I said I wasn’t going to do this often, yet here I am again with another recipe. I decided that I should post this one because now that we’ve had time to test it over the past six months or so, it’s yielded the most amazing and successful fried fish ever.

A little (not important) backstory to this recipe. One evening, Sherry brought home some catfish and asked if I could fry it. I said, “Sure!” and thought about it for a moment. I’d seen some recipes online for Paleo-friendly or Keto-friendly fried fish before, but for one reason or another, they never quite came out right. I decided I’d try something I hadn’t seen elsewhere: a combination of almond flour and cassava flour mixed in a 50/50 ratio. I added some salt and pepper to the mix as well, and I decided I’d try to coat the fish with and without egg. The results were pretty surprising.

I fried a few pieces without egg. Using just the natural moistness of the fish, the flour mixture stuck quite well and didn’t fall away. In fact, the finished texture is like a cornmeal encrusted fried fish. Better yet, the coating doesn’t fall away easily and is crunchy. For a few pieces, I coated the filets in egg and then the flour mixture which yielded a more traditional faux-breading texture. This coating was a little more prone to separating from the fish, but not as easily as some of the other recipes I’ve tried.

Whenever I fry fish now, I do them both ways, about half and half: some with egg, and some without. I actually prefer the flavor without the egg, but others prefer it with egg.

Time Required

• Prep: 5 minutes
• Cooking: 15 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 lbs Gulf Catfish (or any other white, flaky fish)
• 1/2 Cup almond flour
• 1/2 Cup cassava flour
• 2 eggs
• Coconut oil

Instructions

1. Mix the almond and cassava flours together. Add salt and pepper to taste (and any other spice you’d like to add). Place in a flat bowl.
2. Scramble the two eggs into a flat bowl.
3. Take the fish, dip into egg ensuring it is completely coated. Then, dip into flour mixture and again ensure it is completely coated.
4. Heat coconut oil in frying pan with enough oil to give you at least 1/2 inch deep oil.
5. Drop into hot coconut oil. DO NOT MESS WITH IT. This is important: let it sit there untouched for at least 5-6 minutes. Then, carefully flip it over for another 2 minutes. Ensure internal temperature is at least 145 degrees.
6. Carefully remove from oil and serve.