Description

Crispy Beer Battered Fish offers a golden, crunchy coating made with a cold beer batter that puffs up delightfully when fried. The recipe uses white fish fillets dusted in rice flour and fried in hot peanut oil until perfectly crispy. Serve with tartare sauce, lemon wedges, and crispy fries or baked wedges for a delicious main course reminiscent of a classic fish and chips meal.

Ingredients

Scale

Fish

700 g white fish fillets (flathead, snapper, whiting, cod, tilapia), skinless and boneless

Dusting

¼ cup rice flour

Crispy Fish Batter

¾ cup plain/all purpose flour
¼ cup rice flour
1¼ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
1 cup very cold beer (pale ale or lager preferred)

Cooking

4–5 cups peanut oil (or vegetable, canola, cottonseed oil)

Serving

Tartare sauce
Lemon wedges
Homemade crispy French fries
Baked potato wedges

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Instructions

Dry & Cut Fish: Pat the white fish fillets dry thoroughly using paper towels or a tea towel. Cut into batons approximately 7 x 3 cm or keep as larger fillets. If fillets are very thick (over 3 cm), slice horizontally in half to ensure even cooking.
Prepare Dusting Flour: Place ¼ cup rice flour in a shallow bowl. This will be used to lightly coat the fish before battering to improve adhesion and crispiness.
Heat Oil: In a large heavy-based pot, heat 6 cm (2 to 3 inches) of peanut oil over medium-high heat until it reaches 190°C (375°F). Use a thermometer to maintain temperature for optimal frying.
Salt & Dust Fish: Sprinkle a pinch of salt on 3-4 pieces of fish at a time. Lightly coat these pieces with rice flour, shaking off excess. You can let them rest like this for up to 10 minutes without sogginess.
Make the Batter: Just before frying, whisk together plain flour, rice flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Gradually add very cold beer, whisking gently until just combined. The batter should be thin enough to coat the back of a spoon and will have some lumps. Avoid overmixing to keep the batter light.
Dredge Fish in Batter: Dip a piece of fish into the batter, allowing excess to drip off briefly to avoid too thick a coating.
Fry Fish: Carefully lower battered fish into the hot oil, placing pieces away from you. Fry in batches without crowding, cooking each piece for 3 minutes, flipping halfway through after about 2 minutes, until the batter is deep golden brown and crispy.
Drain: Remove the fried fish with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels to remove excess oil. Repeat this process with remaining fish pieces.
Serve: Serve hot immediately with tartare sauce, lemon wedges, and a side of crispy French fries or oven-baked potato wedges. Garnish with a leafy green salad dressed with classic vinaigrette if desired.

Notes

Keep the batter cold by refrigerating between batches to maintain crispiness in warm weather.
Rice flour is essential for a lasting crispy coating. Substitute with cornflour or potato starch if needed, but expect slightly less crispiness.
Use very cold pale ale or lager beer; avoid dark beers like stout or porter as they can alter batter color and flavor.
Do not overmix the batter to prevent gluten formation; lumps are okay and help keep the batter light and airy.
For large batch cooking, consider double frying: first for 2½ minutes at 190°C until lightly golden, then reheat at 200°C for 1 minute to achieve deep golden crispiness and less greasy coating.
Oil can be strained and reused up to two more times for savory frying due to neutral batter flavor.
Fried fish is best eaten fresh as reheating can soggy the batter.
Nutrition allowance includes a conservative estimate of oil absorption; actual consumed calories may be lower.

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 serving
Calories: 460 kcal
Sugar: 1 g
Sodium: 450 mg
Fat: 24 g
Saturated Fat: 4 g
Unsaturated Fat: 18 g
Trans Fat: 0 g
Carbohydrates: 35 g
Fiber: 1 g
Protein: 30 g
Cholesterol: 65 mg