits.

Whichever fish you chose, this is great in the winter using blood oranges if you luck out on finding a good avocado. Happy avocado hunting!

The heart-loving menu:

Brekkie: Muesli-Pancakes with Honeyed Berries

Lunch: Black Bean Chili with Swiss Chard 

Dinner: Pan-fried Fish with Blood Orange and Avocado Salsa

Dessert: Vanilla-Poached Fig, Cherry & Pistachio Parfait

Continue to Recipe...

Recipe: Pan-fried Fish with Orange-Avocado Salsa

Adapted from Bon Appétit, Feb 2005

Serves 4

Time 30 mins

Eat with a French Chenin Blanc

2 blood oranges

1 avocado

1 large shallot, minced

juice of half lemon (or lime)

parsley (or coriander)

4 fillets snapper/mahi-mahi/tuna

olive oil

salt 

2 tsp. smoked Spanish paprika

quinoa

1) Segment the orange and cube the avocado. Mix in a bowl with the minced shallot and lemon juice. Let it sit while you get the fish on.

2) Pat dry the fish and rub down with olive oil. Smear in the salt and paprika to both sides. Cook until flaky in a pan (cast iron works great if it's well-seasoned/oiled) on med-low heat. About 6 minutes for moderately sized fillets.

3) Mix parsley into the salsa and spoon atop the fish. Eat with some quinoa on the side.

Enjoy.
- Jo