Nothing's better than a good fish fry for fall!  If you want to save oil, fry the hushpuppies in the same oil BEFORE the catfish.  Then you don't have them tasting fishy.  You can use either a chicken fryer or a deep fryer ...your choice.  If catfish is'nt your cup of tea, you can use flounder, talapia, or whatever fish you prefer. Enjoy!  Cheryl

  • 1 1/2 pounds catfish fillets, cut on the diagonal into 1-inch strips
  • 1/2 cup buttermilk
  • 2 tablespoons Creole mustard
  • 1 tablespoon Old Bay Seasoning
  • 1 tablespoon minced garlic
  • 2 teaspoons red hot sauce
  • Vegetable oil, for frying
  • 1 cup flour
  • 2/3 cup cornmeal
  • 1 tablespoon salt

Place the catfish in a glass bowl. In a second glass bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, mustard, Old Bay, garlic and hot sauce and pour over the fish. Stir to thoroughly coat, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Prepare the Hushpuppies. 

Preheat 3/4-inch of oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy cast iron skillet to a temperature of 350 degrees. If you used the deep fryer, decrease the temperature to 350 degrees.

Remove the fish from the refrigerator. Combine the flour, cornmeal, and salt in a re-sealable plastic food storage bag and shake to blend. Using a fork, remove the fish fingers, a few pieces at a time, from the marinade, allowing excess marinade to fall from the fish. Transfer the fish to the flour-cornmeal mixture and toss to coat. Transfer to a plate and repeat with the remaining fish.

Fry the fish, in batches if necessary, turning to promote even browning, until golden brown, crispy, and cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a paper-lined plate to rest briefly before serving hot.

Hushpuppies:

  •  Vegetable oil, for frying
  • 1 cup yellow cornmeal
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 1 large onion, grated
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped green onions
  • 2 jalapenos, seeded and minced

Preheat a deep-fryer/chicken fryer; fill with oil to about 3/4 of the way full to a temperature of 375 degrees. While the oil is heating, combine the cornmeal, flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, baking soda and black pepper in a mixing bowl and whisk to combine. In a second mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, grated onion, green onions and jalapenos. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir just until a batter comes together. Be careful not to overmix.

When the oil is hot, drop 1 1/2 tablespoons of the batter into the hot oil and fry, turning occasionally, until golden brown on all sides and cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove using a slotted spoon and let rest on a paper lined plate briefly before serving hot. Repeat with remaining batter.