The 2 Seasonings Alton Brown Uses To Give His Fried Catfish A Subtle Kick

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

Catfish tends to dwell in love-it or hate-it territory. Detractors commonly point to a muddy taste, a result of the ancient bottom-feeding habits of these whiskered water wonders — but "ancient" is the key word here. Modern, commercially available catfish are grain-fed at the surface of freshwater aquaculture ponds, resulting in a much milder taste. This opens catfish to a wider seafood fan-base, including those following celebrity chefs such as Alton Brown. With deep Southern roots in the state of Georgia, one of the region's leading catfish producers, he knows a thing or two about frying catfish — including how to season it.

Fried catfish, which hits the skillet in a cloak of cornmeal-based batter, sometimes lacks pizazz. But in Alton Brown's fried catfish recipe, that's expertly addressed by adding two specific spices to the mix. Each brings an extra kick with its earthy flavor, the first being the well-known seafood flavor-king: Old Bay seasoning. The second catfish perker-upper is hot smoked paprika — which packs considerably more heat than Old Bay and standard sweet paprika. The key to cooking with this fiery type of seasoning is understanding the term. 

Paprika comes in sweet, hot, and smoked versions — plus the gloriously spirited hot smoked rendition that Brown reaches for in his recipe. Smoked paprika comes from red peppers slow-dried over wood smoke, traditionally oak. But most supermarket versions feature sweet peppers instead of hot ones. For the hot smoked paprika in Alton Brown's Southern fried catfish recipe, your best bet is to look for something like Premium Hungarian Paprika Powder which has "smoked hot" on the label. 

For the spicy kick in Alton Brown's catfish recipe, he directs home chefs to mix the spice-and-heat duo of Old Bay and smoked hot paprika together in a separate bowl along with some salt and pepper. Each catfish filet gets evenly coated in the spice mixture before getting a deep-dive into buttermilk, followed by a coating of his cornmeal and flour mix, and a deep sizzle in hot oil. With these two spices, your plate and palate come alive in a spitfire of flavor, which is gently tempered by the tangy buttermilk and earthy cornmeal. But, it's easy to incorporate in other catfish-cooking traditions too.

For example, in Christina Musgrave's catfish nuggets recipe, you can simply swap out the black pepper for Old Bay and smoked hot paprika. The same goes for any other catfish preparation — even if it's not fried. Though many Southerners would beg to disagree, catfish can be tasty when baked, grilled, or broiled, and Brown's favored seasonings will make them all sizzle and sing. To learn more about cooking with these spices, check out Tasting Table's guides to everything you need to know about cooking with paprika and how to create homemade Old Bay seasoning.