How do you fry your fish?

Here is a healthier alternative to deep frying. It works best for really thin fillets.

Salt and pepper your fillets an hour ahead of cooking and let them sit in the refridgerator. When you get ready to cook them, put a small amount of mayonaise in a bowl (maybe a half tsp or so per fillet is all it takes). Using a pastry brush, brush the fillets with mayo on both sides. (the reason for pre-staging the mayo in the bowl is so that you don't contaminate the jar of mayo with the brush). Roll the fillets in seasoned bread crumbs (my favorite is italian seasoned with romano cheese). You don't want a heavy coating - just enough to stick to the fish. Mayo is basically oil and egg so it will melt as soon as it hits the pan. It is just used to make the crumbs stick.

Get a pan medium hot and add a little bit of oil - just enough to make a wet surface. I use grapeseed oil because it has all the health benefits of olive oil but has the high-smoke point of peanut oil. HERE IS THE KEY - only turn the fillets one time because you'll break them if you aren't gentile. With a thin fillet (like a flounder) it only takes about 2 minutes on the first side and even less on the other.

Be ready to plate and serve as soon as they get done because they'll cool off fast.

Zatarain's 350° and like others only batter enough for one batch at a time. Also find that it helps if the fillets are not dripping wet before you batter them. Sometimes I like to do the mustard before coating in fish fry. The oil I like to use is a blend of peanut and soybean oil. I think it's called southern frying oil. Not as expensive as peanut oil and lasts a while.

I also like to do something similar to what DoyleAlley posted. Not quite as healthy as his version but much better than frying.

2 eggs (beaten)
3/4 cup bread crumbs (I like italian panko best)
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
salt
pepper
garlic
tony's (or favorite cajun seasoning)
thyme
REAL butter

Beat the eggs in one bowl, mix bread crumbs and seasons in another. Heat pan over med heat. Dip fillets in eggs then coat with seasoned bread crumbs. Melt about a tablespoon of butter in the hot pan and brown each side of fillets turning only once. Sometimes a small amount of butter needs to be added when you flip the fillets.

Just keep an eye on the heat. The butter will burn easy if it is too hot. After you cook the first batch, wipe pan clean with wad of paper towels and repeat until all of fish is cooked. I usually have two pans going to be able to cook enough for all 4 of us. You have to work fast though. It only takes a couple minutes.

In the spirit of this thread, I thought I'd share. I was prepping a deer roast last night and got a call out of the blue from a buddy, asking if I wanted some bass. Of course I said "heck yea" if they're fileting size! He brought over a garbage sack full of about twelve 3-4lb. Bass, straight from one of Oxford's private managed lakes! Those well-fed footballs produced close to 5 lbs. of filets. I will be trying some of the above techniques. [cool][drool]