# Feeding the family



## BM_Barrelcooker (May 4, 2011)

Hard to beat some fresh catfish.
Tropical storm Cindy turned em on.


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## Backcountry 16 (Mar 15, 2016)

BM_Barrelcooker said:


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Yummy.


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## sirvenjose (Jan 9, 2013)

Those are some ugly fish but they sure do taste good.


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## Backwater (Dec 14, 2014)

_BM_BarrelCooker_, looks like you have that all figured out! Great job! 

And for those who are still learning and wanted to pick up a few things that will help them get from caught catfish to eating fried catfish nuggets, here is my process from cleaning to cooking them up.

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*Catfish, from hook to dinner*


*Icing them down*

I like to keep a cooler with me, put a 1/2 to a full bag of ice in it and put some water in the ice to make an ice slush. Then drop the catfish in it to super chill them down and after about 30mins, they are easy to clean and filet. It also humanely puts them down. Also, if your son will be handling the fish and even helping to clean them, it might be a good idea to take a pair of diagonal cutting pliers and cut the sharp spines off the fish.

*Skinning a catfish*

Next time, try taking a piece board, at lease 6" wide and maybe 3ft long (like a 2x6 or 2x8). Lay it flat, down on the driveway or ground. I like to use a very sharp filet knife (doesn't have to be very long). Cut the skin all the way around the head of a catfish, from back to belly (without cutting the meat or belly flesh) and back up again. Next, at a point of 6" from one end of the board, lay the catfish, belly down, head facing one end and take a 3"+/- long - 16 penny nail and a heavy hammer and drive the nail thru the top of the head and into the board at least an inch into the wood, but leaving at least a 1/2"+ sticking out of the top of the head..

Next take 2 pairs of pliers, grab the skin with on pair of plies and carefully and slowly start pealing and pulling the skin back away from the head on the body and up off the meat until you get it pulled back at lease a 1/2-1" from the cut line. Then take both pliers at the same time but opposite from each other, grab some skin in both pliers and systematically start pulling the skin down and off of the catfish, like pulling a sox off your leg. You can step on the board in front of the head if the board comes up off the ground (or have your kid step on it). Once the skin is off, you can use the claw side of the hammer to remove the nail. Rinse and scrub the slime off the board so you can use it for a fillet board.

NOTE; You never want to put meat on the slime, since most of the "fishy" taste in a fish comes from the slime. So each stage, I rinse everything off really good before starting the next step, weather prepping catfish or filleting other fish.

*Preparing*

Again, I like to use a sharp, smooth bladed fillet knife. At that point, for catfish, I'll then cut the head off and gut them by putting the point into the anal hole and slicing thru the belly to your head cut and pealing out the guts and swim bladder. Cut off the side (pectorial ) fins with the cutters and knife. Leave the tail.

At that point you have an Okeechobee prepped catfish and ready for breading or batter and dropped into the fryer. The meat can be eaten off the bone just like that or picked off the bone with a fork.

*Fillet*

Taking the prepped fish a step further than Okeechobee style, take that same sharp smooth knife, start from the tail and slowly slice back the meat off the bone, where the knife is tilted towards the backbone and drawl the knife along the bone, feeling the bone to the rib cage, then up around the rib cage, across the back, using the bones as your guide to the end. Do the same thing from underside the fish on the same side as the 1st cut, till you reach the rib cage. At the rib cage, re position the knife from the top and slow cut the meat away from the ribs, feeling the ribs with the knife, until you reach the end of the ribs. You will still be left with the belly meat without the ribs connected to it. The fillet should come off the fish in 1 piece. Flip the fish and repeat on the other side. At this point you'll have 2 nice boneless catfish fillets.

*My favorite breading*

I don't use batter anymore since it creates too much breading and holds a lot of oil in it that I don't need to be eating at my age. So I like it to where the fish is fried with a light coating.

*Breading mix (my 40yr old own recipe).*

Note: there is no egg in this recipe. Mix half *Alabama King* finely ground corn meal (like a cup). Add a half cup of flour and a half cup of complete pancake mix (has everything in it, like Walmart's Great Value brand or Aunt Jemia brand). Mix the ingredients together. Next, take the washed and prepared meat (be it fillets or pieces) and pat any excess water off the meat. *Lightly* season them with sea salt, finely ground pepper and the no msg *Everglades Seasoning*). I then roll the seasoned meat into the dry mix and set it aside on a plate.

*The Oil*

At my age, I like to use light oil, like canola or light vegetable oil. I like to use more oil than less oil in my fryer or deep cast iron skillet. Bring the temp up and use medium heat until it crackles with spit or water, then notch it back a bit. It's better to cook it slightly hotter and cook it faster than slightly cooler oil and cook it longer, since the hotter oil will quickly seal in the moisture of the meat as oppose to cooking it slower and longer with a lower temp, that can end up drying the meat out. But with a slightly higher temp means you have to watch it closely so it doesn't burn. On my stove, medium heat is 5 out of 10. So I might bring the oil up on 6 and then once it hits temp, back it down to 4 to cook with. We all have a bad habit of backing it down to 2 or even 1 because it still fries. But instead, keep it a little higher without the oil smoking and the batter burning too quickly.

*Final prep and cooking*

At this point, while the oil is almost hot, I'll take another plate and with the same dry mix, give the 1st batch one more light dusting of the dry mix, knock off the excess and place it on another clean plate, timing it so the last piece of that batch will be done around the same time the oil is ready. So I'll carefully drop one piece in at a time and place it where one doesn't drop on top of the other. Cover the pan bottom with some space in-between each piece, but be careful not to drop too many pieces in, since they will stick together and cool the oil down too much.

The pieces will float when ready to come out, but also look for color. You want a nice golden tan to golden light brown, but not a darker golden brown. When done take them out with a strainer metal spoon or wire spoon in one hand and a metal cookie sheet or regular plate with paper towels stacked up, to absorb the oil (about 8 to 12 layers). Set aside and take about 4 to 6 folded over paper towels and pat the oil off the top of the pieces. Then cover with more paper towns or a clean kitchen hand towel to keep in the heat until ready to serve.

As the 1st batch was cooking, you are dusting the 2nd batch, then with the 1st batch comes out, the 2nd batch is ready to go into the oil. And repeat the batch process.

This can be a family event and I'll usually have kids helping out. Enjoy and have fun! 

Ted Haas


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## Megalops (Oct 23, 2011)

Guess who's coming to dinner = Ted!


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## BM_Barrelcooker (May 4, 2011)

That's very good Ted!


I take a few shortcuts. 

# 1. I use an electric fillet knife. 
2. I fillet it like a crappie 
By running the rib cage to the tail and flipping it and running against the skin. 

It sacrifices a little meat but if I need more I will catch me one more fish. 
I use the carcasses for the garden or feed the turtles so I don't feel bad about wasting anything. 

3. I use zatrans seasoned meal instead of batter. And I cook it lower and slower than most folks. And turn it often. 

Most of my ocean fish get blackened or grilled.


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## BM_Barrelcooker (May 4, 2011)

Well boys. These fellers will give that old catfish a run for his money.


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## Megalops (Oct 23, 2011)

Nice trout. Man i wish I had a gas range. I personally like using panko crumbs when pan frying.


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## Dschouest42 (Jul 12, 2017)

Nothing like fish to fill the belly. Hoping to get some redfish this weekend to throw on the grill


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## noahvale (May 24, 2016)

I usually bake trout. Little olive oil in a pyrex dish, coat fillets in oil, season.
Saute some onions and a little garlic in butter for just a few mins, then pour over the fish.
Slice lemons and put on fish.
Cover with foil, bake for 15 mins, then add chopped shallots and parsley.


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## noahvale (May 24, 2016)

Going to try this soon:


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