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Blogs / yum! / Winter 2010 / Black and Gold Sunday

Black and Gold Sunday

I am from Louisiana. To say the day before last was just another Sunday would be like comparing a raindrop to a tsunami. The Saints—wait, my Saints (MY saints. I wore a paper bag on my head, been made fun of for being a loyal fan, had an NFL team that announcers and haters called the ‘Aints, etc.)–are going to the Superbowl.

I am way too super-excited for a black and gold Superbowl. In that mindset, I started thinking of things I could make/cook/wear for the big day. Outfits, face painting and streamers were easy, but narrowing down the food is going to be tricky. But bless my heart; I have one week and 5 days til kick-off.

The first themed food that popped into my head was anything blackened. I used to tease that we Southerners invented this type of cooking because we got sidetracked in the kitchen, burned the main meal, then were too frustrated, money-conscious or poor to start over! I am sure that like me, many of you have had something blackened. But the right ingredients and a little bit of love will have you slapping your momma it’s so good. My favorite is blackened catfish—but because you can’t get catfish in Idaho, grab the most reasonably priced white, meaty fish, like grouper or halibut.

And because we all want to be in that number, here is a yummy blackened fish to serve over yellow rice (black and gold!). GEAUX SAINTS!

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Blackened Seasoning

makes about 1/2 cup

4T sweet paprika
2T onion powder
2T garlic powder
2T dried oregano leaves
2T dried sweet basil
1T dried thyme leaves
2T black pepper
1T white pepper
1T cayenne pepper
1T salt
Dash chili powder
Dash cumin powder

Blackened Catfish (or other meaty white fish):

As a side note, some chefs recommend cooking this outside on a propane burner due to the large amount of smoke created during cooking. For a healthier fish, garnish with Italian dressing instead of butter.

6-8 fish fillets, thinly sliced
2 sticks of melted butter, more for garnish if needed.
lemon juice

Mix first 12 ingredients together using a fork or place them in a jar, cover & shake until they are mixed thoroughly. Store in tightly covered container. This is your gris-gris.

Heat oven to 200 degrees. Coat fish fillets with butter and pat down with blackened seasoning mix. Be sure to completely cover each fillet. Heat iron cast skillet until it is very hot, about 7 minutes. Skillet really cannot be too hot for this dish. Place 2 or 3 catfish fillets into the skillet, be careful as butter might ignite momentarily. Cook for about 2 or 3 minutes on both sides. The underside should look charred, but coat with butter if needed so they do not burn. Transfer fish to a cookie sheet and place in oven to keep warm. Repeat with remaining fillets. Serve over yellow rice topped with 1 tablespoon of melted butter. Yum!