MERIDIAN —  You know there really was a time before catfish – fried on the platter, that is.  I can’t even imagine. Mississippi and catfish go hand-in-hand or rather, hand to mouth, and don’t forget the hushpuppies!

    The catfish is described as a diverse group of ray-finned fish. The name catfish comes from the resemblance of the prominent barbels located on the face of the fish that looks like cat whiskers.  That’s just too much information for me. I’d rather think of the catfish fried up and on a dinner plate.

    Catfish farming in Mississippi is the largest aquaculture industry in the United States. One fact is that in 2005, over 600 million pounds of catfish from 165,000 pond water acres were sold – bringing over $450 million into the state coffers. Mississippi produced 55% of all catfish sales in the world. Mississippi began farm-raised catfish in 1965. The industry continues to expand. Channel catfish is best for the pond water farms – great taste, firm and mild and excellent either fried, broiled, grilled, or baked. The main catfish feed ingredient is soybean based. Researchers agree that the well-balanced feed formula for catfish has the correct amounts of protein, carbohydrate, energy, vitamin, and amino acid.

    Now of course when something is really good and generates large sums of revenue, other suppliers try to edge in on the success with their inferior products. I reference the “look-alike,” but not “taste-alike” fish that come from other countries – in particular Vietnam with their “basa” and “tra” fish. At first these fish products were named “River Cobbler” and “White Roughy” but they did not sale in the United States. Later the name was changed to “catfish” and their sales picked up immediately -- eventually the “catfish” from Vietnam garnered 23 percent of the small catfish fillet U.S. market. That’s when the Catfish Farmers of America took action. CFA contacted their congressman and attorneys. Eventually there was a bill introduced in the U.S. Congress that stated only channel catfish could be called “catfish.” Therefore, “basa” and “tra” from overseas cannot legally be identified as “catfish” in the United States. I recommend when ordering a catfish dinner, always make certain it is a Mississippi product.  

    I’m just saying – don’t mess with our catfish.

    Years ago when folks wanted a catfish fry for a special occasion, Mississippians would catch their own in nearby rivers or creeks. My mother told me of many catfish-fry-events in honor of her grandmother, Mrs. Paralee Reynolds Harrison. Grandma Paralee especially enjoyed a good catfish meal. So to celebrate her July birthday, the entire family gathered at the creek located on their property. The men fished in the morning, cleaned the fish and then fried them all outside. The women prepared all of the other dishes and desserts. The wooden tables would be set among the shade of the trees near the creek. Even though that was many years before I came along, each time we drove pass a Creek, located in Newton County, I’ve thought of those days.

    Even prior to that time in the early 1930s, catfish was a welcomed item for any Mississippi meal. The Choctaw women only had a few primitive cooking utensils. One favorite was to cover the meat or fish with a clay mixture – fish were not scaled, birds were not plucked, only their heads and wings removed. The clay-covered-cooking-container was then placed in the embers and covered with ashes and the glowing coals. Once the food cooked, the clay was broken and removed. When removed, all of the scales, heads, and feathers came off as well. The men caught the fish with their own spears and hooks, sometimes hooks made of bone were also used.

    Below are a few of the many thousands of Mississippi restaurants serving excellent catfish:

    Taylor Grocery – located in the small town of Taylor approximately 20 minutes from Oxford. The catfish restaurant has been in business since the early 1970s, however, before the restaurant, there was an actual grocery there since the 1880s. Serving fried catfish, hushpuppies, cole slaw, potato salad, and fried okra – all-you-can-eat.  A friendly down-home atmosphere filled with wooden tables and happy folks.

    The Crown – located in Indianola, near the B.B King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center, has been featured by the Food Network, Turner South, Southern Living, CNN, Travel Channel, Bon Appétit, plus others. Their special smoked catfish plate was created in 1990.

    Aunt Jenny’s Catfish Restaurant located in Ocean Springs. Here are a few testimonials:

    July 9, 2012 – Found the restaurant on the internet. Traveling from Lakes Charles, La to Vancleave, MS to visit grandson. Wife has seafood allergies.  Not many restaurants will accommodate patrons with this problem, especially a seafood. This is one place that does and the food was good. Service excellent. Would eat here again. We had fried shrimp, catfish, and combos. Enjoyed the atmosphere of the old home. Lots of old antiques

    May 11, 2012 – We ate supper one evening at Jenny’s and had great food.  You have a good variety to choose from but try their catfish … mummmm. You can also have all you can eat but a regular meal has plenty to eat.

    Long’s Fish Camp – Located near Enterprise is a legendary catfish restaurant located directly on the banks of Chickasawhay River. It is a cinder block building, homey and welcoming. Cole slaw, catfish, hushpuppies are the best. Below is a testimonial:

    We ate at Long’s last night for the first time and couldn’t have been more pleased.  My husband declared the fried shrimp to be as good as he’s had anywhere … I got whole catfish and it was delicious as was everything. The service couldn’t have been better.

    Well, there you have it. Mississippi catfish – none better. Hope to see you soon along the catfish trail.



    Anne B. McKee is an author and storyteller. She lives in Meridian. Visit her website at www.annemckee.net.