Cajun Catfish Tacos with Chipotle Mayonnaise

Name: Cajun Catfish Tacos with Chipotle Mayonnaise
Yield: serves 12; 2 tacos per person
Ingredients: 12 large catfish or other white fish fillets; 1/4 cup Cajun seasoning (such as Paul Prudhomme’s Seafood Magic); 2 (7-ounce) cans chipotle chiles in adobo sauce (reserve 2 whole chipotle chiles for the mayo, recipe follows); 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 2 medium lemons); 1 cup olive oil; 24 medium corn or small flour tortillas; 1 head red or green cabbage, thinly sliced, for accompaniment; 2 large limes, cut into wedges, for accompaniment; Cucumber-Tomato-Avocado Salad (recipe follows), for accompaniment; 2 cups mayonnaise; 2 reserved chipotle chiles; 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice (about 1 1/2 medium limes); 1 tablespoon Creole mustard; 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt; 1 medium cucumber, peeled, quartered lengthwise, and cut into 1-inch cubes; 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved; 2 large ripe avocados, peeled, pitted, and cut into bite-size pieces; 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar; 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard; 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt; Freshly ground black pepper; 1/4 to 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil; (makes twelve 1/3-cup servings)

December 14, 2011

My spicy, tangy catfish tacos are a great way to feed a hungry beach crowd without the hassle of frying or grilling. Load up a rimmed baking sheet with fish fillets, pour on the marinade, refrigerate overnight, and just before serving, bake for less than 30 minutes. Heat flour or corn tortillas in a tortilla warmer along with the fish, and set it all out on the table with a bowl of chipotle mayo and a platter of thin-sliced cabbage. Now everybody chow down! The fish is just the way I like it—juicy and flavorful thanks to long marination (at least 6 hours) and oven baking. I’ve allowed two tacos per person to ensure you’ll have enough even for man-size, sun-fueled appetites. (What is it about playing on the beach that makes men so hungry?) If you have a smaller crowd or guests with smaller stomachs, halve the recipe.

Recipe information

Yield
serves 12; 2 tacos per person

Ingredients

Catfish

12 large catfish or other white fish fillets

1/4 cup Cajun seasoning (such as Paul Prudhomme’s Seafood Magic)

2 (7-ounce) cans chipotle chiles in adobo sauce (reserve 2 whole chipotle chiles for the mayo, recipe follows)

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 2 medium lemons)

1 cup olive oil

24 medium corn or small flour tortillas

1 head red or green cabbage, thinly sliced, for accompaniment

2 large limes, cut into wedges, for accompaniment

Cucumber-Tomato-Avocado Salad (recipe follows), for accompaniment

Chipotle Mayonnaise

2 cups mayonnaise

2 reserved chipotle chiles

3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice (about 1 1/2 medium limes)

1 tablespoon Creole mustard

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

Cucumber-Tomato- Avocado Salad

1 medium cucumber, peeled, quartered lengthwise, and cut into 1-inch cubes

1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved

2 large ripe avocados, peeled, pitted, and cut into bite-size pieces

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1/4 to 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

(makes twelve 1/3-cup servings)

Preparation

Step 1
TO MARINATE THE FISH: Pat the fillets dry and spread them in 1 layer on a rimmed 13 by 18-inch baking sheet. (They can be close together, even touching, but not overlapping.) Liberally sprinkle Cajun seasoning on both sides of the fillets. Puree the chipotle peppers (minus the 2 reserved chiles) and their sauce in the work bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Add the lemon juice and olive oil and pulse a few times until the mixture is combined. Pour the mixture over the seasoned catfish. Cover the fish with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight.
Step 2
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake until the fish begins to flake when pulled apart with a fork, 20 to 25 minutes. Keep warm.
Step 3
TO MAKE THE CHIPOTLE MAYONNAISE: Whirl the mayonnaise, reserved 2 chipotle chiles, lime juice, Creole mustard, and salt in the work bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade until blended. Scrape into a small bowl and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Step 4
TO SERVE: Use a spatula to cut the fish into manageable portions and leave them on the baking sheet so guests can serve themselves. Set out the warm tortillas, sliced cabbage, chipotle mayo, and lime wedges, allowing guests to custom-build their own tacos. Have the salad on the table to serve with the tacos.
Cucumber-Tomato- Avocado Salad
Step 5
Place the cucumber, tomatoes, and avocados in a large bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the vinegar, mustard, salt, freshly ground pepper to taste, and olive oil. Add the dressing to the vegetables and toss to coat. Serve immediately.
do it early
Step 6
As long as the chipotle mayo is prepared with commercially made mayonnaise, it will keep for up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator.

Pastry Queen Parties by Rebecca Rather and Alison Oresman. Copyright © 2009 Rebecca Rather and Alison Oresman. Published by Ten Speed Press. All Rights Reserved. A pastry chef, restaurateur, and cookbook author, native Texan Rebecca Rather has been proprietor of the Rather Sweet Bakery and Café since 1999. Open for breakfast and lunch daily, Rather Sweet has a fiercely loyal cadre of regulars who populate the café’s sunlit tables each day. In 2007, Rebecca opened her eponymous restaurant, serving dinner nightly, just a few blocks from the café. Rebecca is the author of THE PASTRY QUEEN, and has been featured in Texas Monthly, Gourmet, Ladies Home Journal, Food & Wine, Southern Living, Chocolatier, Saveur, and O, The Oprah Magazine. When she isn’t in the bakery or on horseback, Rebecca enjoys the sweet life in Fredericksburg, where she tends to her beloved backyard garden and menagerie, and eagerly awaits visits from her college-age daughter, Frances. Alison Oresman has worked as a journalist for more than twenty years. She has written and edited for newspapers in Wyoming, Florida, and Washington State. As an entertainment editor for the Miami Herald, she oversaw the paper’s restaurant coverage and wrote a weekly column as a restaurant critic. After settling in Washington State, she also covered restaurants in the greater Seattle area as a critic with a weekly column. A dedicated home baker, Alison is often in the kitchen when she isn't writing. Alison lives in Bellevue, Washington, with her husband, Warren, and their children, Danny and Callie.

TagsCajun & Creole Southern American Catfish Fish Seafood Chipotle Chile Vegetable Cabbage Leafy Greens Main Dinner Gluten Free Oven Bake Food Processor Cookbooks

Recipe information

Ingredients

Catfish

Chipotle Mayonnaise

Cucumber-Tomato- Avocado Salad

Preparation

Step 1

Step 2

Step 3

Step 4

Cucumber-Tomato- Avocado Salad

Step 5

do it early

Step 6

Recipe notes