School Of Rock Blackened Jack
This fish will make your taste buds sing. Join Claud and the gang as they prepare “Blackened Jack.”
1 tablespoon smoked sweet Spanish paprika (also known as pimenton)
2 tablespoons ground mild New Mexico or California chile, toasted before grinding
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons each garlic powder and onion powder
2 teaspoons each dried thyme and dried oregano
1 teaspoon each finely ground black and red pepper
1 stick melted butter (or olive oil, if desired)
4 six to eight ounces Amberjack filets, not more than 1” thick (you may also substitute other firm fleshed fish like redfish, mahi-mahi, cod or grouper)
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Turn on the ventilator hood fan, open the doors and windows and
disconnect the smoke alarms. Start heating up a cast iron pan. -
Make blackening blend: Combine and blend seasoning ingredients in a Pyrex
casserole dish and set aside. (Note: Remove chile seeds if you desire a
milder heat level in the seasoning mix.) -
Melt butter in a saucepan over low heat. Brush filets with melted butter
and coat both sides well with the seasoning mix – pressing seasoning in by
hand to make sure it adheres well to the fish. Completely cover the fish so
that once cooking begins, the seasoning is blackened and not the surface of
the fish itself. Set filets aside for a few minutes in the blackening mix to
ensure seasoning adheres well. -
A large, dry, cast iron skillet (and only a cast iron skillet) should be
hot–over high heat for at least 10 minutes until hotter than hell. Lay the
filets 2-3 at a time into the screaming hot pan and drizzle the top of each
filet with a teaspoon of olive oil or melted butter. Cook, uncovered for
1-1/2 to 2 minutes until nicely blackened. Turn fish over and drizzle with a
little more butter and cook another minute or so until done, depending on
the thickness of your fish fillets. -
Enjoy the blackened fish with a corn and asparagus salad or your favorite
side dish.