Baked Stuffed Fish

The best way to a fisherman’s heart is through his fly.  ~Author Unknown

There’s nothing I love more than stuffed ‘anything’.  A tasty something, inside a vessel of another tasty something is really kinda cool.

I remember the 1st time I saw this dish, or a variation of it.  It was decades ago and I went on lunch break with a co-worker.  She was lucky enough to have her girlfriend bring her a homemade dish that consisted of baked stuffed fish.  When she unwrapped the  fish, the steam came billowing out…and the smell!

Oh-em-f’ing-gee!

Then she lifted that first bite with her fork…really, if food porn daily included video…this would be the most viewed, I’m sure. Yes.  I think I totally forgot about my lunch, altogether.  As we all sat and chatted with each other, the conversation was on a variety of subjects.  Gossip, laughing…etc.  But I don’t think I contributed much, being hypnotized and all.  I kept trying to tell her, through mental telepathy, to give me her fish.  All of it.  But I wasn’t even offered a bite.  Sad.

As we were heading back to the office, I was rehearsing the recipe in my head.  I went to the store after work, and made this version when I got home.  Yay me!

Ingredients

1/4 cup chopped celery

1/4 cup chopped green onion

1/4 cup green bell pepper

1 clove garlic, minced

4 tablespoons butter

1/2 lb shrimp, coarsely chopped

3/4 cup-1 cup breadcrumbs

2 tablespoons real lemon juice

1/2 lb lump crab meat, picked through for cartilage

2 tbsp chopped parsley

1 egg, beaten

2 tbsp mayonnaise

1/2 tsp mustard

salt & pepper

1 lg whitefish (3-5 lbs), scaled and cleaned (keep the head on)

3 tbsp melted butter

1 lemon cut into wedges

Directions

Saute the celery, onion, and bell pepper in the butter over medium heat until soft, about 2-3 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper. Add the shrimp and garlic; cook for 1 minute stirring constantly.  Remove from the heat and let cool.

Butter a shallow baking dish and pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees f.  Pat the fish dry, liberally salt the inside and place the fish in the baking dish.

After the vegetables have cooled, add the breadcrumbs, crab, parsley,egg, mayo, mustard and lemon juice.  Mix well, but try not to break up the crab too much.  Loosely stuff the fish, and brush the top with melted butter.

Bake for 45-55 minutes.  When the fish is done, divide it into portions and serve with lemon wedges.

Fried Oysters

“I prefer my oysters fried; That way I know my oysters died.”
Roy Blount, Jr.

 

 

The first time I had Fried Oysters was about 13 years ago when I was visiting my Mom and Dad in S.E. Texas.  We went to one of those small town shack like eateries that consisted of walking up to the counter, placing your order, and sitting at one of the few rickety old tables with overused plastic tablecloths.

The extensive menu was hanging on the wall behind our cashier.  It was one of those big black felt menu boards with the white letters that you push in, I’m sure there’s a technical name for them.  Some of the letters were missing, so with some of the items you had to kind of figure out what it said.

Example: Fr ed Catfi h=Fried Catfish.  You get the idea.

Anyway, not being from the south, though raised on alot of southern dishes, I saw F ied Oy ters on the menu, and was immediately kinda turned off by the whole idea.  Why the heck would anyone want their oysters fried?

I ordered one of the many Seafood Platters, I think it was fried shrimp, fried catfish and hushpuppies…or something like that.  My Mom ordered the Fried Oysters.  Bottom line, I tried one and ended up trading my catfish for her oysters.

They were that good.  How have I not known about these before?  Dammit.

If I’m really into what I’m eating, I’m not only eating it, I’m figuring out how to recreate it.  It really wasn’t that hard figuring out how to make these.  It’s not like trying to figure out a cake recipe or something.

If you like fried southern food, then you’ve probably had these.  If you haven’t had them before; give them a try.  I’m sure you’ll love them!

Ingredients

16 oz shucked oysters, drained well

enough buttermilk to cover the oysters

Tabasco Hot Sauce, to taste

3/4 cup Wondra flour

3/4 cup cornmeal

1/2 tbsp cayenne pepper (or to taste)

salt

pepper

Canola Oil, for frying

Directions

Soak oysters in a bowl with buttermilk and hot sauce.  Combine the cornmeal and flour, then season with the cayenne, salt and pepper.

Heat 2-inches of oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Dredge the oysters in the cornmeal/flour mixture, coating evenly.  Once dredged, allow oysters to sit for about 10 minutes. When the oil is up to temperature, lay the oysters, a few at a time, in the skillet without crowding them. Cook until golden on both sides, about 2 minutes per side. Remove and let drain on paper towels. Repeat with the remaining oysters.

Serve hot with tartar or cocktail sauce.