Updated 4.5.2018.
Before moving to Arizona I was on a mission to rid our fridge, freezer and pantry of as much food as possible. A couple of weeks ago BF and I bought frozen sea bass fillets from Costco and tried cooking them using our normal halibut recipe. We hated it. The sea bass turned out extremely fishy tasting, and we hadn’t touched the rest of the filets since. I’m not one to simply give up on food so I thought I’d try my hand at another recipe. Because who doesn’t love a Filet o’ Fish sandwich from McDonald’s?
When I was growing up my mom made broiled cod and/or macaroni and cheese nearly every Friday during Lent. One of the tricks she taught me when defrosting frozen fish was to defrost the fish in a shallow dish filled with buttermilk or milk (covered with tinfoil) overnight in the refrigerator. This technique reduces fishy taste when you cook the fish. I employed this technique in the following recipe.
ingredients.
- frozen fish filets (sea bass, halibut, or cod)
- 1 egg, beaten + 1 T. water
- 1 c. Panko bread crumbs
- 1 c. flour
- peanut oil, vegetable oil or canola oil
- American cheese slices
- butter
- Your favorite bun or roll
- tartar sauce or mayo (optional)
directions.
- Defrost fish according to above directions.
- Heat peanut oil in a pan or small pot over medium high heat until it reaches 400 degrees. (Add enough oil into the pot/pan so that the oil reaches approximately half the height or thickness of the fish fillets.)
- Beat the egg and water in a shallow bowl. Pour Panko crumbs into a separate shallow bowl and flour into a third bowl. Season flour and bread crumbs with salt and pepper and stir each to incorporate.
- Dip thawed fillets into flour and coat. Dip into egg and allow egg to drop off. Dip egg covered fillet into Panko crumbs, making sure to evenly coat the fillet with the crumbs. Repeat dipping the filets into the egg and bread crumbs one more time. Let sit 10 minutes.
- Set filets in oil (you will notice the oil dip in temperature; you want it to fry at 375 degrees) and fry 4 to 5 minutes. Coating should be a dark golden brown.
- While the filets are frying, heat shallow pan over medium high heat and melt butter in the pan. Slice the bun or rolls in half lengthwise and toast in the pan. You might need to press down on the top of the outside of the bun in order to toast the entire bun (not just the edges).
- When the filets are done, remove from oil and drain on paper towel. Serve between your favorite toasted roll and add a slice or two of American cheese (or the cheese of your choice) immediately so the cheese begins to melt.
Recipe rating:
Food Snob 