Salmon tacos with mango corn salsa and mango bean salad

The impetus for this meal was one leftover ear of grilled corn. And since the taco recipe was only going to use about half a mango, a pairing was born.

Salmon tacos with mango corn salsa

Adapted from Cooking with Amy blog by Amy Sherman

Ingredients

Corn from 1 cob, cooked

½ cup diced mango

½ cup diced fresh tomatoes (I used a mix of yellow and red)

2 green onions, chopped

1 tablespoon chopped jalepeno or serrano peppers

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice, divided

3 tablespoons mayonnaise

1 tablespoon plain Greek yogurt

12 ounces salmon fillets

Chili powder

6 tortillas

Grated cabbage for topping, optional

Chopped cilantro for garnish, optional, but tasty

Method

Combine mango, tomatoes, green onions, peppers and 1 tablespoon of lime juice in a bowl. Season to taste with salt and set aside.

Combine mayonnaise, yogurt and remaining lime juice for a white sauce. Set aside.

Heat your tacos over low heat in a skillet and set aside to keep warm in a warm oven.

Sprinkle salmon liberally with chili powder. Turn the heat under the skillet to medium high and cook, skin-side down until mostly done, then flip to sear the other side. 

To assemble tortillas, flake salmon into chunks and divide among them. Top with mango salsa, white sauce, cabbage and sprinkle with cilantro.

Rating: Mango salsa was a nice touch and could have multiple applications such as topping grilled chicken or pork. Fine enough weeknight meal if you make the salsa and white sauce in advance. 

Black bean salad with mango sauce

Adapted from “Tres Green Tres Clean Chic: Eat (and Live!) the New French Way With Plant-Based, Gluten-Free Recipes for Every Season,” by Rebecca Leffler. I don’t own that mouthful of a cookbook, but got the recipe courtesy of the Washington Post.

Ingredients

½ large ripe mango, chopped

1 green onion, chopped

Juice of 2 limes

2 tablespoons olive oil

¼ teaspoon ground coriander

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

2 tablespoons each chopped red pepper, yellow pepper and orange pepper

1 medium carrot, peeled and diced

½ cup shaved fennel bulb

½ cup thinly sliced cucumber

1 cup baby spinach leaves

1 ripe avocado, peeled and sliced

1½ tablespoons chopped fresh chives for garnish

Method

In food processor, puree mango and green onion with lime juice. With motor running drizzle in olive oil. Add coriander, cayenne pepper and salt to taste.  (If making in advance, store dressing separately at this point.)

In a good-sized serving bowl, add beans, peppers, carrots, fennel and cucumber. (If you’re making this in advance, leave ingredients in layers, cover and refrigerate. Leaving the cucumber on top will keep it from turning to mush.) Add spinach and avocado. Toss with mango dressing and garnish with chives.

Rating: Very fresh tasting. Definitely a summer dish, and it paired well with the tacos. Lots of nice color. The fennel is largely undetectable amid all those flavors, but if you're not a fennel fan, you can leave it out. The dressing is very thick, and when combined with the avocado, the taste sensation is like eating a salad with a guacamole topping. Not that it’s a bad thing, but sort of odd. You definitely wouldn’t want to combine these ingredients too far ahead of serving or it would sort of collapse.