Pan Fried Fish and Chips

I’ve tried several versions of baked fish and breaded cod, but putting the breading on one side only solves a lot of problems.  First, it’s a bit healthier with less breading.  But more importantly, the moisture in the fish can escape through the unbreaded side, so the fish turns out flakier and the breading is crisp.  Cooking in a skillet instead of baking also helps keep the breading crisp.  The frozen cod I use is dipped in water before it is frozen, so as it thaws it fills with water like some sort of sponge.  Drying the fish out with paper towels  before cooking is crucial. Finally, adding a bit of butter to the skillet gives the fish a slight butter taste, which somehow reminds me of the lutefisk Grandma Gunda used to serve at Christmas.  But this recipe is a lot better tasting than lutefisk.

Pan Fried Fish and Chips

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Total Time 45 minutes mins

Course Main Dish

Cuisine British

Servings 6 people

Ingredients

  

For the fish:

• 2 lbs cod fillets thawed
• 1 egg
• ¾ cup flour
• 1 ½ cups Panko bread crumbs
• garlic salt to taste
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1-2 tablespoons butter

For the chips:

• 2 1/2 lbs gold or white potatoes cut into wedges
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• garlic salt to taste

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
• Place the potato wedges, olive oil,and garlic salt in a large Ziploc bag. Seal the bag and shake potatoes until they are uniformly coated.
• Spread potatoes in a single layer on a foil lined baking sheet, and bake for about 25 minutes.
• Dry the fish using paper towels to remove some of the moisture. Begin preheating the olive oil and butter in a large skillet on the stovetop set to medium high heat.
• Now set up the fish coating station. Place the flour in a small bowl or on a dinner plate. Beat the egg in a second small bowl. In a third small bowl or dinner plate, measure out the Panko bread crumbs.
• Prepare each fish fillets by first dredging one side only in the flour, then dipping in the egg mixture, and finally by coating in the Panko bread crumbs. Place the coating side down into the preheated skillet.
• Continue cooking until the coating is lightly browned and the fish fillets are mostly opaque white. Flip the fillets and continue cooking until fish is cooked throughout and flakes easily. We serve this with a side of peas.