Salt Pepper Fried Catfish Food

RESTAURANT-QUALITY FRIED CATFISH

Steps:

• Pat fillets with paper towel
• Place fish in a large baking dish or plastic storage bag, pour in buttermilk; coat well; allow to sit for 10-minutes in refrigerator
• Meanwhile, make tartar sauce; After the tartar sauce is made, coat and cook the fish
• In a large bowl, add cornmeal, salt, pepper and cayenne; stir with fork till blended
• Using a cast-iron, or heavy bottom skillet, pour oil into skillet and heat to medium;
• While oil is heating, take a fillet directly from the buttermilk and place it in the cornmeal; pat the cornmeal on the fillet; coat it all over, twice; repeat with remaining fillets
• Check your skillet; the oil needs to be around 312 - 350ºF; you can sprinkle a few pieces of cornmeal in the oil to see if it sizzles; if it does sizzle, the oil is ready
• Cooking in batches of two fillets, place them in the hot oil; DO NOT MOVE THE FILLETS until they've cooked for 2 1/2 - 3 minutes on one side
• After 2 1/2 -3 minutes, use tongs and flip the fish over and cook for an additional 3 minutes
• Use a thermometer to measure internal temperature; it should be 145ºF
• Remove fillets from oil and place on a paper towel
• Repeat until all fillets are cooked and drained
• Plate fillets and serve with lemon and tartar sauce
• In a small bowl, combine all ingredients; refrigerate until ready to serve

SOUTHERN FRIED CATFISH

Steps:

• In a small bowl, mix buttermilk, water, salt, and pepper. Pour mixture into a flat pan large enough to hold the fillets. Spread fish in one layer over bottom of pan, turning to coat each side, and set aside to marinate.
• In a 2 gallon resealable plastic bag, combine the cornmeal, flour, and seafood seasoning. Add fish to mixture, a few fillets at a time, and tumble gently to coat evenly.
• Heat oil in deep fryer to 365 degrees F (185 degrees C).
• Deep fry fillets until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Avoid overcrowding so fillets have room to brown properly. Fish should be slightly crisp outside, and moist and flaky inside. Drain on paper towels.

SOUTHERN FRIED CATFISH

Steps:

• Heat the peanut oil in a 5-quart Dutch oven over high heat until it reaches 350 degrees F on a deep-fry thermometer. Adjust the heat to maintain the temperature.
• Whisk the cornmeal and flour together in a shallow dish. Combine the seafood seasoning, kosher salt, paprika, and pepper in a small bowl. Season the catfish fillets evenly on both sides with the spice mixture. Pour the buttermilk into another shallow dish. Dip each fillet into the buttermilk, flip once to coat both sides, hold over the pan and allow the excess to drip off. Coat both sides of the fillets in the cornmeal mixture. Set the coated fillets on a cooling rack and let rest for 5 minutes.
• Gently add the fillets, 2 at a time, to the hot oil and fry until golden brown, about 5 to 6 minutes. Remove the fried fillets to a cooling rack set over a newspaper-lined half sheet pan. Repeat method with remaining fillets. Arrange the catfish on a serving platter and serve immediately.

CORNMEAL-CRUSTED CATFISH

Steps:

• Stir together the milk and 1 heaping tablespoon of the House Seasoning. Pour the milk mixture into a shallow baking dish large enough to hold the filets. Spread the filets in an even layer in the dish, turning to coat each side. Let marinate for about 1 hour in a cool place or the refrigerator.
• Pour enough oil into a large Dutch oven to come 2 inches up the side. Clip a deep-fry thermometer to the pot and heat over medium-high heat until the thermometer reaches 370 degrees F.
• Meanwhile, stir together the cornmeal, flour and remaining 1 heaping tablespoon House Seasoning in a paper bag. Working with a few filets at a time, remove them from the marinade, allowing any excess to drip off. Place them in the paper bag and gently turn the bag over several times until the filets are evenly coated with the cornmeal mixture. Remove the filets and place them on a baking sheet while you repeat the process with the remaining filets.
• Working in batches, fry the filets until golden brown and crisp on the outside and moist and flaky inside, adjusting the heat to maintain temperature, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a clean wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet to drain. Serve the filets with lemon wedges.
• Stir together the garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, salt and pepper in a small bowl.

CATFISH..... SALT AND PEPPER CATFISH

Steps:

• Place buttermilk in a 2-quart baking dish; place fillets in buttermilk and allow to marinate for 15 minutes.
• Place oil in a 12 inch cast iron skillet to a depth of about 2 inches. Heat until oil registers 375 degrees F. on an instant-read thermometer.
• In a large, zipper-lock food storage bag, mix remaining ingredients by zipping them inside bag and shaking until well blended. Remove fillets from buttermilk; allow excess liquid to drain.PPlace fillets in bag and shake gently until completely coated.
• Gently shake off excess coating mixture and carefully place into hot oil. Fry until golden brown, about 5 minutes on each side. Drain on paper towels and serve.

FRIED CATFISH

Steps:

• Mix cornmeal, flour, salt, red pepper, garlic powder and black pepper in a shallow bowl. Dredge catfish fillets in flour mixture, shaking off excess.
• Fill a deep fryer, or large deep skillet half full with oil and heat to 375 degrees. Fry fish 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels.

NEELY'S MEMPHIS-STYLE CATFISH

Steps:

• Preheat a deep-fryer to 375 degrees F.
• Mix the cornmeal, paprika and cayenne in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, add the buttermilk and the hot sauce.
• Season the catfish with salt and pepper. Dredge in the buttermilk and then the cornmeal and spice mixture.
• Drop carefully in the hot oil. Fry for 4 minutes until crisp. Remove to a paper towel lined sheet tray. Season with salt and pepper.
• Serve with Remoulade Sauce.
• Mix all the ingredients in a small bowl.

DEEP-FRIED CATFISH (FOOD NETWORK)

Steps:

• Preheat a deep-fryer or pot to 350 degrees F.
• In a large bowl, add the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt and cayenne and whisk to combine.
• Whisk in the beer, being sure to remove any lumps.
• Cut the catfish fillets in half lengthwise to make 2 strips. If desired, cut into bite-sized pieces.
• In a small bowl add the salt, pepper and granulated garlic.
• Dredge the fillets with the salt mixture.
• Dip each strip in the beer batter and add to the fryer, a few at a time, moving them around so they don't stick.
• Fry until brown and crispy, about 3 to 4 minutes.
• Remove from the fryer to a serving platter. Repeat with the remaining fillets and season the fish with lemon juice.