History: (Blackening)
Origin: New Orleans
Time: 1980
Influence: American (Southern)
Often associated with Cajun cooking, blackening was popularized by well-known Cajun Chef, Paul Prudhomme. The original recipe called for Redfish; and Prudhomme created such a craze for that species that it was almost added to “Endangered Species List”. Prudhomme did not want to be known as the person responsible for wiping out an entire species, so he began promoting the blackening of other fish species such as tuna and catfish. As luck would have it (well... maybe not for the fish), Catfish was actually a better choice than the original Redfish;, and it was also cheaper, plentiful and sustainable. Today, the technique can be applied to other fish as well as pork, steak and chicken cutlets.
Remember the saying, "Necessity is the Mother of Invention"? Well, it appears that Chef Prudhomme's blackening technique is a prime example. At K-Pauls', his small restaurant in New Orleans, there was no grill; and Prudhomme wanted to grill his Redfish. Not letting that hold him back, he made a cast-iron frying pan “Hell hot”....dipped the fish in butter then in the spices. All that was left was to drop the fillet in the pan. The extreme heat of the pan charred the butter and spices in an instant, and a new style of cooking was born.
Blackening, Using Eastern Shore Spices
No one knows when the practice of “blackening” found its way to the Eastern Shore, but it is a fair assumption that it did not take long about the word got out about this new technique for seafood.
We folks from the "Shore" are a proud lot. However, we have no problem giving credit where credit is due; and recognize New Orleans as the birthplace of the “blackening” technique and Chef Prudhomme as its creator. Still, out of the spirit of friendly rivalry, we will attempt and usually succeed at making anything our own.
The difference between New Orleans style and Eastern Shore style are the spices used and the way the succotash is made.
New Orleans use their world famous Cajun spice mix, while the "Shore" uses ...(you guessed it) Old Bay.
The New Orleans version of succotash is called “Maque Choux” (mahk-shoo). This consists of corn, onions and green peppers, tomatoes and a little hot sauce. Marylanders prefer to keep it simple by using fresh corn (most times…pulled right off the stalk); Lima and/or fava beans freshly pulled from the vine…shelled and peeled. Of course, if you can’t find it that fresh, you can also go the grocery or produce store in your neighborhood.
Note of Caution
The first thing that anyone who knows the blackening process will tell you is proper blackening should never be done in your kitchen. The process create lots of smoke. Unless you have a commercial exhaust; and do not want all the smoke alarms going off', or the neighbors dialing 911, you should do this outside. Even still, do not attempt to blacken on a wooden or composite deck. The downward heat will burn wood or melt plastic.
Another thing you should be made of...This process will require investing in a barrel burner and at least one 10-inch or larger cast iron skillet. At the time of writing this blog, I did some research and found barrel burners range anywhere from $45-$250 USD. They could be more, depending where you live.
Photo: My Recipes
Ingredients
4 skinless fish fillets (top 4 suggestions are: Catfish, Redfish, Salmon or Talapia)
½ cup melted butter
½ Cup Old Bay Blackened Seasoning
2 ears sweet (as fresh as possible)
1 cup baby Lima beans or 1 cup fresh fava beans, shelled and peeled
or ½ cup baby Lima beans and ½ cup fresh fava beans (I prefer the latter)
3 tablespoons butter (salted or unsalted)
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Fresh Ground Black Pepper, to taste
Preparation
Make the succotash first. Put the beans in a saucepan and add water just to cover and lightly salt the water. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer for about 15 minutes until the beans are barely tender. Shuck the corn. Using a chef's knife, scrape the kernels off the two ears of corn. Add the corn to the beans and simmer for ten more minutes. Remove from heat, season with butter, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Cover and set aside while you prepare the fish.
Blackening
Items Needed
Barrel Burner
1 10” cast iron skillet
Oven mitts
Long handled spatula
A timer or watch with a second hand
Additional fry pan
medium sauce pan
shallow glass plate for dredging
Preparation
Light the barrel burner and turn it to high.
Place the skillet face-down over the fire and let it get hot enough that it almost glows. About 10 minutes.
While the pan is heating up, melt the butter in a medium sauce pan and pour the Old Bay Blackened Seasoning into a separate shallow dish.
Dip the fish fillets in the melted butter then dredge in the Old Bay. Shake off any excess. Do this for as many fillets as will fit in the frying pan.
Using oven mitts turn the pan over and test to see if it ready by dripping a couple of drops of melted butter in the pan. The water from the butter should immediately evaporate, the fat will ignite and burn, and the solids will instantly ball up and turn black. If that doesn't occur, return skillet to the fire, and keep testing until it does.
Once skillet is hot enough, carefully place one to four fillets in the pan. There will be a lot of sizzling and smoke. (Do not inhale the smoke!!! The burning seasoning will make you cough and gag).
When 30 seconds elapses, turn the pieces over for another 30 seconds and transfer to glass plate or pan.
Repeat this process for the remaining fillets.
Turn off the burner and let the pan cool. (Do not place the pan in water until completely cooled). The blackening is now complete. If you desire to cook the fillets longer, place in the other pan (buttered and medium flame), and cook to your liking.
Serve with the succotash and a Sam Adams Summer Ale.
Serves 4
