The Indian Ocean is the third largest in the world, containing over 1400 islands, and is surrounded by Indonesia, Thailand, India, Sri Lanka, The Middle East and Eastern Africa. As such, it is home to a great influx and variety of cultural cuisine, but most have common themes in their delicious ingredients.

Foremost of course of those ingredients, is the abundance of the sea itself. The Indian Ocean is a rich, natural farm of sea life that all the cultures have relied upon for centuries. Next, the people had to rely on what they could grow on their soil, which can often be inhospitable to many traditional crops. Instead, they found that certain grain grasses (including millet and wheat) and legumes grew very well in the sandy ground, adding to their staple diet.

We’ll begin this bountiful meal with a unique regional take on a Mexican dish with our Indian Flatbread Mango Fish Tacos. Tortillas are of course just a Central/South American version of flatbread. A flatbread is simply a bread made with flour, water and salt, and then thoroughly rolled into flattened dough. Many flatbreads are unleavened—made without yeast—although some are slightly leavened, such as pita bread. For our recipe, you can use any thin flatbread, or simply use a common tortilla. Then there’s our fish, Dorado, also called Mahi Mahi or Dolphinfish (but no, they are not actually related to dolphins, which are mammals, not fish). First, the good news; Dorado are low in fat, and virtually all the fat is good, heart-healthy Omega-3’s. They are also a great source of selenium, chromium and protein, making them fairly nutrient dense. Mercury however is a concern, and to mitigate that, we have to keep abreast of current warnings. Unfortunately, virtually all fish in the ocean may contain small amounts of mercury. Larger, older fish are likely to have more than small or very small fish such as mackerel or sardines. In this case, Dorado may have some contaminant issues, as it is listed on the NRDC’s “moderate” list, meaning you should consume 6 servings or less per month. Since we always recommend eating everything in moderation, this fits the bill. Also, as always, with any fish, we are concerned about sustainability. For Dorado, the best choice is US Atlantic sourced, however good alternatives are any US Sourced fish, including Hawaiian Mahi Mahi. Next, we have our fruit salsa using mangoes. Mangoes contain phenols, which have powerful antioxidant and anticancer abilities. Mangoes are also high in iron, plus they may be effective in relieving clogged pores of the skin and to combat acidity and poor digestion Fresh mango contains a variety of nutrients (right table), but only vitamin C and folate are in significant amounts of the Daily Value as 44% and 11%, respectively. Numerous phytochemicals are present in mango peel and pulp, such as the triterpene, lupeol which is under basic research for its potential biological effects. An extract of mango branch bark called Vimang, containing numerous polyphenols, has been studied in elderly humans.

Onward to cooking our delicious Indian Flatbread Mango Fish Tacos:

Indian Flatbread Mango Fish Tacos:

Ingredients:

1 lb Dorado/Mahi Mahi, filleted and skinned

Marinade:
1 TBSP grated orange zest
Juice of one orange
1/4 cup cooking oil
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp oregano
1/4 cup TBSP lime juice
1 fresh jalapeno, seeds removed
1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves

Mango Salsa:
1 Mango, fruit chopped fine
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 small chopped shallot
1 TBSP lime juice
1 TBSP finely chopped parsley
1/2 tsp organic honey
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp ground pepper

4 oz feta or other white crumbled cheese
3 TBSP chopped parsley or cilantro
12 small circles of flatbread or tortillas

Preparation:

• Combine all the salsa ingredients, place in a glass dish, covered.
• Combine all marinade ingredients. Add the fish fillets to a glass bowl or sealable plastic bag and cover with marinade. Refrigerate salsa and fish for 1 hour.
• Preheat a stove-top grill pan over medium high heat with a light sheen of oil. Remove fish from marinade and discard marinade. Grill the fish until browned on both sides and flakes with a fork, but do not overcook.
• Cut fish into chunks. In another flat pan sprayed with oil, lightly pan fry the flatbread or tortillas. Place the grilled fish on the warm flatbread and cover with salsa, sprinkle with cheese and parsley and serve.