Catfish Beignets
LOADING RECIPE…
Firing up the stove
Savory New Orleans beignets loaded with flaked catfish, green onion, bell pepper and Creole seasoning, fried golden and puffy, then showered with Parmesan and served with remoulade.
Why It Works
Poaching the catfish keeps it moist and lets you season the batter with the flavorful poaching liquid. Baking powder plus eggs gives a light, airy, fritter-like puff, and drying the flaked fish keeps the batter from getting soggy. Frying at a steady 350°F cooks the centers through before the outsides get too dark.
Notes
Starter recipe; adjust to taste. Leftover fried catfish works great flaked in place of poached. Keep the oil at 350°F; if beignets brown before the centers cook, lower the heat slightly and make them smaller. Mix the batter up to 4 hours ahead and keep it refrigerated.
RECIPE CARD
Catfish Beignets
Yield: About 24 beignets (6 appetizer servings) | Time: 45 minutes
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Ingredients
Catfish
- 1 lb catfish fillets
- 2 cups water or seafood stock, plus 1 bay leaf and 1 tsp Creole seasoning for poaching
Batter
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 Tbsp baking powder
- 2 tsp Creole seasoning
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- 2 large eggs
- ¾ cup whole milk
- ¼ cup reserved poaching liquid
- 1 Tbsp hot sauce
- 3 Tbsp melted butter
Mix-ins
- 3 green onions, thinly sliced
- ¼ cup finely diced red bell pepper
- 2 Tbsp finely diced celery
- 2 Tbsp chopped parsley
- Zest of ½ lemon
To fry and serve
- Peanut or vegetable oil for frying
- Grated Parmesan and a pinch of Creole seasoning, for dusting
- Remoulade and lemon wedges
Instructions
- Poach the catfish. Bring the water or stock, bay leaf and Creole seasoning to a simmer. Add the catfish and poach gently 6–8 minutes until it flakes. Lift out, reserve ¼ cup of the liquid, and cool. Flake into small pieces and pat dry with paper towels.
- Mix the dry. Whisk the flour, baking powder, Creole seasoning, garlic powder and salt.
- Mix the wet. Whisk the eggs, milk, reserved poaching liquid, hot sauce and melted butter.
- Make the batter. Stir the wet into the dry just until combined; it should be thick, like drop-biscuit dough. Fold in the catfish, green onion, bell pepper, celery, parsley and lemon zest. Rest 10 minutes.
- Heat the oil. Heat 3 inches of oil to 350°F.
- Fry. Drop heaping tablespoons of batter into the oil, about 5 at a time. Fry 3–4 minutes, turning, until puffed, deep golden and cooked through. A test beignet should be fluffy, not doughy, in the center.
- Dust and serve. Drain on a rack, then immediately dust with Parmesan and a pinch of Creole seasoning. Serve hot with remoulade and lemon.
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