Blackened (Cat) Fish Tacos

Before I can share the recipe, I think I have to explain a little on how we acquired the fish.

The husband went fishing noodling (the most primitive form of fishing known to man.) For those of you that have never heard of noodling, it's basically fishing with your hand. People usually do this type of fishing in the lake or rivers. The "fisherman" swims around the banks looking for holes that catfish may live in. When he finds a catfish in a hole he tries to get the fish to bite his hand so he can pull the fish out of the hole. Sounds fun right!? Don't worry, I think it's stupid too. Anyway, once the fish opens it's mouth to bite, the "fisherman" sticks his hand in its mouth and tries to get his fingers out through the gills so he can stick his other hand in the hole and grab his fingers - making a lock of sorts. Then, out comes the catfish.

So, that's how we got the meat used to make Blackened Catfish Tacos!

I made some firecracker slaw and salsa fresca for the topping.

Firecracker Slaw:

 

Ingredients:

• 1/2 head red cabbage - thinly sliced
• 1/2 cabbage - thinly sliced
• 1/2 dill pickle spear - seeds removed and finley diced, plus a T of pickle liquid
• 1 T malt vinegar
• 1/4 C chipotle mayo
• 1 t sugar
• 1 t celery seed
• fresh lemon juice and sea salt to taste

Slice the cabbages and put in a small bowl.

Mix the remaining ingredients together and then pour on the cabbage. Stir until coated and refrigerate.

Salsa Fresca

Ingredients:

• 1 tomato - diced
• 1 small onion - diced
• 1/2 bell pepper - diced
• 1 jalapeno - diced
• 1/2 bunch cilantro - diced
• fresh lemon juice to taste

Simply dice all the ingredients, mix in a small bowl and toss with a little lemon juice.

Blackened Catfish Tacos
Rinse meat and pat dry. Season the meat with freshly ground black pepper, Essence of Emeril and red pepper.

Heat peanut oil in a cast iron skillet until very hot, about 10 minutes. Place seasoned filets in hot oil and cook 3-5 minutes on each side. Remove from oil and set on paper towel to drain grease.

Heat a flour tortilla, put a little chipotle mayo on it, top with several blackened catfish filets, then top with firecracker slaw and salsa fresca.I think cheese makes everything better, so I added a little shredded cheese to mine.

ENJOY! Now all you have to do is noodle a catfish!

And since we're on the subject of noodling...here's a little fun fact for you. The 11th Annual Okie Noodling Tournament is THIS weekend in Pauls Valley!

So here are a couple of sites for your noodling enjoyment:
www.okienoodling.com
www.paulsvalley.com/noodling