Crispy Beer Battered Fish - 365 Days of Easy Recipes (2024)

Whether your fish come from the lake or from the grocery store, you’re going to love this Crispy Beer Battered Fish recipe. The batter is not too thick but has the perfect crunch. Serve it with a side of French fries and homemade coleslaw for a meal your family will think you bought from the fish’n chip stand down the street.

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I grew up in a family that loved to fish. As a child I remember spending many days on the lake with my parents, fishing rod in hand. My mom was always on stand-by with her cooler filled with snacks and cold drinks while my dad was ready to put more bits of worm on my hook, which I always managed to lose some how. My dad said I was feeding the fish.

My dad always managed to bring home a good catch and we would feast on a meal of crispy beer battered fish for dinner. Ok, ok, I’m sure my dad was not always that lucky, but in a young daughter’s eyes, he was a fishing champion.

Fast forward a few decades, married with kids of my own. Fishing never became part of our family’s regular activities. It’s always a struggle to find a good spot to fish off the shoreline since spending money on a boat was never an option. Fishing became a thing of the past … until last year.

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I’m always looking for an excuse to spend time on a lake. I find it rather soothing for my soul. I decided to take a chance and bring my daughter fishing. I brought my dad along for back up. He IS the professional after all.

Not having access to a boat, I decided to try fishing off a local dock just outside the city. My dad came with all the gear we would need to let my daughter fish. I brought her lawn chair, iPad (I had slim hopes) and yes, a cooler full of snacks and cool drinks.

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I set up my daughter at the end of the dock in her lawn chair and helped cast in her line a few times and she sat. And sat.And sat so more. Then she tried casting in her line herself. She caught a few little fish, much to her delight. Grandpa was on hand to remove the fish off the hooks and put them back in the lake. Would you believe she stayed there for HOURS!!

I totally thought she would get tired of sitting there but she loved it! She enjoyed it so much that when it was time to pack up and leave, she begged to come back.She had so much fun catching all the little fish, learning to cast her fishing rod and just sitting on the dock. It was a beautiful sunny day and we got to chat with many other people heading out to fish. One family even treated my daughter to a boat ride. That was the cherry on top of an already pretty fabulous day!

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What an amazing way to spend the day. My dad also seemed pretty happy to be spending time on the lake. Whether it was the fishing or spending time with his family, he left with a smile on his face that day too. While we didn’t bring any fish home that day, we left with some fantastic memories.

And you know that iPad I brought along just in case my daughter got bored? It came home with a full charge. And I stopped at the grocery store to buy some fish to make my beer battered fish for dinner. Do you have any happy fishing memories? I’d love to hear about them!

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Crispy Beer Battered Fish - 365 Days of Easy Recipes (6)

4.5 from 2 votes

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Crispy Beer Battered Fish

Ingredients

  • 2cupsall-purpose flourdivided
  • 1tsponion powder
  • 2teaspoonsbaking powder
  • ¼tspground black pepper
  • 1/2teaspoonsalt
  • 1355 ml light beer
  • ½cupwaterif needed
  • 2poundsfish filletsdeboned and cut into serving pieces
  • Oil for cooking

Tartar sauce

  • 1cupmayonnaise
  • 1/4cupsweet pickle relish
  • 1tspdried onion flakes
  • 1/2lemonjuiced (optional)
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Measure ½ cup of flour into a pie plate and set aside.

  2. In a medium bowl, stir together 1 ¾ cup of flour, the onion powder, baking powder, black pepper and salt. Slowly add in the beer to the flour mixture, whisking to incorporate well. Add in a little water if the mixture is too thick, extra flour if it gets too watery. The mixture should not be too thick but should easily coat the fish when it gets dipped into the mixture.

  3. Set the batter aside and heat the oil.

  4. I use a deep fryer but if you can also use a large frying pan with a few inches of oil in it. Heat the oil to 370 degrees F.

  5. When the oil is hot enough, coat the fish fillets with flour before dipping them into the batter.

  6. Carefully lower the fish pieces into the oil and cook until golden brown on both sides. If you are using a frying pan you will need to turn the fish to cook the other side. Transfer the cooked fish to a paper towel lined plate and keep in a warm oven until all the fish are cooked and ready to serve.

4.5 from 2 votes

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Calories 784 kcal

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Crispy Beer Battered Fish - 365 Days of Easy Recipes (2024)

FAQs

Crispy Beer Battered Fish - 365 Days of Easy Recipes? ›

Rice flour and cornstarch work particularly well because they fry up crispier than wheat flour. They also absorb less moisture and fat during the frying process, making the products less greasy. This is why rice flour is often used when making tempura because it produces a very thin and crispy, dry crust.

What makes batter more crispy? ›

Rice flour and cornstarch work particularly well because they fry up crispier than wheat flour. They also absorb less moisture and fat during the frying process, making the products less greasy. This is why rice flour is often used when making tempura because it produces a very thin and crispy, dry crust.

How do you get batter to stick to fish? ›

Milk: The proteins in milk help the batter adhere to the fish and promote browning. Water: Use very cold water for the crispiest results. Baking powder: Baking powder ensures a light and crispy exterior.

How to keep beer battered fish crispy? ›

Just make sure your beer is extra cold — when the cold batter hits the hot oil, the reaction ensures the coating is nice and crispy when it comes out of the fryer.

Is batter just flour and water? ›

Many batters are made by combining dry flour with liquids such as water, milk, or eggs.

Is baking soda or powder better for crispy batter? ›

Baking powder is better for recipes that contain little or no acid ingredients. Baking soda helps make fried foods crispy and light. It is also useful for cleaning and removing stains.

What is the best oil for crispy batter? ›

Vegetable Oil: Best All-Purpose Oil for Frying

It's great for all different methods of frying and all kinds of foods like breaded chicken and fries. Typically a blend of oils, it has a high smoke point of 400 to 450 degrees, and it has a pretty neutral flavor, which deepens the flavor of the food.

Do you dip fish in egg or flour first? ›

Dip fish fillets in egg mixture; dip in flour to coat. Heat oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add fish; cook 5 to 7 minutes or until golden brown and fish flakes easily with fork, turning once.

Why won't my beer batter stick to my fish? ›

The best way to ensure the batter sticks to your fish comes down to the temperature of your oil. If the oil isn't hot enough, the batter won't stick. On the other hand, if the batter is too hot, you may end up with rock-hard fish sticks that could break a tooth.

What is the best binder for frying fish? ›

My go-to method is a simple, light smear of yellow mustard and hot sauce, which acts as a binder, then go straight into a "breading" of cornflour, cornmeal, and seasoning. I really like this method unless I'm frying soft shell crabs, then I prefer AP flour.

Why is my battered fish not crispy? ›

Batter viscosity is also important. If the wet batter is too thick (in consistency) your cooked batter will be thick (in depth) around the fish and tends to soak up too much oil. Too watery on the other hand and it won't coat the fish properly, and will go soggy quickly.

Do you put an egg in batter? ›

Batters are made by combining some sort of flour—usually wheat flour, though cornstarch and rice flour are not uncommon—with a liquid and optional leavening or binding ingredients, like eggs and baking powder.

Does cornstarch make batter crispy? ›

In a wheat flour-based batter, potato starch and cornstarch perform a similar function. They both inhibit gluten formation, limit oil absorption, and produce a crispier texture.

What makes breading extra crispy? ›

Use Cornstarch or Rice Flour

Michael says that cornstarch or rice flour in combo with flour will give you the crunchiest batter. Even cake four will cook up crunchier than all-purpose flour because it doesn't have a high gluten level.

What ingredient makes things crispy? ›

Interestingly, cornstarch contains 25 to 28 percent amylose, which is higher than the amount in wheat or potato starch (which are 20 to 22 percent amylose), and this is why cornstarch works the best for making crispy coatings on fried foods.

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