February 9, 2021 Jump to recipe
The season of Lent is soon approaching and there is no better way to kick it off than with my beer battered fried cod recipe. Crispy battered cod with a lemon tartar sauce, creamy, vinegary coleslaw and golden french fries make this fried cod platter a family favorite. Growing up, I was one of those kids that ate my seafood. I remember spending most of my birthday dinner at Red Lobster eating lobster tails, crab legs and their delicious cheddar biscuits. Now, most kids won’t touch seafood and that could have been a reason why I became a chef. Other than spending countless hours in the kitchen with my Mom growing up. One of the first dishes I cooked for my Mom, all on my own, was a grapefruit citrus glazed salmon. I remember my Mom asking me what I wanted to do and I told her I wanted to cook salmon. My Mom wasn’t afraid to let me make messes and to try things. She is one brave mom because if anyone knows me, I can sure make a mess when I cook. I fired up the grill on a cool night. I marinated the salmon in grapefruit orange marinate before I began to cook the salmon on the grill. I even made a side of wild rice to go with it. The recipe came from an old magazine that my Mom had and she still talks about it to this day. Now, this isn't the recipe I'm sharing with you today but it is also a good one for the season of Lent. Fried cod was a favorite in my house when growing up. We mostly ate the frozen fillets that you just put in the oven but since going to culinary school, I have learned the art of frying and beer battering things. So I have taken the frozen cod fillets I remember as a kid and elevated it.
Let's talk Beer Batter…
Beer batter is very simple. The basic ones consist of two to three ingredients, beer and flour and some seasoning. I add one egg to my batter. The egg adds structure to the batter. It's not needed, but it helps hold the batter together. You may be asking yourself, no baking powder? Yes, no baking powder. The carbonation from the beer creates bubbles and when fried the batter rises in the hot oil. This is a similar thing baking powder does when baking things. So, there is no need for it in the batter. Another thing beer does to the batter is make it more acidic. By becoming acidic, this limits the amount of gluten in the flour and the beer resulting in a light and tender batter. One of my favorite magazines, Cooks Illustrated did a study on the role of beer in batter. They concluded that any bubble drink will work in making batters. The key to a good beer batter is to keep it cold and make it fresh. You don’t want to open up that beer too soon, otherwise you will lose that carbonation too fast and the batter won’t rise as much. For best results, don't make the batter until you are ready to fry the fish. Also, keep all ingredients cold. Some restaurants are so passionate about beer battered fish, they will make the batter fresh for every order.
How do you make beer batter?
To make my beer batter, I just use my seasoned flour recipe from my Buffalo wings. Divide it in half adding one egg and one beer to one half of it. A light lager works best. I used BPR. Why divide up the flour? You have to divide up the flour because we need something for the batter to stick to the fish. By coating the fish into the flour before the batter, it allows the batter to stick better to the fish.
Let’s talk fish...
The best fish to use for beer battered fish is any type of white fish. That could be white fish from the great lakes, tilapia, or of course cod. These types of fish are great to use because they are neutral in flavor allowing them to take on the beer and spice flavor in the batter. Cod is the most popular fish used but, I have even seen salom used as well. This recipe is great because fresh or frozen fish will work. So, you can buy whatever is on sale. You will just have to defrost the fish. If it is frozen run it under cold water or defrost it a day or two in the fridge.
Let’s talk sides…
What is more classic than fish and chips with coleslaw, tartar sauce and fresh lemon wedge? Coleslaw is a family favorite with my family. And it can’t just be any recipe. It has to be my Great Grans recipe. I never had it when she made it because she was only around for a short time when I was young so I don't have many memories of her other than in the nursing home. But, she lives on through her pies and coleslaw. There really isn’t a coleslaw recipe because my Great Gran never wrote it down and the only person to remember what she did is my Mom. Now, my Mom just eyeballs this and knows it's right by taste. This isn’t helpful for the blog and having others make it. So I will have to get my Mom to measure next time! She adds in cabbage and red cabbage with carrots mayo, onions, pickle juice, white sugar and salt and pepper. Being the chef I am, I like to make things my own so I added in sour cream and ground mustard. You can't have fish and chips without the chips! Chips are just fried potatoes. Typically french fries but my fiancée and I love tater tots so I used tater tots as my chips. I just bought frozen ones from the store to make it easier and fried them up in the oil after the fish. For the tartar sauce I used mayo, lemon juice, pickles, onion, dijon mustard, worcester sauce, garlic powder, white sugar and finished it with fresh parsley. This sauce has a great balance of acid from the pickles and lemon juice and fat from the mayo. It is a must to dip your fried fish into. If you can't get your family to eat fish, you have to try beer battering it and frying it. I have never had anything bad that is fried.
Beer Battered Fried Cod
Serves 2-4
Ingredients
Tatar sauce
½ mayo
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons onion finely chopped
½ teaspoon dijon mustard
½ teaspoon worcester sauce
1 teaspoon garlic powder
3 tablespoons about three spears dill pickles diced
1 teaspoon white sugar
Salt and pepper to taste
1-2 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped
For the fish...
1 gallon peanut oil or oil of choice (may not need all of it depending on pot size)
1 pound Cod filets (cut into smaller files if needed)
1 cup of flour
1 tablespoon paprika
1/2 tablespoon onion powder
1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 tablespoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup beer (light lager such as PBR)
1 egg
Add mayo, lemon juice, onion, dijon mustard, worcester sauce, garlic powder, pickles, white sugar, parsley, salt, and pepper to a bowl. Whisk together. Taste and adjust salt and pepper to taste. Chill in the fridge until ready with the fish.
Heat the oil in a dutch oven or a heavy bottomed pot to 350ºF. (If you need more in instructions on frying, go to my chicken wing recipe)
Add flour, onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, salt, and pepper to a bowl to make a seasoned flour. Whisk together. (it is the same from my chicken wings)
Separate the seasoned flour in half. You should have ½ cup in each bowl. When ready to fry, Add the beer and egg to one bowl and mix until combined. You don’t want to lose the carbonation from the beer so don’t add until ready to fry. And keep it cold until ready.
Working in batches, coat the cod files in the seasoned flour and then dip them Into the batter knocking off any access batter before gently placing into the oil. Cook until G.B.D (golden brown and delicious) about 4-5 minutes. When done frying, put the fried cod on a sheet tray lined with a paper towel and a wire rack. This will let the cod drain oil after fried and have less surface area not allowing it to become soggy .
After all the fish is fried, fry the chips. I used store bought tater tots. Fry until G.B.D about 3-4 minutes
Serve the cod with the chips, tartar sauce, coleslaw, lemon wedge and a cold beer.
Chef notes: serve the same beer that you used to fry the fish. This makes it an easy pairing that complements the fish.
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