Broiled Catfish with Fresh Corn and Tomato Salsa

Broiled catfish fillets topped with fresh corn salsa make a light, satisfying dinner that goes from kitchen to table in less than 30 minutes.

This recipe makes a tasty, light summer meal, and you can easily opt to grill the fish on foil instead of heating up the house with the broiler. Instructions are in our recipe notes.

The fresh corn salsa is no-cook combination of corn, tomatoes, fresh herbs and scallions, that’s equally good on chicken or other varieties of fish fillets.

Shopping List: Catfish Fillets with Corn Salsa

We like to use catfish for this recipe because its firm texture is well-suited to broiling and its unique, mild flavor is a nice match for fresh, sweet corn.

You’ll find that much of the catfish available in markets today is farm-raised.

U.S. farm-raised catfish is considered to be a “Best Choice” from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch, but you’ll want to avoid catfish raised in China and Vietnam. If the origin is not clearly marked, be sure to ask.

In addition to the catfish, the special ingredients you’ll need for this recipe include:

• Fresh sweet corn – you can get away with frozen in a pinch (defrost first)
• Ground coriander – this is optional, but we use it to season the fish and it’s a nice spice to have on hand, particularly for anything with a Mexican or Southwest flair
• Ripe tomato
• Fresh cilantro, chives or basil
• Scallions
• Hot sauce
• Fresh lime (preferred) or lemon for serving

Salsa Variations and Add-Ins

Here are some ideas for mixing up the flavor on the corn salsa:

• Crumbled bacon or bits of fried pancetta
• Diced red or green bell pepper
• Minced jalapeño pepper
• Chopped sweet onion (Vidalia, Walla Walla)

Other ways to use fresh corn salsa:

• Mix into some homemade tomato salsa and serve with tortilla chips
• Toss with stir-fried zucchini or summer squash
• Mix into cooked couscous or quinoa for an easy side dish