Julie Clark
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Paleo Battered Fish
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Make this crispy, Paleo Battered Fish for a healthy, 30-minute meal that kids will love!
Do you ever get stuck in the chicken and ground beef rut for dinner?
I know we do. To many of us, chicken and ground beef are the safe, easy meats to prepare at home. It’s true that they are easy, but I’m going to push you out of your little ground beef comfort zone today and show how quickly a paleo battered fish dinner can come together.
I know a lot of times kids (and even adults) can cringe at the idea of fish. This Paleo Battered Fish will become a favorite. How do I know? Because two of my kids were not happy with my choice of fish for dinner, but as soon as they had one bite of this crispy, fried cod, they suddenly thought fish was the best dinner ever.
Alaskan seafood is high in protein, low in sodium and saturated fat, and full of heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids. It comes from a natural environment which produces lean flesh and firm texture, with a delicious flavor. I chose cod for this battered fish, but Alaskan seafood also includes salmon, shellfish and whitefish and can be purchased fresh, frozen or even canned.
I was more than excited to share about Alaskan seafood in this battered fish recipe, which is one of my favorite comfort foods. I made this version paleo which means it is grain free, gluten-free, sugar-free and dairy free. Healthy, but still fantastically delicious.
And the kids still loved it. Success.
Don’t be scared off at the thought of making a fish dinner. Fish is easy to prepare and cooks quickly, making this a meal you can get on your table in under 30 minutes, and here’s how you’ll do it.
1. Mix up the batter, which is simply ¾ cup tapioca starch, ¼ cup coconut flour, 1 teaspoon garlic salt, 1 teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, 2 eggs and ¼ cup sparkling water. Why sparkling water? It’s a replacement for the beer in beer battered fish. If you’d like, you can just use plain water.
2. Get ½ a cup of olive oil heating over medium-heat on the stove so that when you add the fish it sizzles immediately.
3. The 5 Alaskan cod fillets that I used were large. I cut the fillets into two triangles to make 10 smaller pieces of fish. Make sure the cod fillets are defrosted and pat them dry with a paper towel so the batter sticks better.
4. Coat the fish in the batter and place them carefully in the hot oil. When using gluten-free/grain free ingredients, it’s important to handle the fish the least amount possible. The breading doesn’t stick on as well as with regular white flour. I placed the fish in the oil, then didn’t touch it for 4 minutes until I turned the fish. Then the fish cooked for another 3-4 minutes and I gently removed the fish to wire rack so that they can drip but stay crispy. (Make sure you have paper towels under the rack to catch the drips.)
It’s also important to not cook the fish to long. Depending on the thickness of the fish fillets, it will only take 3-5 minutes of frying on each side before it is done. Test the fish carefully with a fork and it should be white and flaky. If you cook the fish too long, it may get tough.
I hope your family will enjoy this paleo battered fish as much as we did!
Q: Do you get stuck in the ground beef and chicken ruts?
Q: What’s your favorite type of Alaskan seafood?
Paleo Battered Fish
Make this crispy, Paleo Battered Fish for a healthy, 30-minute meal that kids will love! Gluten Free, Grain Free, Sugar Free and Whole30.
Servings 5 servings
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup tapioca starch
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 1 teaspoon garlic salt
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 large eggs
- 1/4 cup sparkling water
- 24 ounces Alaskan cod fillets
- 1/2 cup olive oil
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine the tapioca starch, coconut flour, seasonings, eggs and water.
- Heat ½ cup of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.
- Cut the cod fillets in half diagonally (if they are too big and you'd like smaller pieces). Use a paper towel to gently dry the cod fillets.
- Once the oil is hot, coat the cod fillets with the batter and place them into the hot oil.
- Allow the fillets to cook for 4 minutes, then gently flip the fillets and allow them to cook for an additional 3-5 minutes until they are white and flaky inside. Be careful not to overcook.
- Once the fillets are done, use a spatula to remove them from the oil and place them on wire rack so that they stay crispy. Serve immediately.
Nutrition
Serving: 201g | Calories: 338kcal | Carbohydrates: 20g | Protein: 33g | Fat: 13g
Find more paleo recipes here.
Love this! Can’t wait to make it again!
I don’t have sparkling water. What can I use as replacement?? Almond milk?
I had no tapioca starch so I did not use and I doubled the recipe and used lime sparking water. I didn’t touch the fish for 4 min each side. I also used talapia .. turned out amazing and my boyfriend raves about this.. I made him talapia tacos I of course didn’t eat the tortilla.
This is an amazing recipe, it worked out so well for me and was super quick and easy. Thank you.
IN the past when I have tried to make a battered fish, when I go to flip it I lose the bottom crispy battered layer. What am I doing wrong?
Can this be made in the oven by baking at 425, baking on an oiled parchment sheet with oil sprayed ontop of the coated fish?
I am making this recipe for the second time! It was so delicious! When I mix the batter, it is very dry, and I added more sparkling water. It just happened again, and I was wondering what I may be doing incorrectly?
Thanks so much g=for creating this!
Wow! This is AMAZING! Thank you so much for coming up with such a great recipe that actually works! You’re a genius 👍👍👍
The battered was very good . It’s hard to find a battered that’s paleo and tasty at the same time. Just had to add a bit more water than recipe called for and I seasoned the fish. It fried very nicely. Will definitely make again.
This is the first feedback to a recipe page I ever took the time to post. I am on a pretty restricted diet, and this one had all ingredients I can consume. Best part, the fish was very tasty, moist with a nice crispy batter on the outside. I am not a huge fish fan in general, but loved this!
Thank you sooooo much for posting your recipe!
I made this tonight with rockfish. It turned out perfectly! Thank you for the amazing recipe. I’m already thinking about other foods to try with the batter-shrimp, cod, chicken,broccoli, onions !
We had this a couple of times while on whole 30 (including tonight). It is absolutely fantastic!! I used arrowroot instead of tapioca and fried in avocado oil.
I have had trouble getting the batter to stick so I dipped it on one side, put it in the pan with that side down, then spooned batter on the other side.
It is crispy, flavorful, so delicious. We will continue making it even though we’ve finished whole 30.
Thanks for the recipe!!
This was really tasty. The batter did stick to the fish. When resting on the paper towel it loses its crunch, so I think I’m going to try a wire rack next time.
I used this batter to make silverfish fritters for the 7 Fishes dinner! I did the recipe exactly as written, but instead of dipping fish into the batter, I mixed in 14 ounces of silver fish and scooped 1 T at a time into the oil to fry/flip.
It worked PERFECTLY. Thank you!
This recipe is exceptional. I have a restrictive diet and had grown quite tired of eating and preparing the same foods month after month. My, what a wonderful deviation from the norm; this was my first time frying fish and trying grain-free batter. Thank you for sharing this recipe with others. Supper was a success this evening.
Great batter recipe. Came out light and crisp and delicious. If it feels a little thick, just thin it with a little extra water. Pat your fish dry before dipping it in the batter and it will adhere much better. You could also sprinkle a little tapioca flour, very thinly onto the fish before dipping, and the batter will stick.