Over the summer my mom and I took a fish-themed cooking class where we made fried catfish, along with several other dishes. As my mom told the entire room that her daughter goes to college in Washington, D.C. and loves food, I was busy frying away over a hot vat of oil. Catfish is usually seen served in this fried manner, but sometimes the whole thing can turn out very dry and under-seasoned. So instead of frying my catfish, I decided to sauté it with a little flour to get that breaded feel without losing the moisture that can be lost with heavy coating.
Un-Fried Catfish
1/3 pound catfish
1 tablespoon Earth Balance, or equivalent
Squeeze of half a lemon
1 small garlic clove, finely chopped or minced
1/2-1 tablespoon whole wheat flour
Serves 1
Pour the flour onto a plate and turn the fish over to lightly coat. Heat a pan on medium and add the Earth Balance and garlic, and let sit for a minute. Place the fish in the pan and let it cook on each side for 4-5 minutes, or until fully cooked. Top the fish with a squeeze of lemon as it’s cooking and serve with the lemon for garnish.
It was my first time making fish this way and I really enjoyed the light crispness from the flour. I served it with a jumbo-sized yam, perfect for this incredible fall weather.
-M
delectable living 