Connoisseur Tom's Catfish Nuggets

Now, I’m not the world’s biggest fan of seafood, as any of my fellow Connoisseur’s will attest to. I am, however attempting to rectify this, slowly but surely. One particular fish that I have always been a fan of, however, is the misunderstood and often maligned catfish. I love the dark, rich, and slightly muddy taste as well as the silky and tender texture of a perfectly cooked fillet thereof. I felt it fitting then to share with you my recipe for catfish nuggets. For this recipe I recommend using the freshest catfish you can get. Once frozen, I’ve found that catfish loses a lot of its character and flavor.

For this recipe you will need:

1 lb Catfish (you can use fillets or chunks, either way... make sure they’re fresh)

1 Egg

1 cup Buttermilk (which leaves you free to finish off the rest of the quart if your name happens to be Connoisseur Tom)

½ stick butter

1 ½ cups Breadcrumbs (or panko, crushed up cornflakes, cornmeal, or whatever you prefer)

1 tbsp Chili Powder

1 tbsp black pepper

1 tsp allspice

1 tsp salt

A couple Lemons

Chop up the catfish into nugget-sized chunks, no need to be precise or fancy here.

In a bowl, mix together the egg and buttermilk with a fork until combined. On a separate plate mix together breadcrumbs, chili powder, black pepper, allspice, and salt.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in your handy frying pan on medium heat.

Now begins the assembly line; with two forks (or chopsticks if you’re more coordinated than me) pick up a catfish chunk, dip in the egg and buttermilk to coat, letting the excess drain off before dredging in the breadcrumb mixture. Once you have 8-10 nuggets chilling out in the breadcrumbs, lift them gently, carefully shaking off any excess breadcrumbs, and transfer them to the frying pan.

Fry them until golden brown and delicious on both sides, move each nugget to a plate lined with a paper towel and repeat until you’re out of fish.

Eat these guys while still hot. They need nothing more than a healthy squeeze of lemon. I guarantee that even the most finicky of budding icthiovores will be coming back for more.