Todd Richards’s Fried Catfish With Hot Sauce Recipe (2024)

I keep an empty gallon container and fill it after the old oil has cooled. I don't fry too often, so the container has become a part of the family. When it finally gets full, I'll drive north and put it on a raft, set it on fire and give it a proper send-off. If it doesn't get full, I'll have something to leave my daughter. And then she can play Viking.

Here's what I do to prevent losing the cornmeal crust while shallow frying catfish: first, scrape off excess buttermilk marinade; second, quickly dip fish in seasoned flour and shake off excess; third, dip fish in beaten egg thinned with a little water; fourth, dip into cornmeal; and, finally, chill fish pieces for 15-30 minutes.

Batter won't pull away from fish and/or get stuck on frying basket if you let it 'swim' for a moment. Lift breaded portion with tongs, holding on to tongs - immerse the portion in hot oil and swish back & forth gently for about 10-15 seconds. Then, let go and it'll fry up beautifully.

My Papa always reused oil for fish frying. He said the secret is when you reheat it for the next batch to first fry an onion cut in half. It takes out the old taste. It's always worked for me lol

It can be used several times for fish, nothing else. When it becomes dark or off smelling, you can pour it in a plastic bottle and throw it in the trash. Many restaurants recycle their oil so if you are friendly with one, they may take it off your hands. Do not pour it down the sink or toilet.

On the East Coast anyway, you can get fresh or frozen fresh-caught catfish. Because catfish are devouring blue crabs in the Chesapeake bay they are being caught and offered at market. Way superior to farmed if you’ve tasted the real item, say out of the Mississippi.

This is very close to Julia Child’s approach to breading. She suggests a bit of olive oil in the egg mixture will help the coating adhere. And she says to put whatever you are coating on a rack for at least 15 minutes to let the coating dry a bit. Has never failed me.

Really good catfish recipe. Soaking the pieces in the buttermilk mixture is an absolute necessity. The longer the better the taste is going to be. Had some leftovers and used then for fish tacos. Definitely a keeper. Thanks

Here on Charleston's coast, the local fish fry favorite is whiting.

Followed the recipe exactly, except no onion powder (ran out), and only 2 tsp salt. still too salty, will decrease next time. Shallow fried in cast iron, crust was perfect, no problems sticking to the pan. Will cook again.

I don't like to deep fry so I tried shallow frying this. The batter tended to pull away from the fish and stuck to the bottom of the pan. I scraped it up. It all tasted good, but we had a platter of mostly naked fish with crispy sheets of batter. I'd be interested to hear if anyone shallow fried this with success.

Made this a while back, and I agree the quantity of salt is too much, and so are the buttermilk and cornmeal measurements! I'll try it with half as much next time. After breading the fish, I used the buttermilk and corn meal in a batch of cornbread- SOOOOO Good! I worried it might be fishy, but it was just amazing, and a nice way to reduce our food waste. I didn't measure the oil, just poured it about an inch deep, and used it for savory baking and salad dressings afterward, as well.

Be sure to buy U.S. Farm- raised catfish (unless you catch it yourself!) Simmons Farms is a reliable company.

Delicious! Don’t be shy on the seasoning quantities in the buttermilk and cornflower mixtures, a lot is lost in the fry. I also added mustard powder and smoked paprika powder. Hold submerged in oil for a few seconds before releasing into oil, to ensure it does not stick to bottom/lose batter. Serve with favourite hot sauce and enjoy!

These reheated excellently from the refrigerator the following day in a cast iron skillet @300° for 20 minutes, and were served as po’boys, with tartar sauce, lettuce and tomato.

Mississippi farm raised catfish is the absolute best kind to get and tastes totally different than wild caught catfish. Farm raised catfish are fed puffs that float on the water which prevents them from getting the muddy taste that most catfish get because they’re bottom feeders.

So good!- Reduced salt to 1.5 t and this was just right- Had 2 lb blue catfish- After marinating, had 1.5 c buttermilk and 1/4 c cornmeal > added this to hushpuppy batter :)

I prefer to shallow fry the fish and modified another cook’s suggestion for getting the coating to stay on. First swipe off some of the marinade, dip in flour, dip back in marinade (instead of egg mixture in other suggestion) and then into cornmeal. Saves mixing up the egg and does the binding job just as well (even tastier). I do use whole fillets because I like them in sandwiches, so that makes the job a lot less fussy. If need to cut in half, do it just before frying.

Made according to the recipe, deep fried outside in peanut oil at 350f on a propane camp stove. Delicious, crispy, succulent. Leftovers destined for tacos.

I first ate fried catfish in New Orleans, served in a poorboy sandwich. Returning home I made my own version, based on what was served throughout the French Quarter: Fried catfish whole fillet, cooked as in this recipe, with cornmeal and hot sauce in a crusty roll on a lettuce base, with chopped scallions. a squirt of lemon juice on top or else a couple of very thin slices of lemon. I don't marinate the catfish or deep-fry. I find that just enough oil to coat the pan well works for me.

Too salty!!! I added all that salt to the marinade thinking it would not considerably permeate the fish, and just flavor it. No. Too much salt. And the corn meal crust had no salt in it. I’d say, take the salt content down by at least a tsp.

I first ate fried catfish in New Orleans, but served in a po' boy sandwich. I have cooked this many times, pretty much as described in the recipe, but sauted instead of deep-fried and then squirted over with lemon juice. My sandwich is made on a crusty French or Italian long roll smeared with a little hot-sauced mayo, and then filled with some lettuce, topped with the fried fish, a couple of tomato slices and a 1 or 2 thin lemon sllces. You need to open wide to eat - Yum!

I'm not a fan of catfish, but will use the buttermilk mixture and cornmeal for other types of fish. Would this work with chicken???

Has anyone tried this great recipe using an air fryer yet? If so, what was the cooking times and any noted variations?

One should mix in AP flour to the corn meal as corn meal burns easily and tends to crumble.

Can someone recommend a non-dairy substitute for the buttermilk marinade?

Made this a while back, and I agree the quantity of salt is too much, and so are the buttermilk and cornmeal measurements! I'll try it with half as much next time. After breading the fish, I used the buttermilk and corn meal in a batch of cornbread- SOOOOO Good! I worried it might be fishy, but it was just amazing, and a nice way to reduce our food waste. I didn't measure the oil, just poured it about an inch deep, and used it for savory baking and salad dressings afterward, as well.

I used only two cups of oil and fried the catfish in a skillet. Two cups was plenty and I think four would have been excessive, especially for my small kitchen and stove. The oil didn't cover the whole piece of fish, but turning each piece over took care of frying them evenly on both sides. I made sure the oil was really hot. It worked well and turned out delicious. This is a great recipe.

This was a fantastic and easy meal. I coupled it with an heirloom tomato and basil salad with a vinaigrette and it balanced dinner out very nicely.

For those who are dairy free, we used oat milk instead of buttermilk and it was still delicious!