Light and crunchy Beer Battered Fish prepared the traditional way! To make the batter ultra-crispy, the water is replaced with beer for better texture and flavor. Serve it with fluffy chips and tartar sauce, and you’ll end up with a British feast just like what you’d have in Britain!

Close up of perfectly crisp golden beer battered fish served on a white plate

Fish and chips is a staple across Britain. In every city and town, you’ll find a few small fish and chips shops selling golden battered fish with chips on the side. Traditionally, fish and chips were wrapped in yesterday’s newspaper (and I love that rustic look and feel!), but nowadays they’re served wrapped in white paper or in paper boxes for takeaway.

Luckily, the fish and chips recipe hasn’t changed throughout the years and finding a really good fish and chip shop isn’t difficult. Most of these shops make a very simple batter for the fish which consists of flour, baking powder, water, salt, and pepper. The recipe is great, but the fish must be eaten as soon as it’s out of the deep fryer and still hot. Otherwise, it will soften and become greasy and soggy.

So to make super crispy homemade fish, I like to add beer to my batter (I didn’t come up with this, it’s a traditional method but no longer found in small fish and chips shops and you have to go to a fancy restaurant to find it!). Fizzy beer or ale is what will take your fish and chips to the next level. It will not just improve the texture, but it will also improve the flavor and the fish won’t be greasy.

How to Make Beer Battered Fish

If you read the recipe in full before you start, making beer battered fish will be a breeze. Learn it once, and you’ll keep making it over and over again.

What Kind of Fish to Use

Use any white fish fillet such as cod, pollock, halibut, hake, catfish, basa, or ling. This doesn’t work well with other fish such as tuna or salmon.

What You’ll Need

Fish fillets. Fresh or frozen and thawed.
Beer or ale.
All-purpose flour and baking powder.
Salt and pepper. You can use other seasonings if you like, but I like to keep it simple and just add salt and pepper.
Oil for frying. Any neutral high smoke point works. I use canola or corn oil.

The Directions

If using frozen fish, thaw completely before using. Season the fish with salt, and let it sit for at least 20-30 minutes (up to 1 hour). This will help to extract the moisture from the fish and make it firmer for crispy fish.
Dredge the fish in seasoned flour, and shake off any excess flour (see image 1 below). It’s important to get rid of any excess flour to get the right texture.
Make the batter: In a large bowl, whisk the flour with salt, pepper, and beer. Make sure not to over mix the batter (see images 2 and 3 below).
Heat the oil in a cast-iron pot with a kitchen thermometer, or in a deep fryer until it reaches 300°F (150°C).
Dip the fish in batter, take it out shaking any excess batter off. And lower down into the hot oil very slowly (see images 4 and 5 below).
Deep fry for 7 minutes turning halfway through.

Remove from oil, and place on a wire rack for the extra oil to drip and for the fish to stay crispy. If not serving right now, then place in the oven at a low temperature so that the fish stays crispy.

Placing the fried fish on a wire rack to get rid of any excess oil

I love using my Deep Fryer as it has a thermostat and makes sure that the temperature of the oil is always right, it also has a timer (super useful!). But you can totally use a pot with a kitchen thermometer attached.

Close up of a crunchy piece of fried fish and tartar sauce on the side

Expert Tips

Go for white and firm fish.
The fish must be super fresh to cook perfectly. If using frozen, then thaw in the fridge overnight.
Season the fish with salt prior to cooking, and let it sit for at least 20-30 minutes (up to 1 hour). This will help to extract the moisture from the fish and make it firmer for crispy fish sticks.
The batter must be thick similar to a heavy cream consistency.
The batter can be made ahead and sit in the fridge overnight, in fact, the fish turns out crispier when it’s dipped in a batter that was made on the day before.
Use fresh oil.
Soggy greasy fish happens because oil is not hot enough, so controlling the temperature of the oil is very important.
If you have leftovers on the next day, I recommend reheating in an Air Fryer or a fan oven and the fish will crisp up again.
Serve with homemade tartar sauce, it’s much healthier than store-bought, cheaper, and always tastes better!

Serving Ideas

Typically crunchy fish is served with tartar sauce, mushy peas, and crispy chips. But below are more ideas for you to try:

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Beer Battered Fish