Fish Recipes

1 lb. smoked bass fillets, flaked
Cajun seasoning
1 brick softened cream cheese
½ cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
¼ cup minced onion
¼ cup seeded, minced jalapeno
2 garlic cloves, minced
Salt and pepper to taste
Hot sauce to taste

Season a pound of bass fillets with your favorite Cajun seasoning. Smoke at 225 degrees for about an hour or until fish is flaky (I prefer apple or pecan wood for fish). Let cool before adding the rest of the ingredients.

When the art of frying bass, or any fish, is mastered, the possibilities for great meals are endless. This recipe builds on the skill of frying fish to create a New Orleans classic – the po-boy.

1 cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons Crystal hot sauce
8 boneless, skinless bass fillets
Peanut or rice oil
2 12-inch French loaves
2 cups fish coating
4 tablespoons remoulade
2 cups shredded iceberg lettuce
½ purple onion, sliced

Mix buttermilk, hot sauce and 2-oz. fillets in a bowl. Let rest in refrigerator for at least 2 hours, or up to a day.

Heat oven to 400 degrees and heat peanut or rice oil to 375 degrees. When oven is ready, place French loaves on a sheet and bake 3 to 4 minutes until crispy; remove from oven. When oil is hot, remove fillets one at a time from the buttermilk and let excess milk drip off. Place each fillet in your favorite fish coating (in a zip-top bag) and shake. Place each fillet in the oil and cook about 5 minutes or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels.

Cut each loaf lengthwise and slather the inside with remoulade (from the store or homemade). Place 4 fillets on the bottom half and top with lettuce and onion. Serve with hushpuppies and/or french fries.

This Cajun dish was inspired by a red fishing trip out of Venice, Louisiana. A staple Cajun dish is redfish on the half shell. Half shell refers to a fillet where the ribs have been removed, but the meat is still attached to the skin and scales. Bass on the half shell is a twist on this Cajun favorite!

4 6oz or larger bass fillets (skin and scales attached)
2 sticks of melted butter
¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon Louisiana Style Hot Sauce
2 tablespoons Cajun seasoning

Preheat grill or smoker to 225 degrees. Pat fillets dry and place skin down on a non-metallic tray. Sprinkle ¼ T of Cajun seasoning on each fillet. Place fillets on grill or smoker skin side down for 10 minutes.  While the fillets are cooking, combine melted butter, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce and remaining Cajun seasoning. 

After 10 minutes, baste each fillet with the butter sauce, let cook 5 more minutes. Baste again. When fish is white and flaky (about 30 minutes total) pull off the grill and baste with the butter sauce one more time. Serve with rice and grilled vegetables. Enjoy!

The Fish
2lbs boneless bass fillets
Cajun seasoning of your choosing
Paprika
Unsalted butter

The Rice
2 cups white rice
4 cups water
2 tablespoons butter
½ cup chopped cilantro
Juice from 2 limes
1 teaspoon salt 

Creole Cowboy Caviar
1 can black beans drained
1 can corn drained
½ purple onion chopped
1 Roma tomato diced
1 jalapeno chopped
½ bell pepper chopped
½ cup chopped cilantro
Cajun seasoning to taste

The Sauce
1 cup sour cream
1 avocado
Juice of 1 lime
1 jalapeno
Dash of hot sauce

The beauty of this recipe is that everything except the fish can be prepped ahead of time so that when it is time to serve, all that is left to be done is quickly cook the fish. 

Start by preparing your Creole Cowboy Caviar. In a large bowl combine all ingredients, mix well, cover, and refrigerate until ready to serve. Now is the time to prepare the rice. 

In a medium sauce pan, combine water, rice, butter, and salt. Bring to a boil. Stir once. Reduce to a simmer and cook for about 12 minutes or until the water is absorbed. Remove from heat, stir in the cilantro and lime juice. Rest until serving. The next step will be to create the sauce (which could also be prepared well ahead of time). In a blender, combine sour cream, 2 halve avocados, the juice of 1 lime, one jalapeno rough chopped, and a dash of hot sauce. Blend until smooth and creamy. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Now for the fish. Make sure the fillets are cold and dry. Generously shake your favorite Cajun seasoning and some paprika on both sides of the fillet. If possible cook the fish outside or in a well ventilated area. Heat a large cast iron skillet to almost white hot. Add a ½ stick of unsalted butter. Once the butter is melted, carefully place fish in skillet, do not over crowd. Depending on the thickness, this should take about 2 minutes per side. Remove fish from skillet and repeat until all fish is cooked. 

The last step is to assemble the bowl. In a bowl, place a generous scoop of rice. Top with the fish, caviar, and finish with the sauce. Enjoy ! 

Late spring and early summer are good times to go fishing with friends and family – run a few jugs, limblines or trotlines on The Natural State’s numerous lakes and rivers. The Mississippi Delta along the White River provides many of these opportunities, and my favorite part is not knowing what is on the end of that bouncing line until I pull it from the water. If I am lucky, it is my target – the flathead catfish, aka yella cat, aka calico cat. No matter what you call them, they have a face only a mother can love. When they land on a dinner plate, your guests will come back for seconds or thirds. More often or not, these large catfish are filleted, portioned and fried to golden perfection, although sometimes I am in the mood for something a little more sloppy. That’s when I turn to these swamp fries.

Flatheads larger than 20 pounds can provide many meals. The fillets are great for a fish fry but I prefer to save the firm belly meat to blacken and add to an etouffee-like sauce for this new-age comfort food.

6 tablespoons flour
6 tablespoons butter
1 onion, diced
3 celery ribs, diced
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon hot sauce
12 oz. light beer
2 cups chicken stock
6 cloves garlic, minced
½ teaspoon thyme
2 bay leaves
Pinch of salt and black pepper
1 lb. flathead belly meat
Cajun seasoning
1 large russet potato per person
Vegetable oil
Parsley
Green onion

Combine flour and butter in a large saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly to create a peanut butter-colored roux, which will take 5 to 8 minutes. When the roux is to your liking, add onion, celery and bell peppers; sauté until tender. Whisk in Worcestershire, hot sauce, ale and chicken stock; bring to a boil. Whisk in garlic, thyme, bay leaves, salt and pepper. Reduce to a simmer, cover and stir frequently.

Heat a separate skillet to high with a touch of butter. Season fish, cut into 1-inch cubes, with your favorite Cajun seasoning. When the butter begins to brown, add fish to the skillet. Cook for about 5 minutes until all edges of fish are golden brown. After about 10 minutes of simmering, add the catfish to the sauce, cook another 5 minutes. Turn off heat, cover, and let rest.

In a pinch, any ol’ bag of frozen french fries will do but I prefer twice-fried, hand-cut russets. Slice potatoes into sticks about a quarter-inch square. Place potatoes in a bowl and rinse with water to remove starch. Let soak in ice water up to 30 minutes. Remove and pat dry. Heat oil to 275 degrees in a skillet. Fry potatoes sticks about 5 minutes, remove, drain and cool (the first fry is to soften and cook the potatoes). Increase oil to 400 degrees. Fry potatoes until golden brown. Remove, drain and dust with Cajun seasoning.

Place a heaping helping of fries onto a plate. Slather with swamp sauce, garnish with parsley and green onion. Wash this meal down with a cold beverage and relive those moments running lines with friends and family.

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
4 to 6 catfish fillets (about 1 pound)

Blackening Seasoning:
2 tablespoons paprika
2 teaspoons Creole or Cajun seasoning
1-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano

For the Etouffee:
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) of unsalted butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup of diced onion
1/2 cup of diced green bell pepper
1/4 cup of diced celery
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 cups seafood or chicken stock/broth
1/4 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
1/4 teaspoon Creole or Cajun seasoning
1/4 pound crawfish tails
1/2 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1/8 cup sliced green onion

Combine all of the blackening seasonings; set aside.

Prepare the etouffee first by melting 1/2 stick of butter in a large skillet over medium heat and stir in the flour; cook and stir for about 4 minutes or until caramel colored. Add the onion, bell pepper and celery; cook another 3-4 minutes or until tender, add the garlic and cook another minute. Slowly stir in the stock or broth until fully incorporated. Add the pepper and Cajun seasoning. Bring mixture to a boil; reduce heat to a medium low simmer, cover and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the crawfish tails, cook and stir until crawfish is heated through; stir in the parsley and green onion, reserving a bit for garnish. Hold over a very low simmer.

Meanwhile, preheat grill and cast iron skillet over the highest setting, until skillet appears ashy, about 10 minutes. Brush catfish fillets with melted butter on both sides and coat with blackening seasoning, pressing seasoning into fish. Place 2 fillets at a time into hot skillet, presentation side down, and cover top of fillet with melted butter. Close grill and allow to cook for about 4 minutes, or until charred on the underside.

With a wide fish spatula, carefully turn fish, and top with additional melted butter, cooking another 4 minutes longer, or until fish is cooked through and flakes easily when tested with a fork. Repeat with all remaining fish fillets. Actual cooking time will depend on the size and thickness of the fillets you are using as well as the consistency of the heat on your skillet. Serve immediately, topping individual servings with the etouffee, and with a garden salad or green vegetable on the side. Pour any remaining butter into ramekins and offer at the table.

Cook’s Notes: May also prepare stovetop with good ventilation, however, do not cover the skillet during the cooking process. I served this over my Cajun Rice Pilaf. If you don’t have access to fresh or frozen crawfish, the etouffee sauce can stand on its own.

1.5 lbs catfish fillets
1 ½ teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons butter
12 corn tortilla

Chipotle Cream
6 chipotle peppers
1 jalapeño
1/4 bunch of cilantro
1 cup Mayo
1 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon minced garlic
Salt to taste

Chipotle Cream Instructions:
In a food processor add all ingredients and pulse until creamy. For best results, refrigerate to allow flavors to blend.

Avocado Cilantro Lime Coleslaw
14 oz coleslaw, bagged
1 1/2 avocados
1/4 cup cilantro leaves
2 limes, juiced
1 garlic clove
1/4 cup water
1 jalapeno
1/2 teaspoon salt
Cilantro to garnish

Avocado Cilantro Lime Coleslaw Instructions:
In a food processor add the jalapeno, garlic, and cilantro and process until chopped.

Add the lime juice, avocados and water. Pulse until nice and creamy.

Take out the avocado mixture and in a large bowl mix it with the coleslaw. It will be a bit thick but it will cover the slaw nicely.

For best results, refrigerate for a few hours before eating to soften the cabbage.

Blackened Fish Tacos Instructions:
In a small bowl, combine the smoked paprika, garlic powder, dried oregano, onion powder, cumin, salt, brown sugar, and cayenne pepper. Sprinkle the mixture over both sides of your fillets, and then rub the seasonings in.

Heat the butter in a heavy-bottomed pan over medium-high heat. Once heated, add in the filets (a few at a time if you can’t fit them all at once). Cook for 3-5 minutes on each side (depending on thickness), or until the outside is blackened and the fish flakes apart easily.

Remove the fish from the heat, and if desired, warm the corn tortillas in the same skillet over medium heat, cooking for about 30 seconds on each side.

Break up the fish into 2-3″ pieces. Stack the tortillas in twos. Distribute the fish evenly between the 6 sets of tortillas, and top with Slaw and Chipotle Cream. Serve.

4 catfish fillets, about 6 ounces each
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup chopped red onion
1/4 cup chopped yellow bell pepper
1/8 cup chopped celery
1 tablespoons Cajun seasoning
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup canola oil
1 cup crackers, crushed
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tsp spicy brown mustard
1 large egg, beaten

Remoulade:
2 tsp hot sauce
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp chopped garlic
1 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons spicy brown mustard
1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning

Remoulade Instructions:
While the cakes are cooking, make the remoulade: In a bowl, stir together the remaining 1 cup mayonnaise, 1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning, 1 teaspoon mustard, hot sauce, lemon juice, and garlic. 

Serve the catfish cakes with the remoulade.

Catfish Cakes Instructions:
Preheat a grill pan over medium-high heat.

Season the catfish on both sides with 1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning, salt, and pepper. Brush the grill pan with some of the canola oil and grill the catfish until cooked through, 4 to 5 minutes on each side. Remove and let cool.

Sautee onion, bell pepper, celery in 2 Tbsp. butter until softened to reduce moister, remove and allow to cool  

Into a large bowl, add the cracker crumbs, 2 tablespoons mayonnaise, mustard, and egg. Shred the fish with a fork and add to the bowl. Add onion, pepper, celery, and fold everything together. Form into 8 small cakes and set them aside.

In a large skillet over medium heat, add the remaining canola oil. When it is hot, add the catfish cakes and cook until browned on each side, 4 to 5 minutes total. Drain on brown paper.