Monday, June 6, 2011

One Cool Cat(fish)

It has been SO hot in Texas--triple digit heat already which is somewhat unusual for June.  I'm doing everything I can to keep the house cool, and that means cooking outside, not inside.



I was perusing recipes on one of my favorite recipe websites and was intrigued by this recipe for pan-fried catfish on the grill.  It was crispy on the outside and flaky on the inside!



Skillet-Fried Catfish
Slightly adapted from Allrecipes.com
(click here to print)

1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup cornmeal
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
4 (8 oz.) catfish fillets or 2 lbs. total
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup vegetable oil

Preheat your gas grill to medium hot heat.  Put 2 Tbsp. butter and  2 Tbsp. oil in EACH of two cast-iron skillets and heat over the flame for 5 to 10 minutes or until the oil is sizzling around the edges.  If you don't have two skillets, you will have to cook the fish in batches.



In a ziptop bag, combine the flour and seasonings.  Season the catfish lightly with Essence or salt and pepper first, then add catfish fillets one at a time to the bag.


Shake to coat each fillet with the seasoned flour and carefully lay the catfish fillets in the skillets.



Put the cover down on the grill and cook for 5-7 minutes per side.  The rule of thumb I use to ensure moist, flaky fillets is 10 minutes total cooking time for each inch of  thickness for fresh fish.



Drain the fish on paper towels and serve with a wedge of lemon and your favorite tartar sauce.


I served mine with grilled vegetable medley.


That's one cool way to make catfish!

Linking to:


Hunk of Meat Mondays










8 comments:

Leah Beyer said...

These look down right amazing! Love the idea of frying on them on the grill when it hot. Thanks for linking up to Hunk of Meat Monday !

Cindy said...

Oh my! That looks and sounds so good!!! We have huge catfish here in Manitoba in the lakes and rivers, but nobody eats them, there must be a reason.
Hugs, Cindy

Val said...

Looks incredible!

Erin @ Art+Food+Life said...

I've never heard of frying fish in a butter oil combo. I bet it adds lots of flavor!

Vicki V @ blestnest.blogspot.com said...

Erin, it DOES add great flavor but the main reason I mixed butter and oil was to lesson the chance that the butter would burn. I don't understand the chemistry behind it, but it seems to work!

Gypsy Heart said...

Oh, I LOVE fried catfish! Love any seafood ~ :-)
You are cool to cook it outside on the grill. I hate that we're having this much heat so early...not fun!

xo
Pat

Katie @ This Chick Cooks said...

That catfish looks so good. It is much better to cook outside when it is so hot instead of heating up the house. Your pictures are making my mouth water. I wanted to invite you to come over and share your recipe at These Chicks Cooked Recipe Spotlight today. Have a great day :)
Katie

Unknown said...

oh, man! this catfish looks so mouthwatering-ly delicious! i think i may have to make it for dinner tonight! :D

thanks so much for linking up to mangia mondays!

-kristin