Fried Catfish

Fried Catfish

PREP TIME

15 mins

COOK TIME

10 mins

TOTAL TIME

25 mins

INGREDIENTS

4-6 catfish fillets (purchased from Wild Fork Foods)

1 cup buttermilk

1 cup finely ground yellow cornmeal

½ cup unbleached flour

1 teaspoon cornstarch

Peanut oil for frying

Seasonings:

1 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

½ teaspoon cayenne

1 teaspoon Cajun Seasoning (I have a recipe for homemade Cajun Spice Seasoning in my An American Gal Cookbook)

Coleslaw:

½ head of green or purple cabbage (roughly chopped)

3 leaves of Romaine lettuce or iceberg lettuce (roughly chopped)

1 carrot (grated on the large-sized grate holes)

6 cherry or grape tomatoes (halved)

1/3 cup fresh cilantro (chopped)

1/3 white onion (grated)

salt and black pepper and garlic powder to your taste

2 tablespoons of mayonnaise

1 teaspoon of white wine vinegar

Remoulade Sauce:

½ cup mayonnaise

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

½ teaspoon smoked paprika

2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

3 garlic cloves (pressed)

2 Sweet Gherkins pickles (finely chopped)

2 fresh chives or green onions (chopped)

1 teaspoon Cajun Seasoning

Cayenne pepper (just a pinch)

INSTRUCTIONS

1.    Mix together all the seasonings in a medium-sized bowl and set aside.

2.    Get out a shallow pan and place the catfish fillets into the pan. Pour the buttermilk over the fillets, cover them in a little plastic wrap, and place them in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes.

3.    Get out another long pan and add the cornmeal, the flour, and the cornstarch and stir to blend. Then, add your blended seasonings to your cornmeal-flour mixture and stir that ‘til blended.

4.    Next, get out your 12-inch cast-iron skillet and pour in the peanut oil so it goes about 1/2 -inch up the sides of your frying pan. Now, heat up the oil over a medium-high heat until it’s hot. Once the oil is heated, you can take a pinch of the flour mixture and flick it into the hot oil, and if it sizzles real good, you’re ready to fry. (This is where my sister says, “But what temperature should it be?” Frankly, the sizzle test is plenty accurate enough for me, but if your sister is a stickler and insists upon a thermometer reading, it should read 350ᵒ.)

5.     So, while the oil is heating up in your skillet, remove the catfish fillets from the fridge, gently shake off the buttermilk, and well dredge each fillet in your seasoned cornmeal-flour mixture and place on a wire rack.

6.    Once your oil is hot, lay the fillets into your skillet. You want them to cook evenly, so you don’t want to crowd them. You can fry them in batches. Fry the fillets for 3-4 minutes on each side. ( I use 2 spatulas and gently flip them over to fry on the other side.) Once they are done frying, I place them back onto the wire rack.

7.    Serve immediately with a nice coleslaw, a few lemon wedges, and some zesty Remoulade sauce. YUM!

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