IceShanty.com's Ice Fishing Community
Ice Fishing Tips -Check your local regulations! => Hardwater Cuisine => Topic started by: Bockster on Dec 03, 2015, 07:23 PM
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For you bluegill, perch and yellow bass junkies what's the key to get panfish fillets to flake?
I've been trying this recipe https://www.pinterest.com/pin/499477414893681974/ and I've only been able to get it to turn out a few times out of the at least a dozen attempts. The recipe is just a simple coat in flour, eggwash then coating with saltine/ritz crackers and panfrying in butter... The fish inside isn't flaking. I'll cook it on medium heat for 3 minutes a side and take it out and still not flaking...Any longer than 3 minutes and it just starts to burn. What's the secret? I know several people use this recipe or at least a very similar recipe. The peices of meat I use are about the size of your middle finger, Just small yellow bass fillets. Smaller finger sized pieces of meat.
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I eat gills/crappie/ and perch all the time only difference in recipe's is panko instead of crackers and peanut oil never butter. Butter will burn before you reach a good frying temp of 350-to 375 and never crowd the pan.
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You could bake them off in the oven after frying them in the butter to cook them more. Are they actually burning in the butter? I would do 3/4 heat or so and there's nothing wrong with a little burnt butter at all.
I always fry mine in peanut oil.
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peanut or sunflower oil...that is, if i don't have BACON GREASE!!
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I do the half and half flour and cornmeal, panko or sometimes a copy cat Long John Silvers batter mix just google it.
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Tell them that after all this time you just want to be friends!
(My ex-girlfriend told me that and I flaked!) ;D
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try putting a little veg oil in with the butter, you will hold the taste of the butter without having the low burn temp.
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Do not use butter for frying. High temp oils such as Grape seed has a higher smoke point above Vegetable, Canola. Peanut oils are a high temp too but can leave a taste in you fried foods. Key to frying anything is to dry your food with paper towels. In other words take the fish and rinse it off well lay out plenty of paper towels and lay the fish into it take more paper towels and lightly press on flesh to dry. repeat if you get moisture on the towels.
You really will not dry 100% but when the fish become tacky to the touch you will know by feel then bread the fish normally. Flour Egg wash coatings. Don't over flour the fish either just a light dusting is needed. When your fish is placed in the hot oil it really shouldn't splatter much if at all that is the key to a flakey fish. WHat you are doing if it is not flaky is basically poaching or steaming the fish making the flesh somewhat mushy. Frying is a process of sealing the flesh trapping in some moisture and then adding heat to cook. Same as pan siring a steak high heat flip once. Try this method with your fish it works. By the way get a good thermometer too for the oil so you don't undercook the fish and burn the crust a proper temp will give you the best results. The thicker the fish lower the temps while cooking so the middle of the fish isn't raw.