Canned tomatoes and sliced frozen okra offer shortcuts to success by adding a colorful flavor boost to this comfort soup.
Using a between-season lineup of vegetables available now in the produce section, this hearty dinner satisfies while we await spring vegetables. Substitute tilapia or red snapper fillets if you don’t have a taste for catfish, and call it seafood soup.
Menu
Cornbread
Catfish soup
Salad of mixed greens with
balsamic vinaigrette
Raspberry sorbet
Riesling or beer
Tips
Buy shredded cabbage from the supermarket to save time.
Skip the bacon to save time and use 1 tablespoon vegetable oil to cook the vegetables instead.
Catfish soup
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes
Yield: 8 servings
4 slices bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 each, quartered: small red onion, ribs celery
1 carrot, quartered
2 cloves garlic
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon hot pepper flakes
2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) chicken broth
2 bottles (4 ounces each) clam juice
1 can (14 1/2 ounces) whole tomatoes, chopped
1/2 head cabbage, cored, chopped
1 fennel bulb, trimmed, thinly sliced
1 cup frozen sliced okra
1 1/2 cups long-grain rice
2 catfish fillets, 6 ounces each, cut into chunks
1. Cook bacon, turning occasionally, in a Dutch oven over high heat until crisp, about 3 minutes; set aside. Meanwhile, pulse onion, celery, carrot and garlic in a food processor until coarsely chopped. Add chopped vegetables, salt and pepper to taste to Dutch oven. Cook, stirring often, until softened, 3 minutes. Stir in hot pepper flakes.
2. Stir in broth, clam juice, tomatoes, cabbage, fennel and okra. Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, cook the rice according to package instructions.
3. Gently stir catfish into the Dutch oven; cook until the catfish is flaky, about 4 minutes. Serve over rice; garnish with bacon.
Nutrition information per serving:
293 calories, 21% of calories from fat, 7 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 30 mg cholesterol, 42 g carbohydrates, 17 g protein, 782 mg sodium, 4 g fiber
