| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 1 hr |
| Active: | 40 min |
| Yield: | 6 servings |
Ingredients
- Vegetable oil, for frying
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- Two 12-ounce bottles Mexican lager
- 2 pounds cod, cut into 1/2-by-1 1/2-by-3-inch sticks
- 12 flour tortillas (7-inch)
- 2 cups shredded napa cabbage
- 1 cup finely diced red onion
- 1 cup fresh cilantro sprigs
- 1 cup lime wedges
- Charred Lime Crema, recipe follows
- 2 jalapenos
- 1 small white onion, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch rounds
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup fresh cilantro leaves, plus more for garnish
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup Mexican-style crema
- 1 lime, zested and juiced
Instructions
- For the crispy battered fish: Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F. Fit a wire rack in a baking sheet; set aside.
- In a large pot, heat 2 inches of vegetable oil over medium-high heat to 375 degrees F.
- Make the batter: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, salt, cayenne, paprika, baking powder and pepper. Add the beer and whisk until smooth.
- Working in 2 to 3 batches, coat the fish in the batter. Carefully transfer the battered fish to the hot oil. Fry each batch for 4 minutes, flipping halfway through. Remove the fried fish to the wire rack on the baking sheet to allow the oil to drain away. This will ensure it stays crispy. Transfer the baking sheet with the fish to the oven to keep warm while you get everything else ready. The fish can sit in the oven up to an hour staying warm.
- For serving: Wrap the tortillas in foil and place in the oven to warm for 10 minutes.
- Unwrap the tortillas and serve alongside the fish and all the fixings: cabbage, red onion, cilantro, lime wedges and Charred Lime Crema.
- Heat a grill or grill pan over medium-high heat.
- Toss the jalapenos and onion rounds in the olive oil in a bowl. Grill the jalapenos and onion rounds until charred all over, turning as needed, about 5 minutes total. Place the jalapenos in a bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap for 10 minutes. Set the onions aside.
- Cut the jalapenos in half, remove the stems and seeds and gently scrape off the charred skin. Roughly chop the grilled onion rounds.
- Combine the jalapenos, onion, cilantro and some salt and pepper in a food processor. Pulse in 2-second increments until finely minced.
- Whisk together the crema and lime zest and juice in a medium bowl. Add the jalapeno-onion mixture to the bowl with the crema and fold everything together until fully incorporated.
- Pour into a serving dish and garnish with cilantro leaves. Serve as a flavorful topping on your favorite tacos.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 6 servings |
| Calories | 1621 |
| Total Fat | 110 g |
| Saturated Fat | 12 g |
| Carbohydrates | 111 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 7 g |
| Sugar | 7 g |
| Protein | 43 g |
| Cholesterol | 85 mg |
| Sodium | 1575 mg |
Reviews
Probably one of the best batters I have ever tried…and I’ve tried many! Make sure you fry them until they are a very golden brown and yes, you really do need to drain them well on the rack, or they will get soggy very quickly. The crema was just ok. But highly recommend the batter!!!
oh my gosh, this was delicious! You could put that batter on anything! It was light and crispy and I plan to use it on other things like shrimp or lobster! The crema was awesome I could eat that by the bowl and wished I had tripled the recipe for this weekend! I am one of those people that hate cilantro so … I omitted it and guess what the crema was delicious .. the jalapeno and charred onions/lime was delightful. On the show Ree made a rojo sauce but I do not see it here, but truthfully it did not need it, I used crunchy lettuce (I had romaine on hand) the fish and the crema and my hubby and I loved it. To be honest making it a taco is fun for handheld food, but truthfully I started eating the second helping just dunking the fish in the crema so I could save calories and stomach space for more fish/crema … it was that yummy! To the person who had their fish “stick” it is always good to slowly put the fish in a little at a time to get the batter fry started and then drop the fish. Just kind of dip have in holding on to the rest with your tongs, wait a few seconds and then release and you will not have that problem. Hope it helps.
Ok, I have a weird question. Someone in my family has a fish allergy. Has anyone tried the batter on a different protein? Maybe chicken?
Just made this fish with the charred lime crema sauce! Absolutely delicious! Also made Ree’s roasted tomatillo sauce to serve with the tacos and it was amazing! Thanks! Ree!
Quite possibly the best fried fish I’ve had, So Crispy! Thanks Ree
My husband loved this recipe! Very good batter, fried up golden brown. We will make this again.
Loved it
I would love to share this recipe with our lake friends. Does the prepared fish travel well? If yes, how do I pack it it up?
The crema was AMAZING. I will be making this over and over — and next time I’ll make more! My family fought over the last bit of it.
It was weird. The fish kept sinking to the bottom and sticking to my pan. I has to lower them really slowly and the use tongs to scrap them from the bottom. The crema sauce is amazing.