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The blackening technique was largely invented by Chef Paul Prudhomme
in the 1970s. Unfortunately, it wasn't until the Gulf redfish was
quite literally endangered that he admitted that he had made a
mistake ++ it did not make sense to blacken such delicately-flavored
fish.

This means that he currently advocates blackening fish that can stand
up to the spices, which means more strongly-flavored fish, which
usually means more fatty fish. His favorite all-time fish to blacken
is catfish. Also, his original recipe recommended red snapper as a
possible substitute. Californians should know that this is *NOT* what
is marketed in California as red snapper. The fishing lobby in
California got legislation pushed through that allows them to call
rockfish and all sorts of other formerly unfashionable fish "red
snapper". California "red snapper" is literally often turned back at
the borders of other states like Nevada because no other state in the
union allows this criminal deception. *ahem* It is also unfortunate
that his blackening recipe calls for 3/4 pound of butter. But I
believe that you can work around that quite easily: - 12 tablespoons
of butter are for serving at the table - 2 teaspoons per fillet are
actually used in the pan, and shouldn't be missed if omitted (FYI,
you pour one teaspoon on the top of the fillet when it first enters
the pan, then you pour the other teaspoon on the top of the fillet
after you turn it) - the rest of the butter is used to dredge the
fish in so the spices will stick. Light cooking spray should serve
the same purpose; might as well use butter-flavored Pam. I've
attached his recipe from his original cookbook below, modified to
remove the butter. In addition, you should know that his latest
serious lowfat cookbook, Fork in the Road, advocates a similar
technique he calls bronzing. In blackening, one gets the skillet
EXTREMELY hot (literally beyond smoking; he says you cannot possibly
get the skillet too hot) and sears the spice-coated fish. Bronzing is
conducted at 350-400 degrees rather than 500+ degrees, but follows
the same general idea. He claims that his favorite recipe in the
whole cookbook is the bronzed [fresh] tuna salad, but he pegs it at
25% CFF. My read of the recipe says that he must be using some very
fatty east-coast tuna for this, because no way would it even
*approach* 15% CFF if he was using ahi (yellowfin tuna); it would
probably be much closer to 10% CFF. If your husband enjoys blackened
fish so much, you should invest in Fork in the Road ++ lots of good
spicy recipes that range from lowfat to VLF. The following recipe
makes 6 servings. I've abbreviated some of the chattiness severely:
Seasoning Mix: 1 T sweet paprika 2 1/2 t salt 1 t onion powder 1 t
garlic powder 1 t cayenne (or other ground red) pepper 3/4 t white
pepper 3/4 t black pepper 1/2 t dried thyme leaves 1/2 t dried
oregano leaves 6 ea (8- to 10-ounce) fish fillets, cut about 1/2 inch
thick [He notes that the fillets MUST not be more than 3/4 inch
thick] Spray a large cast-iron skillet with cooking spray or wipe it
with an oiled cloth, then heat it over very high heat until it is
beyond the smoking stage and you see white ash in the skillet bottom
(the skillet cannot be too hot for this dish), at least 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat the serving plates in a 250 degree F oven. Thoroughly
combine the seasoning mix ingredients in a small bowl. Spray both
sides of each fillet lightly with cooking spray, then sprinkle
seasoning mix generously and evenly on both sides of the fillets,
patting it in by hand. Place the fillets in the hot skillet and cook,
uncovered, over the same high heat until the underside looks charred,
about 2 minutes (the time will vary according to the fillet's
thickness and the heat of the skillet). Turn the fish over and cook
until the fish is done, about 2 minutes more. Repeat with remaining
fillets. Serve each fillet while piping hot. [My recommendation is
that you start with one fillet at a time as a learning device; that
you *really* pat the spices into the fillet well so when you leave
some on the bottom of the pan when turning the fillets (due to the
lack of butter), the amount left will be minimized; and finally I
recommend highly that you do NOT use even the finest nonstick
cookware for this as you will surely damage it by getting it this
hot, to say nothing of the fumes] Originally posted by Curtis Jackson
cjackson#mv.us.adobe.com Alt.fatfree

Submitted By SAM LEFKOWITZ On 10-29-94

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