Catfish Creole

Total Time: 1 hr Preparation Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 45 mins

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup celery, chopped
• 1/2 cup green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 lemon, zested finely and juiced (more to taste)
• 1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon paprika
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon thyme leaves
• 1/4 teaspoon tabasco sauce (or other)
• 2 lbs catfish fillets
• hot cooked rice ( or brown)

Recipe

• 1 melt butter in wide frying pan or dutch oven over medium heat; add onion, celery, green pepper, and garlic. cook until soft (about 7 minutes); add tomatoes, lemon zest and juice, worcestershire, paprika, bay leaf, salt, thyme and tabasco. cook, stirring occasionally, for about 15 minutes until sauce is slightly thickened.
• 2 press fish pieces down into sauce; spoon some of the sauce over the top of fish. cover pan and simmer gently until fish flakes readily when prodded in thickest portion with a fork. for a 1 1/2 inch-thick piece of fish (measured in thickest portion), allow 15 minutes.
• 3 to serve, spoon fish and sauce over cooked rice or add a bit of rice right to the pan.