Blackened Mahi Mahi Fish Tacos Recipe with Mango Salsa
Published May 5, 2018. This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
These delicious mahi-mahi fish tacos seasoned with a homemade blackened seasoning served up with fresh mango salsa and avocado crema are the perfect weeknight meal.
These are probably my favorite style of tacos around, no joke. I like that they are nice and light and when the mahi-mahi fish is extremely fresh like in this recipe, they are absolutely incredible! The zip you get from the blackened seasoning on the fish is the perfect complement to the sweet fresh mango salsa in these tacos. These guys are winners and a must-make!
How to Make a Homemade Blackened Seasoning
As I’ve gotten older and a lot more patient, mostly due in part to having a 3-year-old, I’ve been enjoying more and more the entire cooking process and the same goes with these tacos. Whether that’s prepping everything beforehand or cleaning up, or making a simple blackened seasoning like in this recipe. Maybe it’s just pride in my cooking or my kitchen, but I’m enjoying the cycle in its entirety.
The crazy thing is that it can be any recipe too, even a grilled cheese for crying out loud. I never thought I’d be at this point in my cooking career but I remember reading about it from my favorite chef, Thomas Keller who literally started to feel the exact same transition and his joy for all things cooking. I think the foregone conclusion is that I’m getting old, DANG IT! Yup, I even enjoy making blackening seasoning.
Since we’re finally coming out of the cold everyday weather I wanted to spice a few things up. It’s literally been soup and root vegetables for the past 4 months and I couldn’t be happier about Spring being here. We are huge taco eaters in this family and we love trying out new recipes, so when I brought this up to Lindsay (my wife) she was like HECK YEAH!!!
I started it off by making my own blackened seasoning. Don’t be intimidated, it’s not hard I promise, and most likely you’ve got the ingredients to make it already in your pantry. If, however, you don’t want to mess with it and you’ve got a pre-made blackening seasoning that you already love then just use that in these blackened mahi-mahi tacos, no problem.
For the fish I went with Mahi Mahi and because it was literally unavailable fresh at 3 grocery stores I went with some really nice frozen fillets. I simply thawed them out and placed them on paper towels to soak up some liquid which makes it easier to saute. Just because the fish was frozen does not mean that these blackened fish tacos won’t be delicious.
Ok, so I’m gonna let you in on a little secret. Cabbage goes insanely well with fish tacos, especially these tacos… Between the crunchiness and flavor, it enhances fish tacos so much that it is a must every single time we make them.
The other thing I decided to add in the blackened these, was black beans. Simply strain, rinse, and heat up.
Now to start creating some yummy toppings! There are two things I wanted to put on top of these tacos, some sort of crema and salsa. For the crema, I mashed up some fresh avocados and whipped them with some Mexican Crema along with some lime juice salt, and pepper. It’s incredibly easy and packs a serious punch in the flavor department and will complement these blackened Mahi-mahi fish tacos to no end.
How to Make a Homemade Mango Salsa
The mango salsa I put together and added to the top of the blackened mahi-mahi fish tacos is to die for. I caught my father-in-law eating it with tortilla chips as a snack, but thank gosh I stopped him so we could use it for our tacos haha.
This salsa is a simple combination of mangos, jalapeños, red onion, green onions, and red bell peppers tossed in a little lime juice, olive oil, and salt and pepper. Just be sure to keep the salsa cool before serving. I’m not sure what it is but the sweetness from the mango just cuts the comfortable spice from the fish perfectly.
Cooking the Mahi Mahi Tacos
Cooking fish can be really tricky so here are my two cents. First, make sure it’s really dry before seasoning it. In my case, I patted the fish down with paper towels and dusted them on both sides with the blackening seasoning we made.
Next, get a large saute pan very hot on high heat and add in some cold oil. Once the oil begins to lightly smoke, turn the heat down to medium-high and place in your fish. Now, LET IT COOK!!! Don’t sit there and get worried and start moving things around, give it at least 3 to 4 minutes before attempting to flip it over.
After that amount of time I usually give the pan a little shake and if the fish easily moves the pan then I know I’m ok to flip over. When the fish is finished cooking I put them back on some paper towels to rest and to drain any unwanted oil.
How to Serve Mahi Mahi Tacos
It’s now time to dress everything up with as many or as few sides as possible…
For me, I go all in and add as much as I can possibly fit into each blackened Mahi-mahi fish taco. Sure I may look crazy eating it but it’s the best way to get all of the ingredients in one awesome burst of flavor.
My wife really only likes cabbage, fish, crema, salsa, and of course some cotija cheese. I leave the cheese garnished part up to whoever’s creating it because some people like more, some like less, and some like none at all because of the crema, the point is to have fun accessorizing this up and make it how you want to eat it.
In the end, we are loving our new kitchen and no matter what I’m making these days in there, I’m happy to be doing it, but wow were these blackened Mahi-mahi fish tacos such a treat!
The Best Taco Recipes
If you love tacos as much as I do then be sure to check out these amazing taco recipes below:
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Blackened Mahi-Mahi Tacos Recipe

Ingredients
For the Blackening Seasoning:
- 1 teaspoon of chili powder
- ½ teaspoon of paprika
- ½ teaspoon of chipotle powder
- ½ teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon of onion powder
- ½ teaspoon of garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon of dry oregano
- 1 ½ teaspoons of sea salt
- 2 pounds of Mahi Mahi fish fillets, patted dry
- 3 tablespoons of olive oil
For the Vegetables:
- 1 cup each of shredded red and green cabbage
- 2-15 ounce cans of drained, rinsed and heated black beans
- 10 corn tortilla shells
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves for garnish
- 10 fresh lime sliced wedges for garnish
- 1 cup cotija cheese for garnish
For the Crema:
- 1 avocado
- 1 cup of Mexican crema
- juice of 1 lime
- sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
For the Salsa:
- 2 small diced mangos
- ½ small diced red onion
- 1 seeded and small diced jalapeño
- ½ seeded and small diced red bell pepper
- 1 thinly sliced green onion
- juice of 1 lime
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
Instructions
- Blackening Seasoning: Combine all herbs and spices into a small bowl and season each side of the mahi-mahi well. Note: there will be some leftover after you get done seasoning the fish.
- In a large saute pan on high heat with olive oil, saute the fish until it is browned and cooked throughout. Set aside.
- Crema: Mash the avocado in a medium-size bowl and whisk together the remaining ingredients and keep cool.
- Salsa: Combine all ingredients in a medium-size bowl and keep cool.
- To Plate: Layer on top of a heated corn tortilla: heated beans, cabbages, blackened mahi-mahi, crema, salsa, cilantro leaves, cotija cheese and garnish with lime wedges.
About every 6 months, I tell Google, “Billy Parisi Mahi Mahi Tacos!” Google then finds me the dish that I am now famous for. Thanks Mr P !
I made this yesterday for the Super Bowl, it was a hit the seasonings were great and the fish blacken beautifully. Will be making again.
Incredible seasonings! We made it the original way and it was the best we’ve ever had! This includes southern California and Mexico 😉 I am making it again tonight but will have to sub pineapple for lack of mangos. I’m sure that nectarines would’ve worked but I don’t have those either.
Thanks for sharing your recipe. I have the same Wolf range that’s pictured on your site. Have you tried cooking the fish on the griddle? I am wondering if that will work well…
Definitely would work on the griddle!
I cook this meal just tonight July 25 and my whole family love it !! My 9 years old son says this are the best Fish tacos he ever had ! Highly recommend it ! Thank you and very easy to do!
These were ABSOLUTELY phenomenal! Went to get Mahi and had to get Grouper instead. Worked great and was super easy and insanely good. The crema was great, the mango salsa was the BEST! Will be making these again for sure!
What is Mexican Crema?? Can I get this in Australia??
Sour cream will do!
BEST TACOS I’VE EVER EATEN. THANK YOU
amazing, thank you!
First time with homemade blackening seasoning and WOW!!! What an incredible blast of flavor!! Gonna make a huge batch next time to put on everything 😁. Thanks so much for sharing, recipe was delicious. Hubby was impressed, so will definitely put this on rotation.
Oh awesome, so glad this worked out so well for you!!
Mahi-mahi fish tacos are our new fav. Thank you. We add a little pineapple to the salsa! Delicious!
Incredible recipe! Quick, healthy and delicious. I didn’t have mangos so I substituted peaches instead and omitted the black beans and served with sweet potato fries. Kudos— this is going into my make again file!
Awesome Dina, thanks so much for trying!
Really great combination of flavors. Will be making this again!
Awesome Ava!!
This recipe was spot on. As a native So Cal, definitely legit ingredients and covered all the accoutrements of fish tacos. I make this for my clients regularly, we get mahi mahi fresh here in the spring. But I also use the frozen ones from Costco when we can’t get it fresh. Thank you for such a well put together recipe.
Used the seasoning for mahi mahi and tilapia and it was really good! I made a chipotle aioli and a guac for my dressings, but I’d use this recipe again for sure. Thanks!
Recipe was great!
Great, thanks Shawn!!