Making beer battered fish is easy to do and you will only need 6 ingredients! We’ve included a homemade tartar sauce as well to finish off this delicious meal.
Why this recipe works
Here in Wisconsin, Friday fish fries are a regular thing, but during the Lenten season you simply must make a reservation at your favorite restaurant or you’re not getting in!
While we love eating out, making beer battered fish at home is not hard and you can avoid the crowds that Fridays of Lent bring.
I’m British born, so “fish and chips”, basically fish and french fries, was a big part of my childhood. I definitely love tartar sauce on the side, but another must have for me is malt vinegar!
Ingredients you will need
How to Make Beer Battered Fish
These step by step photos and instructions are here to help you visualize how to make this recipe. You can Jump to Recipe to get the printable version of this recipe, complete with measurements and instructions at the bottom.
Prepare Tartar Sauce
Mix together all ingredients in a small bowl and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Prepare the Fish
- Cut fish into 1” bite sized pieces.
- In a large saucepan or dutch oven, heat the canola oil to 350 F.
- Add flour to a large mixing bowl, pour in the beer.
- Add pepper, salt, and paprika and whisk to combine.
- Add the fish to the batter.
- Using tongs, carefully add fish to the hot oil one by one, assuring the pieces do not touch.
- Fry for 5 minutes. Flip halfway through.
- Use a slotted spoon or frying basket to remove the fish nuggets and place on a paper towel lined plate to allow excess oil to drip off. I will sprinkle the dill onto the fish at this point so it sticks better, but this is not required.
Frequently Asked Questions
A good rule of thumb for the amount of oil to use while frying is 2-inches. Heating the oil to 350 F is so important before adding the fish nuggets because if the oil isn’t hot enough the nuggets will be quite greasy by the time they are done cooking.
If you don’t have a thermometer to test the temp of the oil, wait until the oil starts shimmering. My favorite method is to use the handle of a wooden spoon, dip it into the oil and look for any bubbles to form around it and float up. If it bubbles quickly and rapidly, turn the heat down and try again, if it is too hot it will burn the bread.
The tartar sauce can definitely be made ahead. The measurements in this recipe will make enough to have leftovers. Prepare the tartar sauce and add it to a mason jar and keep it in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
Add all of the fish to the bowl with batter and stir to coat. When dropping into the oil, some of the batter will drip off of the fish and that is fine, but if you wait too long to add the battered fish to the hot oil and too much batter drips off, add it back to the bowl before adding to the oil. This is why dropping them one at a time is best.
Do this quickly, don’t wait for the batter to stop dripping completely before adding to the hot oil. When the fish nuggets are FIRST added to the oil is the most important time to watch them. Don’t let them crowd as they will fuse together. After about 10 seconds the batter should be cooked enough that they will not stick together.
Have your own Friday fish fry at home by making this homemade beer battered fish. Serve it with tartar sauce and malt vinegar, and of course, french fries!
More Seafood Recipes
- Fish Chowder
- Fish Tacos
- Sheet Pan Salmon Dinner
- Dijon Lemon Caper Salmon
- Salmon Tacos
- Baked Salmon
- Lobster Roll
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Beer Battered Fish
IMPORTANT – There are often Frequently Asked Questions within the blog post that you may find helpful. Simply scroll back up to read them!
Print It Rate ItIngredients
- 1 ¼ cup all purpose flour
- ¾ cup beer
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 12 oz tilapia or your favorite white fish such as cod, haddock, etc
Tartar Sauce
- ½ cup mayo
- 2 spears dill pickle minced
- 1 teaspoon dill
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- ½ tablespoon capers chopped
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
Things You’ll Need
- Thermometer
Before You Begin
- Cut down the center of the filet, then cut each filet across the width every 1-inch. This gives the perfect “nugget” shape and helps keep the size uniform. Some end pieces will be much smaller and make great taste tester pieces while prepping everyone’s dinner plates.
- When mixing the batter the consistency should be slightly runny. When you pick the whisk or spoon out of the batter you should see a slow stream of batter falling off. If it falls off in clumps, add a bit more beer. If the batter quickly streams off of the spoon or whisk it is too thin, simply add a tablespoon of flour at a time until it reaches proper consistency.
- For a non-alcoholic version, this recipe tastes amazing with O’Doul’s.
- Blue Moon makes for a tangy version and it is great!
Instructions
Prepare Tartar Sauce
- Mix together all ingredients in a small bowl and refrigerate for 30 minutes while you prep and cook the fish.
Prepare the Fish
- Cut fish into 1” bite sized pieces.
- In a large saucepan or dutch oven, heat the canola oil to 350 F.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, pepper, salt, and paprika and mix to combine.
- Pour in beer and whisk.
- Add the fish to the batter.
- Using tongs, carefully add fish to the hot oil one by one, assuring the pieces do not touch.
- Fry for 5 minutes. Flip halfway through.
- Use a slotted spoon or frying basket to remove the fish nuggets and place on a paper towel lined plate to allow excess oil to drip off. I will sprinkle the dill onto the fish at this point so it sticks better, but this is not required.
Nutrition
Amanda Davis
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Jeffrey Snuggs says
It sound a lot like my Grandmothers recipe from MN.
Lois E. Barros says
Instead of having to cope with chopping up the dill pickles why not just use dill relish?
Amanda Formaro says
You certainly could :)