Guides

A Guide to Fish Fry Recipes

Author: Mary DiSomma

The best thing about a good fish fry is the people. Getting together, having fun, entertaining the people you love. At our fish fries, everyone gets involved. Preparing the food is like an assembly line: The fish come out of the lake, then someone cleans and fillets them, before they are brought over to the kitchen to be battered and fried!

Fish fry parties are popular all over the U.S., but with so much access to water—lakes, rivers, creeks in the Midwest—it’s kind of hard not to go fishing. You don’t have to own a pond or live on a lake to throw a good fish fry, though! All you need is some company, a few delicious side dishes, a good batter recipe, and, of course, fish (and I’m not judging if you buy it at the store).

The key to a perfect fish fry is the batter! My batter batter uses Crispy Modelo Negra Beer to create a light in texture and density, but super rich in flavor. You really can’t go wrong!

A Guide to Fish Fry Recipes

Cook Time: 0 minutes0 min

Ingredients

A candy thermometer
Your favorite white fish

Instructions

Use a Firm White Fish When it's Fresh: Firm, white-fleshed fish work best for frying. Cod is an easy and reasonably priced choice (if you’ve had fish and chips before, it was most likely made with cod). Tilapia works great and Haddock is another great option, with a slightly sweeter taste. If you live in the Great Lakes area, fresh whitefish is an amazing choice! Whichever you choose, make sure your fillets are fresh (no "fishy" smell!), and are thick-cut so they hold together while frying.
Dry Your Fish Before Battering: Damp fish leads to soggy batter. Before dipping in the batter, pat each fillet dry with paper towels. This helps the batter stick and crisp up beautifully.
Use a Good Batter Recipe: A great fish and chips batter should be light, airy, and crisp—never heavy or greasy. A classic base of all-purpose flour gives the batter structure, and the addition of yeast creates air pockets for a light, crisp texture. I like to add curry powder, garam masala, and turmeric for a warm depth of flavor. Dark beer adds a rich, malty taste and helps achieve that crispy texture—but the real secret ingredient is time. Letting the batter rest for a while before using it is how you make it really crispy!
Choose a High Smoke-Point Oil: Canola oil is the most affordable choice for frying the fish, but you could use peanut oil or safflower oil if you like. Remember that different oils have different safe smoke points. Canola oil has a smoke point of 435 degrees. Peanut and safflower oils have some of the highest smoke points at 450 degrees. Avoid olive oil and corn oil as they both have a lower smoke points (about 410 degrees). You can strain the cooled oil and store it at room temperature in a cool area of your kitchen and use it again—but make sure you only use it for frying fish.
Maintain the Right Oil Temperature: Use a deep, heavy pot that’s large enough to fry the fish without overcrowding. Fish needs to be fried in oil that is 350 degrees so it cooks evenly on the inside, and gets crispy on the outside. You may want to use a splatter guard while frying the fish.

Extra Bites

Here’s a list of my favorite sides to serve at a fish fry! It's easy to make it a big meal with a salad, or some classic sides.

Baked Crab Cake Bites with Homemade Remoulade Sauce

Summer Vegetable and Fruit Vegan Ceviche

Honey Citrus Fruit Summer Salad

Spicy Watermelon Jalapeño Summer Salad

Buttermilk Hush Puppies

Cornbread

No-Mayo Crunchy Coleslaw

Sweet Corn Relish

For a good fish fry dessert, I’d go with more finger food. If you want it to feel a little bit fancy without putting in too much effort, try my Apricot Almond Granola Bars. But alas, I can’t lie: My real go-to dessert is (you guessed it) cookies. For any outdoor fish fry or a picnic-style meal, I love to recommend my Sweet N’ Salty Cashew Potato Chip Cookies. You won’t have to bring chips to your party, and trust me, people will be coming back for more! I also love to serve my Cast Iron Skillet Chocolate Chip Cookie with Sea Salt Caramel. It’s easy to serve, and you can add a scoop (or two) of ice cream (more on whether or not to serve ice cream for a fish fry later).

Sweet n’ Salty Cashew Potato Chip Cookies

Mary’s Giant Strawberry Shortcake

Sweet n’ Salty Cashew Potato Chip Cookies

Corn Ice Cream with Blueberry Sauce

Triple Chocolate Addiction Ice Cream Sandwiches

Cast Iron Skillet Chocolate Chip Cookie with Sea Salt Caramel

4th of July Dessert Recipe: Star Spangled Blueberry Pie

Bumbleberry Pie Recipe

Aunt Rita’s Pecan Tassies➝

Gluten-free, Dairy-free, Vegan Chickpea Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe➝

Strawberry and Blueberry 4th of July and Memorial Day Dessert Trifle

So you still need something to drink. For the kiddos and anyone who doesn’t want a beverage with spirits, try my Summer Strawberry Lemonade. Bonus: It’s super easy to add a splash of vodka if you want! For those that do choose to enjoy a cocktail, I’ve got my Favorite Piña Colada recipe which is out of this world. If it’s gonna be a big party, try whipping up a batch of my Pomegranate Red Wine Sangria or my Favorite White Wine Sangria to impress your guests! Last but not least, serve your guests from a large bowl of ice-cold vodka beer punch. It’s refreshing and self-serve, which means you can concentrate on the fish!

Mary's Favorite Pomegranate Red Wine Sangria➝

Mary's Favorite White Wine Sangria➝

Prosecco Blueberry Limoncello Punch➝

Spicy Watermelon Cocktail with Pineapple and Jalapeño-Infused Tequila➝

Ice-cold Vodka Beer Punch➝

Mary’s Favorite Piña Colada➝

Strawberry Limoncello Frosé