Pats Southern Fried Panfish Recipes

PAN FRIED FISH

Steps:

• Heat a heavy pan over medium high heat.
• Season fish on meat side with salt and pepper. Lightly dredge fish in flour and shake off excess. When pan is good and hot, add Canola oil followed immediately by 1 tablespoon butter. As soon as foaming subsides, place fish in pan with the skin side down. Jiggle pan for the first 10 seconds to keep the fish from sticking. Cook until golden crust forms on meat. Carefully turn fish away from you and again jiggle pan for the first few seconds. Cook until skin turns golden brown. Remove to a warm plate.
• Pour out the cooking fat, add remaining butter and quickly fry the capers. Remove pan from the heat, add lemon juice to pan and swirl. Pour sauce over the fish and serve.

PAT'S SOUTHERN-FRIED PANFISH

Steps:

• Allow the fillets to marinade in salt water (use all the quart of water except for 4 tablespoons), using the table salt, for 3 hours in the refrigerator.
• After marination, pat the fillets very dry with paper towels. Pour one cup of the flour into a small paper bag and drop in the fillets, one at a time, and coat them lightly, shaking off any excess flour. Reserve this flour for later use. Lay the fillets out on a piece of wax paper and allow them to sit for 20 minutes.
• In a large skillet, heat the shortening until a few small drops of water crackle loudy in it.
• Using a fork or whisk, beat the eggs and the 4 tablespoons of water together in a medium-sized bowl for at least 20 seconds and set aside. This will be your "drench".
• Mix together the flour from the bag, all remaining flour (1 cup), the kosher salt, the corn meal and the white pepper on a platter. This will be your "dredge".
• Prepare one fillet at a time for frying by first dipping it in the egg "drench". Allow most of this to drip off and then dredge it in the flour mix on both sides. Shake very lightly to remove any notable hunks of flour and corn meal.
• Carefully lay each fillet into the very hot shortening. If it does not begin to fry immediately, your shortening is not hot enough! Do not crowd the fillets in the skillet -- do as many batches as necessary to accommodate this.
• Allow each fillet to fry until lightly browned on the first side and then carefully turn it to the other side. When each fillet is lightly browned on both sides (about 7-10 minutes total), the fish is done. It should be very white and flakey in the thickest part of the fillet.
• Serve with ketchup and/or tartar sauce as an entree, or, on sandwiches.

PAN-ROASTED FISH FILLETS WITH HERB BUTTER

Steps:

• Pat fillets dry with a paper towel. Season on both sides with salt and pepper.
• Heat a heavy 10-inch nonstick or cast-iron skillet over high heat. When the pan is hot, add the oil. Place the fillets in the pan, skin side down (if applicable), laying them down away from your body. If fillets have skin, press down gently with a spatula for about 20 seconds to prevent curling.
• Lower heat to medium and let sizzle until fish is golden and caramelized around edges, about 2 to 3 minutes. Carefully flip fillets and add butter and thyme to pan. Tilt pan slightly to let the melted butter pool at one end. Use a spoon to baste the fish with the pooled butter. Continue basting until golden all over and cooked through, 45 to 90 seconds more, depending on the thickness of your fish. Serve immediately with chopped parsley (if using) and lemon wedges.

PAT'S PAN-FRIED CATFISH

Steps:

• Dry your catfish filets with paper towels.
• Pour 1 cup of the flour on a plate and "dust" the filets and set them aside on another plate for about half an hour. (This process helps to keep the coating on the fish as they fry).
• Next, heat the shortening in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
• Set up a shallow medium-sized bowl and a dinner plate for "drenching" and "dredging" the fillets.
• In the bowl, break the eggs and beat them a bit, then add the buttermilk and the lemon juice and whisk these ingredients a few seconds until blended.
• On the plate, pour the remaining cup of flour, cornmeal, garlic salt, thyme, table salt, baking soda, and fennel (if you're using it). Mix it up with a fork or with your fingers.
• Dip a fillet into the liquid, coating it totally, and then allow it to drip off a bit. Then, roll it carefully in the flour/cornmeal mix until it is coated all over. Carefully lay the fillet in the hot oil. It should start frying immediately -- if not, your oil is not hot enough!
• Repeat this process until you have half of the fillets in the pan. You don't want to crowd them so plan on doing the fish in two separate batches.
• When the fillets have turned a golden brown on the bottom side, carefully turn them to fry the other side. Remove them to a plate with some paper towels on it once they are golden brown all over (about 3-4 minutes for each side). (The fillets should be snow-white in the thick portion of the fillet, and the meat should "flake apart" when pulled apart with a fork).
• Serve either as a sandwich, or, plate up the fish with side dishes (I like good coleslaw and baked beans with my catfish). A tangy tartar sauce is also good with fried catfish. Enjoy!
• NOTE: Pan-fried catfish makes an EXCELLENT breakfast, along with fried potatoes, when you're camping!