Fried Panfish Help

[turkeycutter123]

Looking for some insight from some of the fry experts on how I can get my batter to stick better to my whole Bream and Redbreast. I have trouble getting the batter to stick to the whole fish and have some come out looking like they were just fried with no batter at all hardly. Am I not drying them off enough or should I use a binder like hot sauce or mustard? Should I soak in milk or something before battering? Always fry at 350-370 degrees and have tried both flour and zatarans breadings. Any tips would be appreciated

 

[Dutch]

Mustard works well and adds good flavoring.

Milk and egg mixture works well also.

I prefer using mustard on my whole fish and fillets.

 

[menhadenman]

Batter them and let ‘em sit in the fridge for a while before frying

 

[antharper]

I’ve used mustard but prefer just a little Italian dressing and toss the fish around in it then batter with fish fry . I’m pretty sure I didn’t do anything to these , I think it helps if your oil is good and hot when u put fish in . Not sure about temp but I probably have mine too hot . I did filet one side of these

 

[Dutch]

I cook my fish at 350*
When the fish floats it done.

 

[Beagler]

I cook my chicken, frog legs and fish the same way, dredge in flour, then egg then back in flour, then they go In My fry daddy that heats the oil to 375. That’s what works for me.

 

[little rascal]

Skinless or filets don't need much more than a dip in flour or meal.
Skin on needs moisture then breading.
These were dipped in egg and beer wash, then dredged in cornmeal with a little flour and seasoning mixed in.
Cheese grits and puckies. Didn’t have a tater in the house.

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" Life is Short, Fish Hard! "

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[Redbow]

We batter our fish with House Autry seafood breader or Atkinson's. Most of the time we soak the fresh water fish in salt water overnite in the fridge, the soaking gives them a better taste to us. Saltwater fish we do not soak.

We usually have boiled potatoes, freshly made slaw and sweet betsy hush puppies with our fish. Sometimes we have FF instead of boiled taters.

 

[Toasty]

Classic frying goes in the order of flour-liquid-breadcrumbs. The flour helps the mixture adhere when applied directly to the skin, the liquid (eggs or buttermilk etc) is the glue, then use your seasoned breadcrumbs or flour mix or cornmeal etc. Skipping the first step can be doable but helps with anything that adheres.

If you are using a batter instead of a dry coating like breadcrumbs or flour, it still helps a lot to toss in flour first then dip into beer batter/tempura batter/etc.

 

[Boondocks]

Leave the fish wet,drop in a paper bag of cornmeal,salt,pepper and shake . Remove by tail and drop in hot peanut oil.Cook till they float.

 

[Redbeardless]

Pat dry with a paper towel and roll them in a bowl with Texas Pete ( or other hot sauce), then roll them in a mix of half and half flour and cornmeal seasoned with a little garlic salt and black pepper. You will thank me for the recipe!!! The hot in the hot sauce cooks out and leaves a very slight flavor. Absolutely delicious!!! Incredible on catfish filets. Deep fat fry at 350 degrees until golden brown and floating on top of the oil.

 

[Nicodemus]

Pat dry with a paper towel and roll them in a bowl with Texas Pete ( or other hot sauce), then roll them in a mix of half and half flour and cornmeal seasoned with a little garlic salt and black pepper. You will thank me for the recipe!!! The hot in the hot sauce cooks out and leaves a very slight flavor. Absolutely delicious!!! Incredible on catfish filets. Deep fat fry at 350 degrees until golden brown and floating on top of the oil.

We always do that with chicken but never thought about using it with fish. That sounds mighty good and I will try it.

Thank you kindly.

 

[ilbcnu]

Leave the fish wet,drop in a paper bag of cornmeal,salt,pepper and shake . Remove by tail and drop in hot peanut oil.Cook till they float.

It really is that simple

 

[Offshore]

Leave the fish wet,drop in a paper bag of cornmeal,salt,pepper and shake . Remove by tail and drop in hot peanut oil.Cook till they float.

Yep, the way the family does it.

 

[BriarPatch99]

Leave the fish wet,drop in a paper bag of cornmeal,salt,pepper and shake . Remove by tail and drop in hot peanut oil.Cook till they float.

I do the same except add a little flour ...it helps the meal to stick....

I wish I had a nickel for every fish I helped my dad fry... We got the call for nearly every fish fry around ... the old cooker took five gallons of grease to fill ... you can fry a bunch fish in five gallons of oil...

Dad is gone ....the fish fryer is still here ...been years since it was used...

 

[ribber]

I do the same except add a little flour ...it helps the meal to stick....

I wish I had a nickel for every fish I helped my dad fry... We got the call for nearly every fish fry around ... the old cooker took five gallons of grease to fill ... you can fry a bunch fish in five gallons of oil...

Dad is gone ....the fish fryer is still here ...been years since it was used...

Same here, have fried thousands of bream and white perch. If fish are fresh, the cornmeal sticks a little better. I guess because they have a little slime to them. If they've been frozen, meal doesn't stick quite as well. I add a little self-rising flour to help the meal stick also.

 

[Kev]

Pore a little ranch and a good bit of franks hot sauce in a bag. Put the fish in the bag and toss around. Then pull the fish out and batter.

 

[oldfella1962]

I cook my chicken, frog legs and fish the same way, dredge in flour, then egg then back in flour, then they go In My fry daddy that heats the oil to 375. That’s what works for me.

Yes! It may seem counterintuitive to go flour/egg/flour but it works. I used to do egg/flour and had the problem of the batter coming off. I heard about flour/egg/flour (and the science behind it) and it makes a world of difference. Granted it doesn't have to be flour. I use ground up saltine crackers/egg/bread crumbs for example, but the theory is still the same.
I only use a regular frying pan and canola oil but this technique works great.

 

[charlie81]

I had the same problem a while back with my filets. I couldn’t get the batter to stick. I sat there looking at the bowl of fish and decided to pour half my beer in it. Took a few filets out and the batter stuck so that’s what I do now. Also, it helps if you go straight from the batter to the oil. If the batter sits on the fish too long it gets soggy and will come out of the fryer the same way.

 

[oldfella1962]

I had the same problem a while back with my filets. I couldn’t get the batter to stick. I sat there looking at the bowl of fish and decided to pour half my beer in it. Took a few filets out and the batter stuck so that’s what I do now. Also, it helps if you go straight from the batter to the oil. If the batter sits on the fish too long it gets soggy and will come out of the fryer the same way.

I've used beer batter back in the day before I stopped drinking. I don't remember it not working well but it has been a while.