Recipe courtesy of Emeril Lagasse, 1999

Vegetable oil for frying
1 pound Whiting fillets
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 cup corn flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 eggs, beaten with 2 tablespoons milk
2 lemons, halved
Tartar Sauce, recipe follows

Preheat the oil in a large cast iron or heavy bottom pot, over medium heat. Cut the fillets, horizontally into strips, 1/2-inch thick. Season the fish with salt and pepper. Combine the flours and season with salt and pepper. Dredge each piece of fish in the flour, coating completely. Dip each piece in the egg wash, letting the excess drip off. Dredge the fish for a second time in the flour, coating completely. Fry the fish in batches until crispy, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove and drain on paper towels. Season with salt and pepper. Serve the fish with lemon halves and tartar sauce. Garnish with parsley.

TARTAR SAUCE:

*1 egg
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
2 tablespoons minced onions
2 tablespoons pickle relish
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 cup vegetable oil
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Put the egg, garlic, lemon juice, parsley, onions, relish and mustard in a food processor and puree for 15 seconds. With the processor running, pour the oil through the feed tube in a steady stream, the mixture should be thick. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from the processor, cover and let sit for 1 hour in the refrigerator before using. Best if used within 24 hours. Yield: 1 1/3 cups

*RAW EGG WARNING The American Egg Board states: "There have been warnings against consuming raw or lightly cooked eggs on the grounds that the egg may be contaminated with Salmonella, a bacteria responsible for a type of food poisoning....Healthy people need to remember that there is a very small risk and treat eggs and other raw animal foods accordingly. Use only properly refrigerated, clean, sound-shelled, fresh, grade AA or A eggs. Avoid mixing yolks and whites with the shell."



Yield: 4 servings

Recipe Courtesy George Hirsch, author Know Your Fire

3/4 pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
6 (8 to 10 ounce) Catfish fillets (or other firm-fleshed fish), 1/2- inch thick
3 tablespoons Chef Paul Prudhomme's Blackened Redfish Magic (or substitute)

Blackening Spice Mixture:
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
2 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon ground red pepper
3/4 teaspoon white pepper
3/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano leaves

The fillets should be at room temperature. Heat a large cast-iron skillet over very high heat until it is beyond the smoking stage and you see white ash in the skillet bottom, at least for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, pour 2 tablespoons melted butter in each of 6 small ramekins; set aside and keep warm. Reserve the remaining butter. Heat the serving plates in a 250 degree oven. Dip each fillet in the reserved melted butter so that both sides are well coated. Then, mix thoroughly all the spices for blackening mixture and sprinkle the Blackening Spice Mixture generously and evenly on both sides of the fillets. Place 1 or 2 fillets in skillet and cook uncovered over very high heat until the underside becomes deep brown, almost black (but not burned), about 2 minutes (the time may vary according to the fillet's thickness and the heat of the skillet). Turn the fish over and pour 1 teaspoon of butter on top of each. Cook until fish is done, about 2 minutes more. Repeat with remaining fillets. Serve each fillet while hot. To serve, place 1 fillet and a ramekin of butter on each plate.



Yield: 6 servings

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown

1 large or two small skin-on fish fillets, about 8 ounces (rainbow trout, small salmon, brown trout)
Kosher salt
Ground black pepper
Flour for dredging
2 tablespoon Canola oil
3 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoons capers, drained
1 lemon, juiced

Heat a heavy pan over medium high heat.

Season fish on meat side with salt and pepper. Lightly dredge fish in flour and shake off excess. When pan is good and hot, add Canola oil followed immediately by 1 tablespoon butter. As soon as foaming subsides, place fish in pan with the skin side down. Jiggle pan for the first 10 seconds to keep the fish from sticking. Cook until golden crust forms on meat. Carefully turn fish away from you and again jiggle pan for the first few seconds. Cook until skin turns golden brown. Remove to a warm plate.

Pour out the cooking fat, add remaining butter and quickly fry the capers. Remove pan from the heat, add lemon juice to pan and swirl. Pour sauce over the fish and serve.

All recipes courtesy of Gourmet Magazine

2 pounds red snapper fillets, skinned and cut into serving portions
2 cups milk
4 cups cornmeal
salt and pepper
Oil for deep frying

Heat oil in deep pan to 375 degrees.

Pour 2 cups milk into a pie plate or baking dish. Place filets in milk. Let soak for 10 minutes.

Place 2 cups cornmeal, salt and pepper in a paper bag. Drop half the pieces of fish into the cornmeal. Shake bag until well coated. Remove from bag and immediately place into deep fat. Fry until fish is golden on all sides, 3 to 5 minutes. Repeat with remaining cornmeal and remaining fish fillets, making sure the oil returns to 375 degrees between batches.

Serve with Tartar sauce:
1 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon scallions, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons minced sour gherkins
1 1/2 teaspoons capers
1 1/2 teaspoons sweet pickle relish
2 squirts lemon
1 tablespoon snipped chives

Combine ingredients in a bowl.



Yield: 4 servings

Recipe c. Michael Lomonaco 1998, all rights reserved

4 rainbow trout, about 12 ounces each, whole and butterflied, skin on, bones removed (ask your fish dealer to do this for you)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 pint cherry tomatoes, washed, cut through the center in two
2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon

Wash the trout in cold water and pat dry to remove any tiny stray bones. Season the trout with salt and pepper, heat the olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat and cook the fish skin side down. Cook the trout in batches of 1 or 2 at a time. Cook the skin side for 2 to 3 minutes before turning with a spatula to cook the flesh side. Cook for an additional 2 to 3 minutes or until fully cooked but be careful of overcooking as the fish are thin and cook quickly. As the trout are finishing, add the butter to the pan and allow to bubble before adding the tomatoes. Cook for 2 minutes, add the tarragon and remove from the heat. Serve immediately with fiddlehead ferns.



Yield: 4 servings

Recipes courtesy of Richard Jones, Richard's Place Restaurant

4 pieces catfish fillet
Salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup milk
2 large eggs
1 pound cornmeal
Salt and pepper (to taste) for the cornmeal
2 cups canola oil
Egg wash (2 eggs and 2 tablespoons water, whipped together)
4 lemon wedges

Rinse pieces of catfish fillet quickly in cold water. Pat dry. Season fish with salt and pepper. Combine buttermilk, milk and eggs. Beat ingredients well. Add salt and pepper to cornmeal. Heat oil in skillet about 350 degrees. Dip fish in egg wash and then in corn meal. Pan fry fish in hot oil until golden brown. Remove and drain oil from fish on a paper towel. Garnish with lemon wedges before serving.

Copyright 1999 Bobby Flay. All rights reserved.

Red Pepper-Spanish Paprika Sauce:
3 tablespoons Spanish paprika
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 tablespoons honey
3 red bell peppers, roasted, peeled, seeded and coarsely chopped
3/4 cup olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Bass:
8 striped bass, 1 pound each, scaled and gutted
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper
Red Pepper-Spanish Paprika Sauce

Batter Fried Potatoes:

Beer batter:
3/4 cup beer
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup milk
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon butter, melted
Salt and pepper

For the potatoes:
10 medium new potatoes, cooked until just tender and sliced 1/8-inch thick
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
Beer Batter
1/2 cup seasoned flour
Salt and pepper
4 cups peanut oil




Toast the paprika in a small skillet over medium heat until the aroma emerges and the color deepens, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat. In a blender, combine the paprika with the vinegar, honey, and red peppers and blend well. Slowly add the oil and blend until emulsified. Season with salt and pepper.

For the Bass: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Make 4 diagonal cuts on each side of each fish, reaching all the way down to the bone. Brush each fish with oil and season to taste with salt and pepper. Place bass on baking sheets and roast 12 to 14 minutes, without turning, depending on the size and density of the fish. Arrange the fish on a large serving platter with batter fried potatoes and drizzle with sauce.

For the Batter Fried Potatoes: In a mixing bowl, combine the beer, egg, milk, flour, and melted butter and mix well. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Add the thyme to the beer batter. Place the batter and the seasoned flour in 2 separate bowls. Season the potato slices with salt and pepper to taste. In a saute pan over medium heat, heat the oil to 375 degrees F or until a drop of batter sizzles on contact. Dredge the potato slices in the flour, dip them in the batter, and fry in batches until golden brown on both sides, about 2 minutes. Drain on paper towels and season with salt and pepper to taste.



Yield: 8 servings

c.1997, M.S. Milliken & S. Feniger, all rights reserved

2/3 cup olive oil
20 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced thinly
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon of ground black pepper
2/3 cup clam juice or fish stock
Juice of 3 limes, about 1/4 cup
1 ancho chile, stemmed, seeded and chopped
1 bunch flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
6 6-ounce skinless, boneless filets of fresh fish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Season fish filets with salt and pepper. Heat a large cast iron or heavy bottomed skillet over moderately high heat. When hot add 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil. Sear fish fillets about 1-2 minutes per side or until lightly golden, remove to a oven proof platter and set in oven to finish cook for 3-5 minutes or, to desired doneness. Meanwhile add the remaining olive oil, slivered garlic, salt and pepper to the pan and cook over medium low heat stirring often for about 2 minutes. Add chopped ancho chiles and continue cooking a minute or two until a toasty aroma is released. Add the fish stock or clam juice reduce by half, adding any juices that have collected on the platter holding the fish fillets. Then add lime juice and parsley, bring sauce to a boil and pour over fish on platter. Serve immediately along with plenty of white rice.

TOMATO RELISH FOR GRILLED FISH

1 pound tomatillos, husked, washed and chopped
1 pound Roma tomatoes, cored and chopped
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 cup olive oil
1/3 cup white vinegar
1 bunch cilantro, leaves only, chopped
1/4 cup sugar
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeno chile, stemmed, seeded and diced
1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded and chopped
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon fresh black pepper

Combine all the ingredients in a pot, cover and simmer about 1 hour. Set aside to cool to room temperature. Tomatillo relish can be stored in the refrigerator up to a week. To serve, line a large platter or serving plates with relish and top with grilled fish fillets. Or serve as a condiment with cold meats. Garnish with scallions.