Shrimp and Fish Po' Boys

We talked about going out for dinner tonight.  But, I am struggling with a tad of a head cold, and I didn't want to venture back out after a busy day.  The best thing about going out for a typical Saturday night are simple pleasures like fried food. I maybe do something at home fried, at most twice a year.  You just can't get that same crisp like a restaurant fryer gets.  That along with the fact that it is oh so not good for you, makes it taboo to fry anything.  There is nothing tastier than a good ol' Western PA fried fish sandwich.  I had 2 tilapia fillets in the freezer that were not quite enough for a complete meal.  Shrimp was on sale this week (yup, I broke down and grocery shopped today-and btw, I slammed with coupons, menu planning and store specials!  $202 worth of groceries for $115!).  I swiped 8 shrimp (the rest are for tomorrow) out of the bag for tonight's dinner to go with the (2) 4 oz. fish pieces to make these sandwiches from a Melissa d' Arabian, $10 Meals, recipe.

Shrimp and Fish Po' Boys
printable recipe

For Shrimp and Fish:
3 c. vegetable oil for frying
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
8 oz. medium shrimp, de-veined and peeled and cut in 2 pcs.
(2) 5 oz. tilapia fillets-mine were 4 oz. cut in chunks
1/4 c. whole milk
3/4 c. flour
1/2 c. cornmeal

Fill a heavy pot with 2" of oil.  Bring to a temperature of 350° over medium heat.
Whisk seasonings together.

Toss shrimp and fish in dry seasonings.

Add the milk.

In a shallow baking dish, whisk flour and cornmeal together.

In small batches, dredge the wet fish and shrimp in the flour mixture.  Shake off excess.

Fry in the hot oil until golden brown, about 4 minutes.

Creamy Garlic Spread (this is fabulous!)

1/3 c. mayonnaise
zest and juice of 1/2 lemon
1-2 pressed garlic cloves
Blend all together

Assemble Po' Boys:

1 baguette
sliced tomato
shredded crisp lettuce
mayonnaise
fish and shrimp

What I finally figured out based on reading about perfecting home frying is the importance of heating the oil to the right temperature.  I used a thermometer and waited patiently until the oil reached the right heat.  I was rewarded with dry, crisp and ultra crunchy, light tasting fish!  Success!  I had no residual grease; and didn't taste that guilt induced oily flavor.  Unfortunately it came out so good, I may want to fry more :(    It is a good thing this blog is public or it would be too easy to eat nothing but bad food!  I guess that warrants a thank you to you my readers!