A Quick Recipe for a Swift Sea Predator
My favorite pastime while on vacation in Cuba is snorkeling and fins swimming to the reefs, where you can gather a swarm of tropical fish around you with the help of bread. During one of these swims, I discovered a pair of lionfish - the most beautiful tropical fish with fins and feathers topped with poisonous spines.
Lionfish, known in North America like Lion fish, native to the Indian and Pacific Oceans. They appeared in the Caribbean a little more than 15 years ago, having got there from a private aquarium in Miami that was broken by a storm. They had no natural enemies in their new place.
These fish are a real scourge for the Caribbean ecosystem. Pretending to be a bunch of algae, they attract small fish, fry, shrimp and devour them, sucking them like a vacuum cleaner into their big mouth. They also destroy eggs and larvae on reefs. It is useless to fight them: the female lionfish is able to lay 15 thousand eggs every 4 days. I thought that it was necessary to urgently report this pair to the local fishery, in this case, the organizers of fishing tours. Lionfish had to be caught as soon as possible. Recently, mass underwater hunting for these fish has begun to be organized on the islands of the Caribbean. The winner receives a prize, and the catch is sent to restaurants, fortunately, the lionfish, despite its poisonous spikes, turned out to be edible. If you think that I want to offer you a recipe for making lionfish, then you are mistaken. On that swim, I had another meeting.
At some point, when I was hovering over the reefs, feeding tropical fish, some kind of big fish. It happened so rapidly that I did not even have time to react, as, indeed, did the fish surrounding me. They just flinched, but I knew that one of them was down. Having reported on the shore about the lionfish, I also told about the meeting with a swift fish unknown to me. The organizer of deep-sea fishing confidently stated that it was a mahi-mahi fish and immediately offered to go with him to catch it. It turned out that this is one of the fastest fish in the world, despite its size: its weight can reach thirty kilograms, and its body length is two meters. When hunting flying fish, she is able to follow flying fish underwater and catch prey when she splashes down. 
While fishing on the high seas, mahi-mahi bites on artificial bait in the form of the same flying fish. Great speed does not allow her to understand the deception. sea fishing is not one of my hobbies. I politely declined, but that same evening I tried mahi-mahi at my resort's restaurant. Resting in Cuba, at lunch and dinner, I always go to the counter, where they fry fish. With meat in Cuba, things are not very good, but the fish is usually fresh, as it is caught nearby. The choice is small, but often there are mahi-mahi. Now I can at least imagine what it is.
As I later found out, the official name of this fish - Large Corifena - is a derivative from Latin: Coryphaena hippurus. In Russia, it is known as the "golden mackerel". The common North American name "mahi-mahi" comes from the Hawaiian Islands. It means "strong" in Hawaiian. Dolphin often jumps out of the water, changing color from blue and green to silver or gold with a reddish tint. Therefore, in Spanish-speaking countries, mahi-mahi are called "dorado maverikos" - "golden wanderer". In Europe, it was not quite correctly called a dolphin fish, but a fish with the name "dolphin" is not suitable for a restaurant menu: visitors will not order a dolphin. So the name mahi-mahi was established in gastronomy.
This summer I encountered the dolphin again. On one of the hot and stuffy August days, I was invited to dinner with my close friend Misha K. Considering the humidity factor, the air temperature then felt close to 40 degrees Celsius. The thunderstorm promised by weather forecasters still could not gather, but was already making itself felt by low atmospheric pressure. It was originally supposed that the dinner would take place under a tent near the brazier. The thought that in such a heat you would have to sit in the yard, and besides, eat meat - and it is most often cooked on a brazier - it was despondent and completely discouraged.
As it turned out, the owner outplayed everything. The table was set in the dining room under the slight breeze of the air conditioner. In the coolness, Russian snacks, greens, homemade marinade fish easily went with vodka. At the same time, there were no signs in the kitchen that a hot dish was expected. There was a small saucepan on the stove, which, as it turned out later, was filled with sauce. When the time came, Misha cooked the main course in 20 minutes. It was a mahi-mahi fish. He warmed up the sauce, took it out of the refrigerator and quickly fried the fish fillets on both sides, poured the sauce over the top and served them to the guests. Once Misha was my student in cooking, now there is a lot to learn from him. I have already used his lobster bisque recipe in this section.
The fish was the cutest. As it turned out, the dorado was bought in the form of a frozen whole fillet at a sale in one of the supermarkets. The price was reasonable - about $25 per kilogram. A meticulous buyer found out that the fish was butchered and frozen right on the floating fish factory, which is why it retained all its gastronomic qualities and even its bright saturated color.
Ingredients for four people:
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 large finely chopped garlic clove
1/4 teaspoon salt for the fish and more for the sauce
1/4 teaspoon white pepper for the fish, plus more for the sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil
3 tablespoons of olive oil
4 mahi-mahi fillets (each weighing approx. 200 gr.)
We start by making a butter sauce with lemon and basil.
Combine oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper, and basil in a medium saucepan and heat, stirring, over low heat until butter is melted. Then close the pan with a lid and leave on low heat.
Then heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sprinkle the fish with pepper and salt to taste. Fry it on one side for about 3 minutes, turn over and fry for 3-4 minutes on the other side. It should brown slightly. It is very important not to overcook it. We shift the fillet into separate plates and pour the prepared sauce. Let's put it on the table right away. 
Mahi-mahi is one of the most beautiful fish that live in the ocean. You will not confuse this fish with any other. "Mahi-mahi", from the language of the Aztecs, is translated as "strong-strong." This fish got its name for desperate resistance when it hits the hook.
There are other names for this fish: for example, in the Caribbean it is called dolphin-fish. Although, of course, it has nothing to do with a dolphin, because a dolphin is a mammal, and mahi-mahi is a fish. In Thailand and Germany, it is called "golden mackerel", although, again, this fish has nothing to do with mackerel, since mackerel is an ordinary mackerel. The Spaniards call it the "golden dorado", but the mahi-mahi has no resemblance to the dorado fish either. Dorado is smaller and looks like a banal crucian. In Malta, it is called "lampuka", and it is even depicted on the Maltese 10-cent coins. In Japan it's "shira". But in Greece, and after it in Russia, mahi-mahi is called "dolphin".
When fishermen catch mahi-mahi and pull her out of the water, her skin begins to shimmer with almost all the colors of the rainbow. Mahi-mahi can change color at the same time, like a rare alexandrite gemstone - only in a wider range of colors.
Residents of Japan, for example, are sure that by eating this fish, you become strong and active. No wonder, because the composition of this miracle fish includes so many useful and necessary microelements and vitamins for our body that there is no need to be surprised. Mahi mahi is very rich in vitamin PP, phosphorus and chromium. Studies also show that those who include this fish in their diet are not prone to diseases such as anemia, dermatitis, inflammatory diseases of the eyes and mucous membranes.
I also cooked yesterday, in the oven. 
My dinner.
Plain salad with sauce and fish. Mine, because after six I don’t eat anymore, and my men don’t agree with me))) I have dinner alone) 
The fish is sooo tasty, tender, juicy!
And it's fun. We were in our favorite Korean store, saw this in front of the checkout)) 
Noodle boxes.
