Pan-Fried Catfish
By America's Test KitchenPublished on October 26, 2011
Yield
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour ½ cup fine-ground cornmeal Salt and ground black pepper ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper 2 large eggs 2 - 3 cups vegetable oil 2 catfish fillets (about 12 ounces each), skin and dark fatty flesh just below skin trimmed, fillets cut in half lengthwiseLemon wedges
Before You Begin
To minimize splatters and maximize safety, use a Dutch oven with sides at least 5 inches high (not a regular skillet) when pan-frying the fish.
Instructions
- Set a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet, place the sheet on the middle oven rack, and heat the oven to 200 degrees. Place 1/2 cup flour in a wide, shallow dish. In a separate wide, shallow dish, mix together the remaining 1/2 cup flour, cornmeal, 1 tea-spoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and cayenne. In a third shallow dish, whisk the eggs with 1 tablespoon oil until uniform.
- Pat the fish fillets dry with paper towels and sprinkle each side with salt and pepper to taste. Drop the fish into the flour and shake the dish to coat. Shake the excess flour from each piece, then, using tongs, dip the fillets into the egg mixture, turning to coat well and allowing the excess to drip off. Coat the fillets with the cornmeal mixture, shake off the excess, and lay them on another wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet.
- Heat 1/2 inch of oil in a large, heavy-bottomed Dutch oven over high heat until the oil reaches a temperature of 400 degrees. (The oil should not smoke, but it will come close.) Place two catfish fillets in the oil and fry, turning once, until golden brown, about 4 minutes. Adjust the heat as necessary to keep the oil between 385 and 390 degrees. Remove the fillets from the oil with a slotted spoon and lay them on a plate lined with several layers of paper towel; blot to help remove any excess oil. Transfer the fried fish to the wire rack in the warm oven. Bring the oil back to 400 degrees and repeat the cooking process with the remaining fish fillets. Serve the fried fish immediately with either lemon wedges or dipping sauce.
Yield
Serves 4Ingredients
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
½ cup fine-ground cornmeal
Salt and ground black pepper
⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 large eggs
2 - 3 cups vegetable oil
2 catfish fillets (about 12 ounces each), skin and dark fatty flesh just below skin trimmed, fillets cut in half lengthwise
Lemon wedges
Ingredients
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
½ cup fine-ground cornmeal
Salt and ground black pepper
⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 large eggs
2 - 3 cups vegetable oil
2 catfish fillets (about 12 ounces each), skin and dark fatty flesh just below skin trimmed, fillets cut in half lengthwise
Lemon wedges
Ingredients
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
½ cup fine-ground cornmeal
Salt and ground black pepper
⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 large eggs
2 - 3 cups vegetable oil
2 catfish fillets (about 12 ounces each), skin and dark fatty flesh just below skin trimmed, fillets cut in half lengthwise
Lemon wedges
Why This Recipe Works
We first chose farm-raised, freshwater fillets for our pan-fried catfish recipe. We cut the fillets down the middle so that each portion had both a thin tail end and a thicker middle, ensuring that each fillet half cooked at the same rate. We also removed the skin and the dark fatty tissue that lay directly underneath it. While the skin wasn’t offensive, the dark fatty tissue was very fishy tasting and unappealing. For the coating for our pan-fried catfish recipe, dusting the fish with flour, dipping it in an egg wash, then dusting it with cornmeal (known as a three-stage or bound breading) produced a crisp, crackling crust that held up long enough for us to serve and eat the fish.
Before You Begin
To minimize splatters and maximize safety, use a Dutch oven with sides at least 5 inches high (not a regular skillet) when pan-frying the fish.
Instructions
- Set a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet, place the sheet on the middle oven rack, and heat the oven to 200 degrees. Place 1/2 cup flour in a wide, shallow dish. In a separate wide, shallow dish, mix together the remaining 1/2 cup flour, cornmeal, 1 tea-spoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and cayenne. In a third shallow dish, whisk the eggs with 1 tablespoon oil until uniform.
- Pat the fish fillets dry with paper towels and sprinkle each side with salt and pepper to taste. Drop the fish into the flour and shake the dish to coat. Shake the excess flour from each piece, then, using tongs, dip the fillets into the egg mixture, turning to coat well and allowing the excess to drip off. Coat the fillets with the cornmeal mixture, shake off the excess, and lay them on another wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet.
- Heat 1/2 inch of oil in a large, heavy-bottomed Dutch oven over high heat until the oil reaches a temperature of 400 degrees. (The oil should not smoke, but it will come close.) Place two catfish fillets in the oil and fry, turning once, until golden brown, about 4 minutes. Adjust the heat as necessary to keep the oil between 385 and 390 degrees. Remove the fillets from the oil with a slotted spoon and lay them on a plate lined with several layers of paper towel; blot to help remove any excess oil. Transfer the fried fish to the wire rack in the warm oven. Bring the oil back to 400 degrees and repeat the cooking process with the remaining fish fillets. Serve the fried fish immediately with either lemon wedges or dipping sauce.
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