Something Fishy Going On...

Keep your eye out for an upcoming segment in season 3. America’s Heartland recently visited the state of Mississippi as part of our effort to cover all 50 states. And a trip to Mississippi wouldn’t be complete without visiting one of the dozens of catfish farms. Yes, they “farm” catfish. Fly over the Indianola area and you get a sense of just how important catfish farming is to the region. Giant ponds filled with thousands of catfish stretch for miles. Where I grew up, in Iowa, folks used to catch catfish in the Mississippi River. It was served fried, whole. But in catfish country, it’s all filleted! It’s fried, of course, and on almost every restaurant menu in the area. But we did find one restaurant where they don’t fry the fish, and are proud of it. At the Crown Restaurant in Indianola, Evelyn Roden shares her “Catfish Allison” recipe. The fillet doesn’t go anywhere near grease. Instead it gets poached and then baked with a creamy sauce. Evelyn says catfish is the perfect fish for this kind of preparation. It just soaks up all the buttery flavor. And boy does she use a lot of butter! So if you happen to be driving through catfish country, stop at The Crown and tell Evelyn that Jason from America’s Heartland sent you!