There's something Fishy about these Enchiladas.

One entree I enjoy ordering at Mexican restaurants is the Seafood Enchiladas. Usually a combination of shrimp, scallops, crab and octopus with mild seasonings, rolled in a flour tortilla and baked in a creamy tomato sauce; it's just lusciously delicious. However, I don't always have the time to travel to find a Mexican restaurant and lack of funds is a drawback also. Solution? Homemade of course.

Oh oh, another problem; while Roy and I will enjoy any type of shellfish, mussel and octopus; his mother will not. As I have mentioned before, I cook meals for us and for his mom too who lives in Moab. Cooking one dish two ways is not always an easy solution, so compromise is essential, and a bit of ingenuity. Utah is a landlocked state and getting fresh fish is not easy, so I try and keep a few packages of different frozen fish available in the home freezer. I just happened to have Mahi Mahi on hand and I knew everyone, even Roy's mom, liked this denizen of the deep.

To give myself an idea on how to prepare these enchiladas, I did a little research on various cooking sites. Frustration! Recipes were too complicated, relied on canned and processed foods or used a store bought enchilada sauce; I wanted homemade, easy and as close to the restaurant taste as possible. From all the Mexican/Southwest cooking I've been doing, I sort of knew what spices, herbs and such to play around with.

Seriously, I wish Roy would have written a review of these enchiladas; he raved on and on, and I agree, they were fantastic!!! Well, I'll let you be the judge for yourself once you try this recipe; Enjoy!

Mahi Mahi Enchiladas

Mahi Mahi
2 lbs filets, skinned and deboned
1 Tbsp each salt, ground black pepper, New Mexico chili powder, crushed dried oregano; mixed together.

Set broiler on high; spray jelly roll pan with nonstick cooking spray. Season both sides of fish with seasoning mix; place on pan and broil for 7 minutes. Remove fish to large bowl and chop into small pieces.

Filling
1 cup each diced onion and red bell pepper
2 Tbsp canola oil
1 ½ cups shredded Mexican cheese mix

In a medium skillet, medium-high heat, sauté onion and bell pepper in oil until softened.
Mix veggies, fish and cheese together.

Sauce
1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
1 ½ cups half n’ half
½ cup sour cream
2 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp minced parsley
½ cup shredded Mexican cheese mix

In a large saucepan, medium heat, mix together all ingredients and let cook for 10 minutes; stirring occasionally to keep from boiling and over thickening.

Final Preparation
10 (8”) flour tortillas

Preheat oven to 350F; spray a 4 qt baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.

Spoon filling down center of each tortilla; leaving 1 inch space from top to bottom. Fold top and bottom of tortilla just over filling; fold one side over filling and begin rolling; place in baking dish with crease side down. Continue until all 10 are completed; rolled tortillas will all fit together snuggly. Pour sauce over all and cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 30 minutes; let rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Makes 10 enchiladas.

Mary Cokenour