Blackened Catfish With Creole Sauce Recipe

By
Joshua Bousel
a photo of Joshua Bousel, a Contributing Writer at Serious Eats
Joshua Bousel
Joshua Bousel is a Serious Eats old-timer, having started sharing his passion for grilling and barbecue recipes on the site back in 2008. He continues to develop grilling and barbecue recipes on his own site, The Meatwave, out of his home base of Durham, North Carolina.
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Updated Apr. 22, 2019
Blackened catfish over fire grill
Joshua Bousel

A Cajun rub on these catfish fillets blackens over high heat and becomes an intense combination of spicy, earthy, and herbal notes that balances with the flavor of the fish.

To make things even better, I topped this fish with a spoonful of peppery tomato Creole sauce, which added a layer of freshness that rounded out the meal nicely.

Recipe Details

Blackened Catfish With Creole Sauce Recipe

Active 20 mins
Total 20 mins
Serves 4 servings

Ingredients

For the Seasoning:

  • 2 teaspoons paprika

  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder

  • 1 teaspoon onion powder

  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme

  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

  • 4 boneless catfish fillets

  • Olive oil, for brushing

  • 1 cup Creole sauce

Directions

  1. In a small bowl, mix together paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, thyme, oregano, cumin, salt, pepper, and cayenne. Season catfish fillets liberally with seasoning all over.

    seasoned catfish

  2. Light one chimney full of charcoal. When all the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and spread coals evenly over half of the charcoal grate. Alternatively, set all the burners of a gas grill to high heat. Set cooking grate in place, cover grill, and allow to preheat for 5 minutes. Clean and oil grilling grate.

    Brush fillets lightly with oil all over. Place catfish in grill and cook until blackened and fish flakes when to a fork, about 3 minutes per side.

    blackened catfish over fire grill

  3. Transfer fish to a platter and let rest for 5 minutes. Top with Creole sauce and serve.

    blackened catfish with Creole sauce

Special Equipment

Grill

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
280 Calories
15g Fat
7g Carbs
28g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories 280
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 15g 19%
Saturated Fat 3g 15%
Cholesterol 96mg 32%
Sodium 618mg 27%
Total Carbohydrate 7g 3%
Dietary Fiber 2g 7%
Total Sugars 3g
Protein 28g
Vitamin C 2mg 9%
Calcium 48mg 4%
Iron 2mg 10%
Potassium 791mg 17%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)