Ready, Set, Cook! Special Edition Contest Entry: This Southwest-inspired meal is easy to prepare and always a hit with my family. Shredded hash browns are combined with cumin, black beans, and red pepper, then oven baked until golden brown. Chili-lime rubbed fish fillets are baked right in the oven with the potatoes. An avocado and mango salsa provides a cool, fresh contrast of flavor!
Make and share this Fried Whole Catfish With Spicy Black Bean Sauce recipe from Food.com.
Make and share this Fried Whole Catfish With Sweet and Sour Sauce recipe from Food.com.
My entire family loves this dish. I grill thick salmon steaks in a grill pan, but it can be cooked on a barbecue, or sauteed in a cast iron skillet. I have made this with whole tilapias and with halibut. I have seasoned the fish with Old Bay and once with a fish rub instead of the salt and pepper. You can actually use just about any kind of fish you like, as long as it will hold its shape after cooking. Once, I only had 2 shallots on hand, so I used 1 small red onion along with the 2 shallots. I have used 1 large jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped finely, when out of Thai chilies. When out of fresh ginger, I have used 1 1/2 Tbsp of jarred, pickled ginger, chopped. No tomatoes? leave them out. You can use apple cider vinegar instead of rice wine vinegar. As you can see, this dish is very forgiving. I cook the topping in a separate skillet alongside and it is ready right as the fish is. This meal cooks up in 10 minutes, looks and tastes great.
This dish is loaded with flavor and makes a lovely, colorful presentation. You’ll want to serve with plenty of rice to absorb the wonderful sauce. (Noted added 11/05/07: I like to credit original recipe sources when known, but wasn’t sure about this one when I submitted the recipe. Fortunately, a reviewer pointed out that the recipe came from Cooking Light, so I searched their site–indeed, it was originally published in their September 2002 issue. Thanks to the reviewer for bringing this to my attention, and thanks to Cooking Light for developing the recipe! 🙂 )