Catfish?

Do they call catfish something different here? I haven't really seen it for sale in any of the grocery stores and I'm not sure if there are any fish markets that sell it in the Liverpool area. Any advice anyone? I really would love to be able to cook up a mess of fried catfish for my hubby. 

Do they call catfish something different here? I haven't really seen it for sale in any of the grocery stores and I'm not sure if there are any fish markets that sell it in the Liverpool area. Any advice anyone? I really would love to be able to cook up a mess of fried catfish for my hubby. 

Basa is close, if a little whiter.

The cornmeal is a challenge too 

Cool, thanks, I'll have to try that. I didn't think about the cornmeal. That may be something Ill have to source online as well I guess. Some homemade cornbread would be nice!

Well I was thinking hushpuppies but a pone of cornbread would be nice.

Yeah, hush puppies would be great too. I love to use cornmeal as a coating for the fish, along with a bit cayenne pepper, Louisiana cajun style. It's very good fried that way!

Yeah, hush puppies would be great too. I love to use cornmeal as a coating for the fish, along with a bit cayenne pepper, Louisiana cajun style. It's very good fried that way!

Yes!!

Polenta is cornmeal.

Polenta is cornmeal.

I can't get polenta to work quite right, but I haven't messed with a lot. There are different degrees of coarseness aren't there?

I can't get polenta to work quite right, but I haven't messed with a lot. There are different degrees of coarseness aren't there?

Definitely different degrees of coarseness. For me polenta would be too coarse to use for cornbread or for frying. And cornflour/starch obviously too fine.

On a related note involving ground corn products, I just returned from a visit to the states with 10 lb of grits in tow to use as favors for my wedding later this year. Even more fun was that we had a notice that TSA searched that bag. I guess all the grits and mustard based bbq sauce were ok. Haha.

Polenta is 'close but no cigar' as Groucho would have said.

Some things just don't substitute. I also 'import' grits and cornmeal when I make a trip to see my family.

We eat a lot of basa, and personally I don't think the texture or the taste is anywhere near catfish. I have sacrificed some cornmeal and fried it in the same way. Good, but not catfish.

I found this on the Asda website:

http://groceries.asda.com/asda-webstore/landing/home.shtml#/product/910000388420

Coarse cornmeal. I am going there today, and if they have it, I will check it out to see if it's the right consistency.

We eat a lot of basa, and personally I don't think the texture or the taste is anywhere near catfish. I have sacrificed some cornmeal and fried it in the same way. Good, but not catfish.

And Vadio, from what I read online, basa is a type of catfish imported from Vietnam, however, it did say that the taste and texture is a bit different from the kind we would get in the states. The US government has tried their hardest to keep Vietnamese catfish from being imported to protect their own US-based farmer's profits of locally raised catfish.
Interesting article: http://www.chefs-resources.com/Is-Vietnamese-Swai-and-Basa-Safe

Either way, I know I won't find the type of catfish I got in Texas, because I'm sure most of it was sourced fairly locally. However, I will try the basa anyway, just to see how I like it.

Definitely different degrees of coarseness. For me polenta would be too coarse to use for cornbread or for frying.

I've made cornbread with polenta, and it came out lovely. 

If you want it more fine, though, would it work to give it a bash with a pestle & mortar?  Maybe too much effort.

Basa? I once got called a Basa by a Glaswegian who'd had too much of the Buckfast Tonic Wine.   

Afro-Caribbean shops often have cornmeal.