Friday, February 08, 2008

FRIDAY NIGHT LENTEN FISH FEAST ~ PAN-FRIED MICHIGAN PERCH with TARTAR SAUCE


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PAN-FRIED MICHIGAN PERCH with TARTAR SAUCE
~ Mother's Friday night tender yellow perch fillets from the great lakes, lightly dusted in seasoned flour, then pan fried and served with lemon, tartar sauce, and parsley buttered potatoes.
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24 cleaned & skinned perch fillets (or walleye fillets)
( or thoroughly scaled with bones left in if preferred ...
a bit of a challenge to eat but the flesh is sweeter)
1/4-1/2 cup milk
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 cup flour (or Drake's Crispy Frymix*)
1 tsp. sweet Hungarian paprika
sea salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/4 - 1/2 cup Crisco or clarified butter* (as needed)
fresh lemon

  • Rinse perch and pat dry.
  • Layer fish in glass dish. Combine milk and cayenne and pour over. Let rest for 20 minutes or refrigerate if longer (up to 24 hours).
  • Combine flour (or Drake's), paprika, salt & pepper.
  • Lightly dredge moist fillets in flour mixture.
  • Heat Crisco or clarified butter in pan over medium-high heat. When sizzling, saute perch in batches until golden brown, turning once to brown on both sides (DO NOT CROWD) and are crisp on both sides and moist inside.
  • Arrange on hot plates and serve with parsley buttered potatoes, slice of fresh lemon and tartar sauce. (Serves 4)

(* CLARIFIED BUTTER: Slowly melt 1 stick unsalted butter over low heat. Skim off and discard milk solids that rise to top. Retain clear clarified butter)
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TARTER SAUCE
1 cup mayonnaise
2 Tbsp. chopped sweet pickle
1 Tbsp. grated onion
2 Tbsp. fresh dill
1 Tbsp minced fresh parsley
2 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. sugar
Combine all ingredients and blend well. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

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