Looking for fresh yellow lake perch?
Around these parts there are a couple of local fish mongers.
The fishing is heating up on the Bay and both Bearcats and LaFonds have wild-caught, commercially-fished Bay perch. Fresh perch is a real treat and at about $19 a pound (give or take) isn't cheap but no more so than a good steak.
And this blogger would rather eat perch than a prime rib most days of the week. Especially with family and friends. Furthermore, if you are frugal and like a party, the DIY fish fry is a blast with your pals and less than half the cost of a restaurant meal.
I pulled-off a big family-sized fish fry last Friday at our annual summer Rib Fest get-together. Nothing better than fresh, lake perch as a warm-up to BBQ or smoked ribs, eh? Here are some Pro Tips for prepping and cooking your own fish fry.
Brine your perch fillets. If they are fresh you can brine them in a couple three hours with a solution of cold tap water and kosher salt. Brining helps the fish to retain moisture in the frying process. If your fish is frozen leave it overnight to brine in the fridge as it thaws.
Remove fillets from the brine, rinse and leave fillets in a colander to drain. Fill a large bowl with Wondra Flour.
After allowing your fillets to drain give them the lightest of sprinkles of garlic salt on the inside of the fillet. Just a wee bit.
Dredge your fillets in the Wondra Flour coating both sides and shaking-off the excess. Set aside on a large cookie sheet. This is an important step as the Wondra flour is the glue that holds it all together.
In another bowl whisk together a wash of fresh eggs and milk and set aside. Fill another bowl with Panko Japanese bread crumbs. I prefer Kikkoman but most any name brand will work fine as long as they are plain.
Dip each fillet completely in the egg wash, one at a time, and toss in the Panko crumbs until completely coated. Set aside on another flat pan or cookie sheet.
When all of your fillets are coated you can proceed to frying them or leave them overnight in the fridge until the next day. It's OK to layer them on top of one-another as long as each layer is separated by wax paper and they're not stacked too high.
Bring a pan of pure vegetable oil to 350-360 degrees and fry your fillets in manageable numbers until golden brown. Remove to drain on newspaper covered in paper towels. Too many fillets crowd the fish and will reduce the temperature of the oil so be steady.
Serve with rye bread, coleslaw, potato salad or fries. If you are doing fries cook them in the oil before the fish, salt and hold in the oven at 225 and serve as soon as the fish is done.
All of your prep work for a fun-filled fish fry can be performed up to a day or two in-advance leaving you only to cook and imbibe in refreshing adult beverages with your guests. Using an outdoor fryer as illustrated makes clean-up a snap and keeps any mess out of your kitchen Besides it's a group affair.
Cheers!
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