Southern Fried Cat Fish – Classic Southern Fried Catfish dipped in buttermilk and breaded in spicy seasoned cornmeal and fried to perfection.
Fried cat fish conjures thoughts of finger-licking goodness and crispy crunch in every bite. When I bought these fish fillets at the market, my intention was to bake them with garlic and salt. But I couldn’t stop thinking about fried fish, buckets of fish with hush puppies dipped in tartar sauce…that did it for me – sometimes nothing can satisfy that desire but the real thing.
The baked version has been put on the back burner – for another day and time. So sorry healthy my healthy peeps.
Although not the healthiest choice, deep frying fish adds great flavor and wonderful crispiness to any fish. When it’s done right, it can’t be beat. This Southern Fried Cat Fish is one of my favorite ways of frying fish.
I remember living next to a local seafood restaurant and would try ordering everything, especially fried fish. Yep! I ate my way through the menu- from fried fish to calamaris.
Sadly, those days are long gone. Now, I have to balance out my meals. I’m not a young chick anymore. But I have to indulge occasionally. It’s pretty hard for me to completely give up a meal I really enjoy.
This recipe is made with very minimal ingredients, the Cat fish fillets are dipped in buttermilk and coated with a seasoned cornmeal – with granulated garlic, onion powder, cracked pepper, cayenne pepper and salt.
This is gluten free – no added flour. I find the cornmeal adds a gritty crunch to the fish. Which adds to it’s appeal.
If you don’t care too much for cat fish, then replace it with another white fish; tilapia or red snapper works just as well. Also you can cut in strips or bite size portions if desired.
Serve with it homemade tartar sauce here or store bought version.
Tips For Southern Fried Cat Fish
- For the best possible results, start by making sure that your fish is absolutely fresh. A fresh fish should smell like clean water. Do not buy fish that has fishy odor. Cooking won’t improve it. Speaking from experience here.
- IF it’s your first time frying fish you might want to cut the fish in smaller pieces or chunks. Strips. Whole fish fillet or large chunks can be somewhat daunting.
- Overcrowding your cast iron or deep- fryer will lower the oil’s temperature, which can result in soggy fish. So stick with a few pieces at a time.
- For crispier results, I most often use cast iron skillet or a dutch oven. They retain heat more.
- Before frying, the temperature should be around 375 degrees. This ensures that the batter reacts and creates a barrier between the oil and the food. If your oil’s temperature is too low, the food will soak up oil.
- Once you remove the fish out of the fryer, place them on a metal cooling rack above a sheet pan. It prevents it from getting soggy.
Watch How to Make It
Southern Fried Cat Fish
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup cornmeal
- 1 Tablespoon Granulated garlic
- 1 Teaspoons onion powder
- 1/2 -1 teaspoons cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon white or black pepper
- 2 teaspoons salt adjust to taste
- 1 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 4 6-ounce catfish fillets (cut in small chunks)
Spicy Tartar Sauce
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon finely diced onion
- 1/2-1 teaspoon mustard sauce
- 3 tablespoons hot pepper relish
- 1 tablespoon granulated garlic
- Dash hot sauce
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat a deep-fryer to 375 degrees F or In a large, sauce pan pour vegetable oil - half way .
- In a large bowl mix together, cornmeal,garlic , onion powder, cayenne, salt and pepper.
- If fish fillet too large cut into bite-sized pieces.
- Dip each strip in buttermilk and lightly deep into the remaining corn meal.
- Deep fry the fish in the fryer or saucepan a few pieces at a time, moving them around so they don't stick. Fry until brown and crispy, about 3 to 4 minutes or more depending on the size. These big chunks took about 6 minutes per side.
- Remove from the fryer with a slotted spoon place on a cookie rack to ensure crispness.. Repeat with the remaining fillets and season the fish with lemon juice. Serve with spicy tartar sauce
Spicy Tartar Sauce
- In a serving bowl combine mayonnaise, garlic, hot pepper relish, onions, mustards,dash hot sauce ,salt and pepper .Cover with plastic wrap and let the flavors mellow in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour before serving.
Tips & Notes:
- For the best possible results, start by making sure that your fish is absolutely fresh. A fresh fish should smell like clean water. Do not buy fish that has fishy odor. Cooking won't improve it. Speaking from experience here.
- IF it’s your first time frying fish you might want to cut the fish in smaller pieces or chunks. Strips. Whole fish fillet or large chunks can be somewhat daunting.
- Overcrowding your cast iron or deep- fryer will lower the oil's temperature, which can result in soggy fish. So stick with a few pieces at a time.
- For Crispiest result, I most often use cast iron skillet or Dutch oven. They retain heat more.
- Before frying the temperature should be around 375 degrees it ensures that the batter reacts and creates a barrier between the oil and the food. If your oil's temperature it too low, the food will soak up oil.
- Once you remove the fish out of the fryer, place them on a metal cooling rack above a sheet pan. It prevents it from getting soggy.
Nutrition Information:
MC says
Loved this recipe! I used it for snapper, oysters and shrimp. I added some lemon pepper to the mix and that gave it a nice little kick. I didn’t have a problem with the cornmeal coming off. It was PERFECT on my first try. Thank you!
Jack says
Do I use yellow or white corn meal?
ImmaculateBites says
Either works just fine.
Darrel Rhame says
OOOHH Girl, I love the way you think! LOL. Got this ol country boy from Louisiana smacking his lips and dreaming of some tasty catfish!
Sarah says
Why does it say cook time is 58 minutes, but when reading the instructions it says 3-4 minutes per slice?
ImmaculateBites says
I have updated recipe. The cooking time varies – 3-6 minutes per side depending on the size of the fish. Thanks for bringing this to my attention.
Gladys says
Can this be used with any other kinds of fish.
ImmaculateBites says
Hello Gladys. Yes, you could use other kinds of fish, but the cooking time would vary depending on the kind of fish.
Cecelia White says
I would love to have them can you email them to me
Ed Matthews says
What are your thoughts on marinating the fish in milk or 1/2 milk and 1/2 buttermilk overnight. Some people do ya know. Does this recipe contain a lot of Heat?
Harold says
I was wondering the same thing!
Bishop Oaks says
You don’t marinate fish overnight, 30mins is okay for the fish to soak in the marinade (remember it’s fillet, it’ll easily soak in, I’m less than 10mins, and in that case, you might need a deep fryer to get the crisps on the outside, and transfer to your wok,on a low heat to cook on the inside). Nevertheless, you want it firm and crispy on the outside so you don’t want to marinate overnight, believe me. I hope this helps!
KJ says
Agreed. If you buttermilk the fish for more than an hour or two, it will start to dissolve due to the acid and *at best* you’ll have unpleasant mush instead of fish. Chicken (for fried chicken) can go overnight, but not fish.
Brittany says
What kind of cornmeal is best to use when frying the catfish?
ImmaculateBites says
I use regular cornmeal , available in most supermarkets.
Phil Jones says
White Lily white version
Mary Eaton says
Phil
Can I use self rising cornmeal? I use it for my cornbread, or doesnit have to be plain corn meal? I dont use cornmeal mix because it has flour in it.
Mary Kessinger says
Love your catfish recipe! It’s the best! Thanks so much!
ImmaculateBites says
Hi Mary,
Thank you so much ! So happy to hear it worked out well for you.
nelvin mello says
your fryed fish sounds exserlent i am not good at spelling but you sound like a good cook
Della Spencer says
Yummy recipe ImmaculateBites. As soon as i get myself a fillet knife i will cook it up. Really excited.
Lele says
Amazing recipe. Thank you for sharing. I wanna try this recipe
Bleujazz says
Amazing recipe. Thanks for posting, I’ll never use another one.
imma africanbites says
Yaaay! Thank you so much!
Penelope Smith says
My grandmother really loves fried catfish. I want to learn how to make it for her. It is good to know that I should coat the fish in cornmeal. I might want to ask a restaurant that makes fired catfish how to fry it well.
Jeannie Holt says
I’ve never tried to fry fish. Living in Mississippi, there are catfish restaurants all around. However, my husband was in Florida recently and caught a some fish he wanted to fry. This recipe was excellent, even though none of the fish were catfish. It’s in my recipe box now. Thanks!
imma africanbites says
Thank you for the kind words, Jeannie. This sure is a keeper. 🙂
Hanna says
I made this just now with Bob’s Red Mill gluten free corn meal and it came out perfect! I fried the fish in a cast iron skillet to use less oil and doubled the garlic, but otherwise followed the recipe exactly. So crunchy and yummy!!
imma africanbites says
Yaay! Glad it turned out great for your, Hanna. Thanks for taking the time to share your feedback. 🙂
Khadijah says
So I’m googling various fried fish recipes and I stumble upon this one, which is arguably the best I’ve seen. I click the about me page since, well, I must know who I am learning from, only to find out it is MY VERY OWN AUNTY IMMA! I love you so much aunty and I will definitely let you know how this recipe works out!
ImmaculateBites says
OMG! Khadijah? So happy to hear from you, my Sweet Niece. We need to talk. I hear graduation is coming up… SO EXCITED for you. Can’t believe you are going to be a College Graduate- Damn, am getting old!