New Farm Crops Are Seafood Treats
BY MARJOR1E MEGIVERN
rawfish and Catfish, two del
icacies of the sea that are
gaining in popularity along
the coast, are now farmed right here
in Brunswick County. You can se
lect your dinner entree from a loca1
farm as easily as the head of lettuce
from the supermarket.
Farmed on a large scale in Louis
iana, both fish are now raised in
North Carolina as well. There are a
handful of Brunswick County farms
where the two are being harvested.
Crawfish are the lesser known.
These hardy crustaceans resemble
shrimp, but have their own distinc
tive taste. Measuring from 3'A to 7
inches long, only their tails are eat
en, so it takes about seven pounds
of whole crawfish to yield a pound
of meat. They are high in protein,
low in calories and fat.
Catfish, on the other hand, though
unglamorous scavengers, have been
a staple on our tables. Nowadays,
they're a national favorite and in
creasingly raised in ponds. While
yesterday's catfish seemed oily in
taste, today's has a new, mild-fla
vored image, perhaps because of be
ing fed a grain diet "down on the
farm." Flaky and moist, the moder
ately lean catfish can be subsututcd
for most white-fleshed fish in re
cipes.
Best of all, we have access to ex
ceptional recipes for these and
many other fish. A recipe newslet
ter, Mariner's Menu , published by
the University of North Carolina
Sea Grant College Program, offers
monthly collections of such recipes
that have been carefully tested for
taste and nutrition. The following
recipcs are from this publication.
Is blackened fish your dish when
eating out? You can do it at home
with ease, using this Mariner's
Menu formula:
n
Blackened Catfish
6 catfish fillets
6 T margarine
Seasoning mix:
1 T paprika
It onion powder
It garlic powder
It cayenne pepper
VAl ground pepper
Yx dried thyme
'At dried oregano
Combine seasoning mix in shal
low dish. Melt margarine in another
shallow dish. Dip each filet in melt
ed margarine to coat both sides.
Heal a large cast iron skillet over
very high heat until it is beyond the
smoking stage and there is a white
ash in the bottom. This will take at
least ten minutes. Place fillets in a
single layer in the skillet. Cook, un
covered, over the same high heat
until the bottom of each fillet is
charred, about two minutes. Tum
and cook on the other side until
done, about two minutes or until
fish flakes easily when tested with a
fork. Remove from pan. Serves 6.
Note: If you don't have a good
exhaust fan when blackening fish,
cook it outdoors.
If you can't get to New Orleans
often, you can catch the flavor with
this gumbo recipe:
Catfish Gumbo
Supreme
4 medium catfish fillets
V* C vegetable oil
1C coarsely chopped celery
'AC chopped green onions, includ
ing tops
V*C choppcd onion*
4t minced garlic
4C chicken broth
2 16-oz. can tomatoes, choppcd,
undrained
'At thyme
1 small bay leaf
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X/A cayenne pepper
%t oregano
It salt
2 boxes frozen sliced okra
Cut fillets into one-inch pieces
and se: aside.
Heat oil in large pot over medium
heat. Lightly saute celery, green
onions, onion and garlic. Add broth,
tomatoes, thyme, bay leaf, cayenne,
oregano and salL Bring to boil and
add okra. Cover and simmer 30
minutes. Add catfish and simmer
ten minutes or until fish flakes easi
ly. Remove bay leaf. Serves 8 to 10.
Crawfish versatility is exempli
fied by the following two recipes.
First we have the popular casserole,
in which these distinctive fish will
shine.
Crawfish Etouffe
1 pound crawfish tails
It salt
'At ground pepper
V* t cayenne pepper
y* pounds margarine
2 T flour
Y>C finely chopped celery
2C finely chopped onion
r
%C finely chopped green pepper
2t finely chopped garlic
MC water
2T finely chopped green onion
tops
2T finely chopped fresh parsley
%C dry white wine
cooked rice
Season crawfish tails with salt
and black pepper. Set aside. Melt
margarine in heavy pot over medi
um heat Add flour and cook until
light brown. Add cayenne, celery,
onion, green pepper and garlic.
Cook, stirring often, until vegeta
bles are tender, but not brown. Add
crawfish tails and saute until just
tender, about 15 minutes. Add water
and green onion tops. Bring to boil
and simmer for five minutes. Add
parsley and wine. Simmer five min
utes more. Check seasoning and let
set a few minutes. Serve over cook
ed rice. Serves 4.
Crawfish Casserole
VA pounds crawfish tails
VAT margarine
AC sliced fresh mushrooms
'AC finely chopped onion
'AC canned tomatoes, drained and
chopped
IT flour
Y*C evaporated skim milk
2T dry sherry
'At Worcestershire sauce
lAl Tabasco sauce
It salt
ground pepper
'AC dry bread crumbs
2T margarine, melted
Melt \WT margarine in large skil
let over medium heat. Saute mush
rooms until tender. Add onion and
tomatoes. Cook for ten minutes. Stir
in flour. Gradually add milk, stirring
constanUy. Add sherry, Worcester
shire, Tabasco, salt and pepper. Mix
well. Add crawfish tails and mix
well. Place in lightly greased two
quart casserole.
Mix bread crumbs with 2T mar
garine and sprinkle over cassercla.
Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for
20-25 minutes or untii bubbly and
browned. Serves 6.
Now try a more cosmopolitan
dish. The French word "etouffc"
means "smothered in." The whole
recipe means "mouth-watering."
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