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This is one of my “well stocked pantry” meals. I always have the basics on hand and it comes together quickly. Fish is in the freezer. Rice is in the pantry. Beans are somewhere (I usually cook and freeze my own in can sized portioned bags but sometimes buy salt free beans).
Customize as you like with add-ons. The star here is the fresh garlic oil. It brings all base the parts together. To make it you MUST use freshly pressed garlic in a garlic press. Hand chopped or pre-chopped garlic won’t work. Four cloves pressed into 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil. The juice that the garlic releases when pressed into the oil gives it the vibrant fresh garlic flavor. Pre-chopped garlic has no juice (or much flavor) and chopped garlic leaves the juice behind on the board. If you don’t have a garlic press do yourself this great gift and buy one NOW.
Why you need a garlic press in your kitchen.
Cleaning tip: after you press your garlic put the tool in water and the bits will swell making it easy to peel out and rinse away for storing.
The main base of this dish of course is the fish , black beans and rice. Then the extras are as your taste and calorie budget allow. The extras are what make this such a flavorful and satisfying low calorie air fryer dish.
Entree base amount per serving:
- 3-5 oz white fish of your choice (I keep frozen tilapia on hand but use fish like snapper and flounder when available) cooked with Fiesta style seasoning blend. Mrs. Dash or Trader Joe’s chili lime seasoning are the ones I keep on hand. I use the air fryer but pan sear or baking is a great option.
- cooked white or brown rice
- 1/2 c. or more cooked or canned black beans
- garlic oil to taste
To make garlic oil with lots of flavor, use a garlic press to press one or two cloves directly into the olive oil before using it as a condiment.
Cooking fish in the air fryer
I like to use a foil sheet or air fryer liner for things like this. No cleanup! Because white fish is so lean, spray the bottom of the liner with some nonstick spray (don’t use this spray on the fryer basket directly because it causes a film that is very difficult to remove) then lay the fish over it.
Season with the chili lime seasoning and let cook on 360-370 til flaky. 4-9 minutes depending on thickness.
While it is cooking assemble the dish so it’s ready to garnish when fish is done.
Garnish:
- green onion, sliced into thin rounds
- avocado slices
- fresh lime wedges
- hot sauce
- corn
- salsa
On each plate or bowl, assemble the air fryer cooked fish, drained rinsed and heated black beans and a serving of white or brown rice then drizzle over the fresh garlic oil to taste. Then top with any garnishes you like. It’s delicious without them but toppings are fun!
Looking for other low calorie ideas?
Try my:
Or 70 calorie Dark chocolate pistachio snack cake recipe
