Minutiae Bloggin’

It's the end of the semester for me and between exams, work, family and politics I've become an irritable and bitchy ass, snapping at everyone and everything. In the coming year I will be reducing my class schedule, not obsessing over national politics, starting a new job, and maybe - even- kinda - possibly - almost - thinking about it - dating again. Not sure that last item will reduce stress levels, but we'll see.

Recidivist and Dr. C, as well as the other sites on my tiny blog roll linky list, do a superb job of keeping us informed about domestic and international affairs, so there is no need for me to muddy the waters with my ill-informed opinions and diatribes. My health has been suffering for it. Ha! I'm an angry liberal!

So, I think my little free bloggity blog will become less of a bitchfest and more of a recipe and informational web log. More personal stuff that's fun and light, mostly because I need to laugh at myself and hopefully provide a chuckle or two for those that do visit here, as well as those that happen to stumble across The Pepper Farm.

Enough trivial crap and on to the culinary diversion!

I've had a few gigs at restaurants in my day, plus being a consummate bachelor and loving to eat, my kitchen skills ain't too bad.

First up, one of my favorite Saturday evening dinners.
Have you worked in the yard all day? House cleaning? Chased crackheads out of the park? Well then, perhaps you deserve a sit down with your favorite dark brew and some blackened catfish.
It's pretty simple to put together and make, and anybody with an ounce of sense and taste can do it.
(click on any image for a larger, mouth watering image)

Here's what you need:

I prefer rice and broccoli when making this dish. Of course, those jalapeños rojo came from my garden, but the other items; broccoli, green onions (scallions), and garlic came from the market.

Chop all your stuff up and put in a bowl. It's a good idea to keep it separated and later you'll see why. I steam the broccoli, and sometimes I cut it up and sometimes I don't, that's up to you. Melt the butter in a bowl, and a larger one would be better than the one pictured. Put the rice on to steam, that normally takes about 20 minutes. I like to get that done up front as the rest of this procedure is labor intensive. Start the broccoli once the rice is finished, and let it go concurrently with the rest of the gig. It will be ready right about the same time the fish is ready.

Now, slather the catfish in butter completely, all over. Cover that with the blackened seasoning that you can get at any market. Use anything from Louisana, you can't go wrong.

This dish is best done in an iron skillet, but you can use a teflon coated pan as well, but things tend to burn a bit with that utensil. Also, it's recommended that you do this outside, because there is going to be some serious smoke created. I do it inside and open all my windows. The house stinks for a few days, but I like that smell.

Get that skillet hot as hell. Super hot. Throw the catfish on and stand back. Let it go for about 3-5 minutes on each side, depending the size and thickness of your catfish. No pictures of that part, as it's VERY smoky and quick, no time to play with the camera.

Ok, I'm doing two fillets here, so I wipe the skillet down with a wet towel and start fresh on the second fish.

Once the second fish is done, I throw the jalapeños and garlic in the butter and seasoning that's left in the pan:

After they have sauteed for about a minute or so, throw in the scallions. This keeps the scallions from getting over cooked and soggy.

Now, for the final touch: pour your favorite brew into a mug that's been sitting in the freezer. Normally, Guiness is my preferred beverage, however this go 'round I had a Yingling. It's barely visible in the upper left of the picture below. Spoon out the rice, place the fish and broccoli, and top off with the 'peno-garlic-onion mix and...

Laissez le bons temps rouler! ,