Fisherman’s Crispy Coating — The Panko-Parmesan Fish Coat

The anthology launch was Saturday night at the central Tulsa Library, the big one downtown with the marble lobby and the second-floor reading room with the long oak tables and the high windows that look out over the courtyard. Marcus had set up two of those long tables along the back wall with a hundred copies of the paperback stacked in pyramids, a thirty-cup coffee urn from the library’s event closet, two pitchers of lemonade with sliced lemons floating, and a small wooden lectern at the front of the room with a single brass reading lamp. The library board had advertised the launch in the Tulsa World on Tuesday and posted flyers at the four county libraries, and about a hundred and twenty people showed up — far more than I’d expected.

Mama drove me up in the truck. Aunt Linda came up separately and saved seats in the second row. Iris and both her parents came in from Bristow — Karen in a navy dress I’d never seen her in, her father in a clean button-down with the long-haul-trucker tan-line still showing at his wrists. Mr. Briggs sat in the third row by himself with a copy of the anthology already in his hand. Antonio’s mother had driven him over from Sapulpa and was wiping her eyes before the program even started. The other writing-program participants and their families filled in the rest.

Eight of us read in alphabetical order by last name, which put me sixth, between Olivia Robinson and Iris Wilson. I sat in the front row with the others and listened to the first five pieces, my heart doing something I can’t describe except to say it wasn’t panicking, just present. When my name was called, I walked to the lectern with the printed sixteen pages under my arm in a clear plastic folder. I had practiced reading the piece every night for a week on the back porch in the cold, with the porch light on and the dogs across the road occasionally barking. I could do it without looking at the page by Wednesday. I read from the page anyway, because Marcus had told me the page is a kind of armor — you don’t need it but you should hold it — and because some sentences I knew I’d only get through if my eyes were on the paper instead of on the audience.

Twenty-four minutes of reading. The piece is structured as a slow zoom — the visitation pass folded into the square at the start, the years of family before that, the specific Tuesday afternoon of the verdict, the first phone call from the unit, and the visitation pass square again at the end with the meaning shifted. I read the last sentence — “Mama folded the pass into a square small enough to swallow, and that’s how she carried him for fourteen months” — and looked up. The room clapped for what felt like a very long time. Mama was crying in the second row in a way I had never seen her cry, not at funerals, not at Cody’s sentencing, not at anything ever. Aunt Linda had her arm around Mama’s shoulders. Mr. Briggs was sitting completely still in the third row with the anthology open in his lap and was not moving his face.

Marcus came up after I sat down and said into the microphone, “I want everybody in this room to remember her name. Kaylee Turner. Sapulpa High, class of 2019. You’re going to read her again.” That sentence is going to live in my head until I die.

Sunday I made fisherman’s crispy coating on tilapia for dinner because the apartment kind of needed something quiet. Tilapia is the cheap white fish at IGA — two-something a pound, frozen and thawed, mild and forgiving — and the coating is the entire point. Fifty percent panko breadcrumbs, twenty-five percent finely grated parmesan from the wedge, twenty-five percent all-purpose flour, the zest of one lemon, half a teaspoon of dried dill, salt, and a generous turn of black pepper. The fillet gets patted bone dry with paper towels (wet fish steams instead of crisping), egg-washed in a beaten egg with a tablespoon of milk, dredged through the coating mix with light pressure to make it stick, and pan-fried in a half-and-half mix of butter and olive oil over medium-high heat for three minutes a side until the crust is the color of a perfectly toasted marshmallow.

Mama and I ate at the kitchen table with the radio off. After the last bite, she set her fork down, looked at me, and said, “You’re going to be okay no matter where you go to college, baby. I just want you to know I know that already.” Then she got up and started the dishes.

Pat the fish bone-dry first — wet fish steams. Here’s the coating that gets it golden.

Fisherman’s Crispy Coating

Prep Time: 10 min | Cook Time: 15 min | Total Time: 25 min | Servings: 6

Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup fine yellow cornmeal
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon seasoned salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 3/4 cup cold milk or cold sparkling water (sparkling gives extra crunch)
• Vegetable oil, for frying (enough for 2—3 inches in a heavy pot)
• 1 1/2 lbs fish fillets, hot dogs, or protein of choice, patted dry

Instructions

1. Heat the oil. Pour vegetable oil into a heavy-bottomed pot or deep skillet to a depth of 2—3 inches. Heat over medium-high until it reaches 375°F. Use a thermometer for best results—temperature is everything for crunch.
2. Mix the dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, seasoned salt, cracked pepper, garlic powder, and paprika until evenly combined.
3. Add the wet ingredients. Add the beaten egg and cold milk (or sparkling water) to the dry mixture. Stir just until a smooth, thick batter forms. Do not overmix. The batter should coat the back of a spoon.
4. Dry and dip. Pat your protein completely dry with paper towels—moisture is the enemy of a crispy coat. Dip each piece into the batter, letting any excess drip off, then lower it carefully into the hot oil.
5. Fry in batches. Cook 3—4 pieces at a time, do not crowd the pot. Fry for 3—5 minutes, turning once, until deep golden brown and cooked through. Fish fillets will take closer to 3 minutes; thicker pieces up to 5.
6. Drain and season. Remove with a slotted spoon or spider strainer and set on a wire rack over a baking sheet (not paper towels, which trap steam and soften the crust). Season immediately with a pinch of salt while hot.
7. Serve right away. Crispy coating waits for no one. Serve immediately with dipping sauces, hot sauce, or mustard alongside.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 280 | Protein: 22g | Fat: 10g | Carbs: 24g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 410mg