This recipe for Pan Seared Mahi Mahi with Basil Butter is an easy fish recipe for every seafood lover. Fresh Key West Mahi Mahi is seared and served in a lemon butter sauce with julienned basil leaves.
This recipe is low-carb, keto, gluten-free, and paleo-friendly. All ingredients are fresh and unprocessed.
Jump to:
- Fresh Fish From Key West
- The Key to Making Delicious Fish
- About Mahi Mahi
- How To Defrost Mahi
- What You Need For This Mahi Mahi Recipe
- Ingredients for the Basil Butter Sauce
- How to Make The Buttery Sauce
- How to Cook Mahi Mahi on The Stove
- Garnish For Fish
- What Goes with Mahi Mahi?
- Helpful Tips for Cooking Fish
- What To Do With Leftover Fish
- How To Store Leftovers
- Try These Easy Fish Recipes:
- FAQ
- "📖 Recipe"
- 💬 Comments
Fresh Fish From Key West
Florida mahimahi (Coryphaena hippurus) is one of the prized jewels of the Florida Keys.
Mahi mahi is the Hawaiian name for what we call dolphin or dolphinfish in Key Largo. Also known as dorado, the mild pink fish is abundant in the Keys.
When you're in a restaurant in The Keys, your server will ask you if you'd like to hear the daily specials; he or she will undoubtedly utter the words, "Our fresh fish today is Mahi." It's everywhere!
You want to cook and eat mahi mahi fish the day it is caught and with minimal effort, you'll have a restaurant-quality dinner to remember.
The Key to Making Delicious Fish
The secret to making juicy and delicious fish dishes begins with securing the freshest catch available.
The Florida Keys are known for being a popular location for mahimahi fishing.
You can order fresh mahi, spiny lobsters, stone crabs, and yellowtail snappers, online from my friends at Key Largo Fisheries. Everything is fresh and they'll overnight it right to your home.
About Mahi Mahi
Mahi is a big blue and green fish with firm pink flesh. The fish is usually about 3 feet long and weighs 20 to 30 pounds.
Mahi fish has a mild sweet flavor. It does taste like fish, but not too fishy.
The fish holds up well in a skillet and on the grill and it's easy to cook. Its meat is firmer and less flaky than yellowtail or flounder.
How To Defrost Mahi
The easiest way to defrost is to leave the fish on a plate in the refrigerator overnight.
If the Mahi is frozen in a vacuum-sealed bag, you can defrost it in a bowl of cold water in the fridge for about an hour or so.
Loose pieces of fish should be defrosted on a plate in the refrigerator.
Defrosting any fish on the countertop makes it susceptible to bacterial overgrowth and should be avoided.
What You Need For This Mahi Mahi Recipe
Ingredients for the Basil Butter Sauce
You can easily double or triple this recipe. I kept it to a half stick of butter.
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 large garlic clove minced or pressed
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 ½ tablespoons fresh basil leaves stemmed and chopped + whole leaves for garnish
For The Fish
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 ½ pounds mahimahi fillets
- Sea salt and pepper
- 2 lemons, sliced into wedges for serving
How to Make The Buttery Sauce
This sauce is simple to make, and it tastes great.
To make it, combine unsalted butter with fresh lemon juice, a big clove of garlic, salt, pepper, and a few thinly sliced basil leaves in a small pot over low heat.
Give it a whisk, cover the pot, and let it warm while you're preparing the fish.
How to Cook Mahi Mahi on The Stove
Follow these directions to cook mahi in a skillet in under 10 minutes.
- If you have fresh fish, cut away the bloodline running down the center. The skin is tough and should be removed, if present.
- Cut into four equal-sized pieces, 4 to 6 ounces each. Rinse the fish and pat dry with paper towels.
- Salt and pepper the fish on both sides
- Heat a few tablespoons of oil in a cast iron skillet over medium heat. Place fish in the hot skillet.
- Cook for about 4 minutes on the first side without moving.
- Depending on the thickness of the filets, cook another 2-3 minutes on the other side. Do not move the fish; it will sear better if it is not moved.
- Remove from the pan with a spatula. Mahi is also thick enough to pick up with tongs.
Garnish For Fish
When garnishing fish, you should use leaves or herbs that are already in the dish.
Because this dish has basil, select beautiful, whole, and unblemished basil leaves from your basil plant and scatter them over the dish.
Lemon wedges should also garnish the plate.
What Goes with Mahi Mahi?
Try this recipe with one or two of the following sides:
- Mango Pico de Gallo
- Roasted Little Red Potatoes
- Lemon Asparagus Rice
- Roasted Brussels Sprouts
- Cauliflower Rice
- Crispy Roasted Broccoli and Garlic
- Oven Roasted Baby Gold Potatoes
Helpful Tips for Cooking Fish
Cooking mahi mahi on the stove is easy. Make sure your fish is defrosted before cooking to get a good sear on it.
The thickness of the fish will determine how long to cook the mahi.
- Figure 6 ounces per person.
- Defrost the fish before cooking.
- Wash and pat dry the fish with a paper towel before cooking to get a good sear.
- Preheat the pan and oil before adding the fish.
- Let the fish cook without moving it around too much. It only needs to be flipped once.
- The internal temperature with an instant-read thermometer should read 145 degrees Fahrenheit when cooked through.
What To Do With Leftover Fish
Leftover mahimahi with butter basil sauce makes the best breakfast the next day, at least that's how I eat it. You can also make fish tacos wrapped in warm tortillas with shredded cabbage. Or, top a big green salad with the fish, either cold or heated.
How To Store Leftovers
To store leftovers, place the fish in an airtight container for up to two days. You can reheat it in a small hot skillet with a little unsalted butter (or the basil butter sauce) for 2 minutes.
Try These Easy Fish Recipes:
- Oven Roasted Mahi Mahi with Old Bay
- Crispy Pan Fried Mahi Mahi
- Fish Tacos with Creamy Cilantro Lime Salsa
- Baked Yellowtail Snapper
- Seared Yellowfin Tuna with Sesame Dipping Sauce
- Shrimp Tacos with Pico de Gallo
- Pan-Fried Yellowtail
- Blackened Swordfish
If you're in The Keys, you can enjoy some of our famous Stone Crabs with Mustard Sauce with your mahi mahi.
This recipe is for Pan Seared Mahimahi with Basil Butter is adapted from Paula Deen at PaulaDeen.com.
FAQ
In place of mahi, you can use grouper or cod fish. Red snapper or yellowtail, mutton snapper, or hogfish and also be used but the fillets are much thinner. The thinner fish would cook quicker, so cook for 2 minutes on the first side and 1-2 minutes after flipping it.
Wild-caught mahimahi from Key West, Florida is very healthy. It is a lean fish and rich in vitamins B-6, B-12, iron, selenium, calcium, and potassium.
Raw mahi mahi has 112 calories per 4 oz. serving.
Yes, raw mahi mahi has no carbs and 21g of protein per 4 oz. serving.
Mahi has a mild, sweet flavor with a firm texture. The taste is often described as clean, and slightly sweet. Mahimahi's meat is juicy and lean. If mahimahi isn't available, consider using halibut or swordfish as a substitute.
"📖 Recipe"
Seared Mahimahi with Basil Butter
Ingredients
FOR THE SAUCE
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 large garlic clove minced
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 ½ tablespoons fresh basil leaves (about 12 leaves) stemmed and chopped + whole leaves for garnish
FOR THE MAHI
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1.5 pounds wild-caught Mahi fillets, skinless and boneless
- 2 lemons, sliced into wedges for serving
- Sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
FOR THE BASIL BUTTER
- Combine sauce ingredients in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring until the butter melts. Cover the pot and keep it on LOW heat while you cook the fish.
FOR THE FISH
- Cut away the bloodline if you have fresh fish. The skin should be removed if present.
- Cut into four equal-sized pieces, 4 to 6 ounces each. Rinse the fish and pat dry with paper towels.
- Season fish on both sides with salt and pepper.
- Heat oil in a 12" cast-iron or heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat until you can see ripples in the oil; add fish with the smooth side down.
- Cook for 3-4 minutes on the first side. Depending on the thickness of the filets, cook another 2-3 minutes on the other side or until the fish reaches 140 degrees Fahrenheit on an instant-read thermometer.
- Move the fish to individual plates.
- Spoon the warm basil butter over each serving.
- Garnish with whole basil leaves and lemon wedges.
Notes
- Defrost the fish before cooking. The easiest way to defrost is to leave the fish on a plate in the refrigerator overnight. The skin should be removed if present.
- Wash and pat dry the fish with a paper towel before cooking to get a good sear.
- Serve 6 ounces per person.
- The internal temperature with an instant-read thermometer should read 145 degrees F when cooked through.
