Will's Spicy New Orleans Catfish Fries

34 Reviews

Prep: 10 min
Cook: 3 min
Ready In: 20 min

“Discovered this recipe while I was a consultant to one of the long time landmark New Orleans restaurants 20 years ago. It's still my all-time favorite catfish recipe and I have closely guarded the recipe till now. I hope others will enjoy it as much as I have.” - by WILL321

Ingredients

1 (10 ounce) fillet frozen catfish
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
1/2 cup corn flour
salt and pepper to taste
1 quart oil for frying

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Metric US

Original recipe yields 2 serving

Directions

Lay catfish fillet horizontally on cutting board. Cut thin 1/4 inch wide strips from the filet at a 45 degree angle. This is easy if your knife is sharp, and the filet is partly frozen.
Dust fish strips moderately with cayenne pepper, and gently tumble together to evenly coat all strips. They should look pink all over when you are through. On the Bayou, this is called a dry marinade. Place catfish strips on a plate or pan, and set aside for a few minutes to thaw.
Heat oil in deep-fryer to 365 degrees F (185 degrees C). Place enough corn flour to bread your catfish on a bowl or plate, and season with salt and black pepper.
Place thawed catfish into seasoned corn flour, and tumble gently until all strips are evenly coated. Deep fry in hot oil for about 3 minutes, or until done. Fish should be golden brown, slightly crisp outside, and moist and flaky inside when done.

Nutrition

Amount Per Serving (2 total)

Calories
371 cal
19%

Fat
15.2 g
23%

Carbs
35.4 g
11%

Based on a 2,000 calorie diet

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Reviews (34)

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E J

Feb. 22, 2008

"Woooo hooo! Finally, a base recipe which allowed me to make the catfish I've always wanted! The cayenne dry marinade was fabulous, and cutting the fillets while frozen made for skinny and ultimately..." See more crispy finished "fries." I coated in a mixture of fine organic cornmeal, fine flour, seasoned salt, granulated garlic, onion powder, and a little more cayenne for extra kick. Crunchy, delicious, and very addictive, even for my toddler grandson. Frying catfish may not be "rocket science" (to quote a previous reviewer,) but if it were? This recipe made it into orbit for me! Thanks for posting!"

Dasisalles

Nov. 22, 2006

"My yankee super market didn't have any corn flour so I substituted fine corn meal. But they did have fresh farm-raised catfish fillets. I served it as a sandwich on toasted hard rolls slathered with c..." See morereole tarter sauce. With cole slaw on the side it made a great dinner."

Wilemon

Oct. 31, 2006

"This was good but thought could use more seasonings so after frying one for taste I added some garlic powder, onion powder, and seasoning salt to the corn flour. Do think I will continue to use my mi..." See morexture of cornmeal with a bit of flour."

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