Cajun Catfish

This year for Christmas I received a couple of All-Clad fry pans from my beautiful wife and a cookbook from my thoughtful son.  In this season of giving, the two of them found something for me that they are sure to enjoy for years to come...


Prep Time:  10 minutes
Total Time:  30 minutes
Servings:  4

Ingredients:

4  6-ounce fresh catfish fillets, about 1/2 inch thick

3 to 4 teaspoons blackened seasoning

2/3 cup panko bread crumbs

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium onion, diced (1/2 cup)

1 medium red or yellow sweet pepper, diced (3/4 cup)

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 cups of cooked barley or rice (about 1 cup dry)

Method:

• Rinse fish; pat dry with paper towels.  Sprinkle fish with 2-3 teaspoons of the blackened seasoning.  Place bread crumbs in a shallow dish.  Coat both sides of fish with the bread crumbs.
• In a large skillet or fry pan cook fish fillets in 2 tablespoons of the hot oil over medium-low to medium heat about 6-8 minutes or until golden brown and fish flakes easily when tested with a fork, carefully turning once.  Remove from pan and keep warm.
• Add onion, sweet pepper, garlic and the remaining 1 tablespoon oil to skillet.  Cook and stir until vegetables are tender.
• Stir barley or rice and the remaining 1 teaspoon blackened seasoning into vegetable mixture; heat through. 
• Divide mixture evenly onto 4 warmed dinner plates.  Serve fish over mixture.

Recipe Links:

Here is a great recipe for a homemade blackened seasoning.

Shrimp-and-Crab Gumbo

The other day I found myself thumbing through an old issue of Coastal Living magazine.  In that Fall 2010 issue I found this recipe.  Enjoy!

Prep Time:  40 Minutes

Cooking Time:  1 hour, 15 minutes

Servings:  12

Ingredients:

1/4 cup vegetable oil, divided

1 (16 ounce) package andouille sausage, sliced

(next time I will use fresh sausage with casings removed)

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 white onion, chopped

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 green bell pepper, chopped

4 large celery ribs, chopped

1 medium head of garlic, about 8 cloves, crushed

3 cups fish stock or chicken broth

1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained

1 pound fresh okra, sliced and baked

6 fresh thyme sprigs

2 bay leaves

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/8 teaspoon ground cayenne

1/4 teaspoon old bay seasoning

2 teaspoons fresh lime juice

2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined if desired

1 pound jumbo lump crabmeat

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves

1 tablespoon file powder, optional 

Okra is a key ingredient in any Gumbo.
The dish derives its name from the Bantu word for Okra (kingombo).

Method:

• Pre-bake fresh okra for 20 minutes or so in a 325 degree oven. Transfer to a plate.
• Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large heavy soup pot.  Add sausage, and cook 3-4 minutes or until browned on all sides. Transfer sausage to a plate.
• Add remaining oil to drippings in pot to equal 1/4 cup. Whisk in flour. Cook over low heat, stirring frequently, 20 minutes or so until mixture is a dark reddish-brown. This oil and flour mixture is called a "Roux" and adds a richness of flavor to the dish.  If you burn the roux by mistake, through it away and start the dish again.



The vegetable "Holy Trinity" of celery, bell peppers, and onions (w/garlic).

• Stir in onion and next 4 ingredients, and saute over medium heat 10 minutes or until softened. Stir in stock and next 9 ingredients. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, covered, 45 minutes.
• Stir in sausage and shrimp, and cook 5 minutes or until shrimp are done.  Add crab, and simmer until heated. Remove bay leaves, and stir in parsley and file powder.
• Serve gumbo over rice or grits. Season with hot sauce, if desired.

File powder, also called gumbo file, is a spicy herb made from the dried and ground leaves of the sassafras tree. Native to eastern North America, it adds a distinctive, earthy flavor and texture.  It can also act as a thickening agent.

Recipe Links:

Here is a link to the original recipe as published in Coastal Living, October 2010.

Here is a video of Scott Hargrove making gumbo.

JoJo's Chicken Potpie

I got a call the other day from my sister asking me if I knew of a good Chicken Potpie recipe. She had some time on her hands and thought it would be fun to try out something new.

Well...I've never made a Chicken Potpie...and did not have a recipe.

I felt terrible, she was reaching out for help, and me, the only one in the family who posts stolen recipes on the web, was of no use...

You know what they say, "Nothing Stolen, Nothing Gained", so I decided to give Chicken Potpie a try.

A singularly exquisite pie con pollo

Well, I quickly gave myself an education on the matter and actually came up with this recipe on my own - well, not really, I stole bits and pieces from here and there, and what can I say...I think we all "gained" from the experience...

Prep Time:  30 Minutes

Cook Time:  1-1/2 hours (to pre-cook chicken and filling) then 30-40 minutes (for the pie)

Servings:  One Pie serves 6.  There is enough filling to make two pies.

Ingredients:

1 large chicken (about 4 pounds)

2 quarts water or broth

2 bay leaves

4 cloves garlic

3 carrots, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

3 ribs celery, cut in 1/2 inch pieces

1 large onion, cut in 1/2 inch pieces

1 cup baked okra

2 tsp salt

1 tsp white pepper

1 tsp cayenne

1 tsp black pepper

1 tsp paprika

1 tbl herb de provence

3 tbl fresh tarragon, chopped

2 tbl fresh rosemary, chopped

1 stick butter (4oz)

1/2 cup flour

1/3 cup milk or cream

1 box (15 oz) refrigerated pie crusts, softened as directed on box

Preparing the filling:

• Wash and clean chicken and put into a dutch oven along with 2 quarts of cold water and bay leaves.  Bring to a simmer.
• Add the cloves of garlic, cover, and continue to simmer for 1 hour.
• While the chicken is cooking, prep the veggies, spices, and bake the okra.
• Remove the chicken.  Strain and reserve broth in one bowl and pick chicken and reserve meat in another.  
• Add butter to empty dutch oven and saute carrots, celery, and onion over medium heat for about 5 minutes.  Add dry spices and continue to saute another minute or so.
• Make a roux by adding the 1/2 cup of flour to the mix, and cook for another 5 minutes at medium heat.  Be careful not to burn the roux.
• Add the 2 quarts of reserve stock back into mix, 2 cups at a time.  Simmer, uncovered, 30 minutes or so.
• Add milk, chicken, okra, and fresh herbs and simmer for an additional 15 minutes.  Turn off heat and let filling cool slightly.

Preparing and cooking the Pies:

• Heat oven to 425 degrees F.  Fit pie crust into 9-inch glass pie plate.
• Spoon chicken filling into crust-lined pie plate.  Top pie with second crust; seal edges and flute.  Cut slits in several places in top crust.
• Cover crust edge with a pie shield (or 2-to 3-inch wide strips of foil) to prevent excess browning; remove foil during last 10 minutes of baking.
• Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until crust is golden brown.  Let stand 15 minutes before serving.

Recipe Links:

Here is a great chicken and biscuits post that provided the inspiration for the filling.  This is a great dish on its own and is a crowd pleaser.

Here is your classic Chicken Potpie and is about as simple as you can get.

This one provided the inspiration for the single serving Ramekin potpies.