This Crispy Beer Batter Fish Recipe is made with basic ingredients and creates a crunchy coating around flaky, tender white fish! Fried fish is great with homemade Tartar Sauce or used to make crispy fish tacos!
We’ve been on a mission to clear out our freezer, so when I came across some fish that my husband had caught last year I knew exactly what I wanted to make!
Gone are the days of boring, soggy fish sticks, these crispy coated fish are flaky, crunchy and perfectly seasoned!
How To Make Beer Batter Fish Fry
I’ll be honest, I am NOT a drinker, so while I don’t ever have beer in my fridge, that won’t stop me from buying it specifically for this recipe. The beer gives the batter that light airy texture, creating a thin, yet crispy coating that’s totally crave-able.
Here’s what you’ll need for the beer batter:
- All Purpose Flour
- Garlic Powder – adds great flavor to the batter
- Paprika – gives the batter a nice flavor, while also helping give a nice golden brown color
- Seasoned Salt – feel free to adjust salt levels to taste
- Egg – helps to create a nice texture and bind things together
- Beer – the type of beer doesn’t really matter, I like to use a dark amber beer like Dos Equis
*There’s no need to be concerned with alcohol consumption and this recipe, as the alcohol will get cooked off when the fish is fried in oil.
What Type of Fish is Best For Frying?
I have tested a few types of fried fish and I’ve had the best results with white fish, namely using an Alaskan COD FISH. The cod fish had the best flake and texture in my opinion. Here are some other types of fish that would work great:
- Alaskan Cod
- Tilapia
- Halibut – also one of my favorites, but can be a bit pricy
- Striped Bass
- Shrimp – use raw shrimp, not precooked
How To Get Crispy Fried Fish Every Time
There are a few things to watch out for in order to get perfectly crisp and flaky fried fish. Don’t worry, it’s actually super easy and results in success every time!
- Dry and Season – Pat down the fish with paper towels and then season each piece of fish with salt and pepper prior to being dipped in the batter.
- Oil Temperature – If your oil is not hot enough, you could end up with an oversaturated coating that is soggy and unappetizing. If your oil is too hot, you’ll end up burning the outside of the fish coating, not giving the fish inside enough time to get cooked and flaky.
- If your fryer doesn’t keep track of the temperature for you, invest in a cooking thermometer to keep your oil at a constant temperature of 375 degrees F.
- Don’t Over Crowd – Placing too many pieces of fish into the fryer at a time will quickly drop the temperature of your oil, which is no good. Start with just a few pieces of fish at a time, giving them ample time to fry and get nice and crispy.
- Use a Cooling Rack – You worked hard (ok, not too hard) to get that crispy fish coating, don’t lose it by setting the fish on paper towels or newspapers to drain. This action will cause steam to form between the fish and the coating, making your fried fish quickly lose that crisp coating. Use a cooling rack to keep that coating nice and crisp!
Can you just hear that crunchy coating? Oh man, this fried fish is seriously so delicious!
What to Serve with Fried Fish
- Homemade Tartar Sauce – seriously the best!
- Make your own french fries or use the frozen kind and toss in the oil with the fish.
- We love wrapping the fish up in flour or corn tortillas and serving with coleslaw and pickled onions for a quick crispy fish taco!
- Creamy Corn Salad or Classic Macaroni Salad would pair perfectly with this fish too.
Are you ready to get your fish fry on?! This Crispy Beer Batter Fish recipe will blow you away! Hope you enjoy it!
PS – I also have an incredible Fried Chicken Recipe that I’m sure you’ll love!
Crispy Beer Batter Fish Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. white fish, like cod or tilapia
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 2 tsp seasoned salt
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- 1 1/3 cups beer
- Canola oil for frying
Instructions
- Add oil to a large, heavy bottomed pot or deep fryer till it's about 2 to 3 inches deep. Heat oil to 375 degrees F.
- Meanwhile, cut fish into stick shapes, about 1 inch wide and 3 inches long. Pat dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper.
- To make the beer batter, whisk together the flour, garlic powder, paprika and seasoned salt. Stir in the lightly beaten egg, then gradually whisk in the beer until the batter forms and is no longer lumpy.
- Quickly dip the fish one piece at a time into the batter, then place in the hot oil. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until the fish is a nice golden brown. Drain on a wire rack and enjoy while hot!
It is American cuisine since 1620. Ever been to New England USA?
Remind me again when Australia was founded.
By the way If I have a comment I leave my name not a made up one
Best batter i ever had.
So glad you enjoyed it Christine! Thank you for your comment!
my fish stayed crispy after sitting out in the open for 4hours
That’s great to hear!
I followed your recipe step by step but my fish wasn’t as crunchy as I thought it would be. So I tried a week later.. but this time I added 2 tablespoons of cornstarch to the batter.. and yep, that did the trick! It was so deliciously crunchy!
I’m glad to hear it worked out for you!
Calling fish and chips “American cuisine” offends me greatly.
You’ll be getting a strongly worded letter in the mail
Excellent flavour. Even tried it for onion rings. Yum! Needs to be crispier though. Will try to add, maybe cornstarch, see if we can prevent soggy batter on fish. But flavourful is really good.
So, so, so GOOOOOOD! I did add a little more beer than the recipe called for to make a thinner batter. I also used Old Bay seasoning salt. Used it on Perch. First coated my fish with Taylor’s One-Step instead of flour.
Delicious with my cod from Wild Alaska! I was grateful for the comment about throwing in some onions. So yummy!
I wish I would have let the grease heat now before I put the 1st ones in(i always jump the gun ) but this was by far the best beer batter fish i every had!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Tracy!
Great recipe
This was a hit at my house tonight! The batter started getting a bit thin so I held back a little beer. I tossed the fish in a some seasoned baking powder before dipping. The recipe made a lot of batter so I cut up some onions and pickle chips and fried them up too! They came out perfect
This is a very nice light batter with a great flavor that compliments the fish. It is not over powering. The recipe makes alot of batter, next time I make it, I will cut the recipe in half.
Good with a couple improvements. First the ratio of flour to beer is off. It was way too runny. After adding the listed amount of beer it was like soup so I needed to add about another one third cup of flour. I also added some baking powder which helps make fried foods more crispy, then the consistency of the batter was perfect. the coating was till on the light side which is how I prefer it, not overly battered. I also felt it was a little under seasoned so I added a few more spices. A little Old Bay, onion powder, and Pappys The fish turned out diecious!
Followed the recipe as directed except used gluten free flour and gluten free beer. Turned out AMAZING!
Delicious!
I seasoned my fish pieces overnight, and I lightly sprinkled some cornstarch on the fish before dipping in batter to fry.
So crispy
Thank you.
Can I use vegetable oil instead of canola?
Yes, definitely!
The BEST!! I did sprinkle some dill & old bay season-not too much since it’s salty. The Corona beer even had a little swig left for myself! Definitely a keeper. Then when we were done, we fried in a bunch of french fries in the leftover batter & that was a HUGE hit!
Just made this, and my wife clapped after the first bite. Best fish fry i have ever made. We’ll seasoned and nice and crispy!
Great on my Erie walleye…..
This was excellent! Caught a bunch of bullhead while camping in the Adirondacks and this was perfect for them. I was afraid it would be too thin, but it was some of the best fish I’ve ever had! Thank you for sharing;
Instead of beer what else can I use?
You could use a soda or even seltzer water… different taste but same airiness from the carbonation!
Sorry, tasty but batter was too thin. Tasted okay, but wasn’t what I expected for a beer batter. Followed it exactly as written. Too
Much paprika for one.
You can add more flour to thick it up if needed. Most people like it light and flaky.
Delicious. Batter wasn’t too heavy and was flaky and tasty. Very close to some we recently ate in Scotland and completely enjoyed. A keeper for us!
Absolutely spot onAmazingly tasty & crispy, Perfect Thanx for sharing
Absolutely perfect! We used for the crappie and bluegill my guys caught fishing over the weekend.
Absolutely perfect! I did make 1 change but I don’t know if it made a difference. I dredged my fish in seasoned flour instead of drying it thoroughly and seasoning it, and my fish was barely thawed when I started. My results were better than anything I’ve ever had in a resturant and I’ve ordered it anywhere it’s featured. 10 out of 10 would recommend.