Beer Battered Walleye

Directions

Step 1

Combine 1 cup of flour, 1.5 teaspoons of baking powder and a pinch of salt in a mixing bowl. Pour in beer and whisk until smooth. (The beer batter should be similar to the consistency of pancake batter. Add more beer or flour as necessary.) Cover and refrigerate the batter overnight to rest— this is the secret to crispy beer batter. If you don’t have time to let the batter rest, make it at least 1 hour prior to coating the fish and keep cold as possible by placing it in the fridge or over ice.

For extra crispy beer batter: Use 1/3 cup of rice flour and 2/3 cup of all-purpose flour. If you don’t have rice flour, use cornstarch.

For gluten-free beer batter: Swap out all the all-purpose flour with 2/3 cup of rice flour and 1/3 cup of cornstarch. Use club soda instead of beer. Dredge with seasoned rice flour.

Step 2

Preheat oven to 200 degrees Fahrenheit. Combine 1/3 cup of flour, 1 teaspoon of salt and freshly cracked pepper on a plate. Cut fish into smaller pieces if desired. Season fried fish well with salt and set aside. Heat oil to 350-375 degrees Fahrenheit.

If after resting, your beer batter has separated, give it a gentle whisk but do not overmix to avoid forming gluten, which can make your crust chewy.

Step 3

Brush salt off the fish and pat with paper towels to get the fish as dry as possible. Dredge the fish in seasoned flour mixture, shaking off excess. Then coat with cold beer batter, allowing excess to drip off before carefully placing into the hot oil.

Fry until the crust turns golden brown, flipping halfway through.

Sprinkle salt over the fish right after it comes out of the oil. Drain on a frying rack and serve immediately with chips/French fries.

Tip: Fry fish in batches and do not overcrowd the pan—this will drop the oil temperature too much and result in oily fish that won’t be crispy. The fried fish is best served immediately, but if needed, keep warm in a 200-degree oven.