Last night I got to craving the catfish tacos we used to serve in the bar at the restaurant where I worked for many years. I gave winging it a whirl, and they were quite tasty indeed! No pic, because we were just TOOOOO hungry! This is what I came up with:

CAJUN SEASONING MIX

2 t granulated garlic

2 t granulated onion

2 t whole leaf, dried thyme

2 t whole leaf, dried marjoram or oregano

2 t paprika

1 T sugar

2 t salt

2 t pepper

1 t cayenne

t ground cumin

½ t nutmeg

Put the granulated onion & garlic, thyme & oregano in a spice/coffee grinder and reduce to a powder. Add to other ingredients, mix well. This makes for a spicy, but not blistering hot seasoning mix.

CILANTRO-JALAPENO CREAM SAUCE

½ bunch cilantro

1 small jalapeno or Serrano pepper

5 T plain yogurt

Cream, half & half or milk

1 clove garlic

Roast jalapeno over a gas flame, or in an iron skillet (if youÂve electric burners) until the skin blackens. Rub skin off, slice in half, and with a knife, gently scrape seeds outÂunless you want the sauce to be pretty spicy, in which case, leave them in. Place all ingredients but the cream in a mini blender and puree until smooth, adding a bit of cream if necessary to get the process going. Thin sauce with cream to pouring consistency. The amount can vary, depending on how juicy the cilantro is and how thin the yogurt. I make my own yogurt, and the texture can vary quite a bit depending on how long it takes for me to remember that I left it draining, lol.

CAJUN CATFISH TACOS

Catfish nuggets (cheaper!) or boneless filets

Cajun seasoning mix

Flour tortillas

Diced tomato

Thinly sliced cabbage

Cilantro cream sauce

Vegetable or light olive oil

Cilantro jalapeno cream sauce

Rinse the catfish and pat excess water off. Coat both sides of the pieces with seasoning mix, dip in oil and layer in a container to marinate. This can be done almost last minute or hours ahead of time. The flavor of the seasoning will increase a bit over time, but wonÂt seep into the catfish flesh so deep as to overwhelm the flavor, as catfish is quite dense.

If cooking on the grill, heat it quite hot, lower the heat and oil the grate before setting the fish on to cook. ItÂs hard to give cooking time for catfish, because it depends so much on the thickness of the pieces. But be aware that it does not "flake" as other fishes do. There is a "feel" to it when it is done, like tender rubber (oooh, that sounds appetizing, doesnÂt it?) My best suggestion is to cook a small, thick, piece first, testing it when you think itÂs done so you learn before you cook the rest. Cutting it in half, the fish should be opaque all the way through, white with no slightly grey center. The good news is that catfish is pretty forgiving. You have to overcook it quite a bit to dry it out.

Assembly: This oneÂs tough. Slice the fish into long pieces. Lay them on the tortillas, top with chopped tomato & cabbage, drizzle with cilantro cream sauce. Fold over and eat.