The Absolute Best Breading For Fried Catfish

There's a good deal of debate about the best way to prepare fried catfish, especially surrounding the best kind of breading to use. Some cooks like to use store-bought breading such as Zatarain's, while others will use either flour, breadcrumbs, cornmeal, or a combination of all three. When you're trying to prepare authentic Southern fried catfish for a traditional dinner, one coating mix stands out.

The blend that's often touted as the real deal when it comes to Southern fried catfish is made from cornmeal mixed with a little all-purpose flour and various spices. The methods of combining these elements can vary for each cook. Typically, you'll mix a 1½:1 ratio of finely ground cornmeal to all-purpose flour, then toss in a blend of spices such as salt, pepper, cayenne, lemon pepper, and paprika (or add your own favorite seasonings). 

Dredge the fish in an egg wash or buttermilk, coat with the cornmeal and spices, then fry in a hot pan filled with a high-heat neutral oil for deep frying. The catfish will be crispy and golden on the outside and tender on the inside. Your fried catfish will be the star when served at a Southern-style fish fry with hush puppies and a side of creamy coleslaw.

There are many ways to batter and bread fried fish, including using simple bread crumbs or frying in a beer batter. Yet, there's something about the traditional Southern fried catfish that calls for a cornmeal coating. Historically, it was easier to obtain cornmeal over flour because of its inexpensive cost and how widely available corn was in the South, and thus the tradition evolved.

Catfish is a soul food staple, part of a complex history and culinary culture that developed during and after slavery in the southern United States. In addition, cooks have long relied on catfish for Southern fish fries because catfish is plentiful in the region, and historically, enslaved people from West Africa living in the region were already familiar with the fish. In the American South, catfish later became a farmed staple when farmers adjusted their livelihoods after the collapse of the cotton-farming industry. The milder flavor of farmed catfish, along with its tender center, makes it a perfect match for the seasonings used to prepare it. The tradition of hosting gatherings featuring fried catfish came to many parts of the country after slavery ended, especially after the Great Migration, in which millions of former enslaved people moved to different regions across the U.S. The culinary tradition of Southern fried catfish has luckily become part of people's lives in these places — now, you can let it enrich yours.