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The Best Deep Fried Haddock

4.94 from 58 votes
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Best Deep Fried Haddock in Vintage White Plate
Fried Haddock

I’m a big fan of deep fried haddock and this recipe (made with a special trick) is one of my absolute favorite ways of eating it. The crispy batter and overall taste can’t be beat.

Deep Fried Haddock Recipe

I was told the secret for a proper, crispy batter for deep-frying fish a long, long time ago by a chef friend. Indeed, not only a friend, but the head of a culinary arts program at a local post-secondary school.

It’s so very simple.

It’s cornstarch.

While I have sadly lost the recipe he gave me in his cooking class that day (and truth be told, he told me it was an old fisherman friend who gave it to him ) I have always remembered that secret.

So when it came time to try out the new Highliner Simply Fish line of products, I knew that I would be trying the haddock and that I was deep-frying it.

A Pack of Highliner Brand Simply Fish HaddockFor those of you who like to know where your seafood comes from, Highliner has criteria for their responsibly sourced seafood. It includes important criteria such as being OceanWise recommended or Seafood Watch rated green or yellow.  Their six varieties of fish are sourced from the following places: Atlantic Salmon – Chile, Atlantic Cod – Iceland, Tilapia – Indonesia or Malaysia, Trout – Peru, Haddock – USA and Sole – Canada.

Mike prefers deep fried haddock since it’s a nice milder fish and it is one of the best choices for deep frying battered fish. It holds up well and cooks fast.

Close up of Delicious deep fried haddock recipe

Look at that gorgeous fish flake.

To be clear, I don’t and most likely won’t ever own a deep frier again, so don’t pass on this recipe because you don’t have one. I used to own one and it was honestly the biggest, messiest most annoying kitchen appliance that I have owned. It smelled and was always greasy on the outside no matter what I did.

I have a large heavy frying pan that I use to deep fry in and let’s face it, deep frying isn’t really something that we should be doing so often that we need a deep fryer.
Deep Fried Haddock in a fork

Being rich in protein and healthy to boot, fish is always one of my top choices, however my family doesn’t always agree. Mike will eat haddock, which is why I chose to do this dish, but he also likes it deep-fried.  Sigh. That man.

Fresh fish is always, always better, especially when you are deep-frying it in batter. Frozen fish will have extra moisture no matter how you defrost it! To that note, the Highliner Simply Fish are fresh in the package and you can find them in the fresh seafood department at No Frills, Superstore and Maxi. The cuts are very high quality (made from their finest cuts of fish) and are perfect for package to pan cooking. I also liked that they come in the exact right size for Mike and I to eat.

Deep Fried Haddock Recipe in white plate under red tablecloth

 Fried Haddock Tips and Tricks

There are a few secrets that you have to adhere to in order to make great deep fried haddock.

  1. The oil temperature MUST be at 375 degrees. Hotter and it will burn and you will have raw fish inside and cooler will make the batter soaked in grease.
  2. No milk and no egg in the batter. This is as plain as you can get. You can sub in half beer and half water for sure, if you want.
  3. Use only thin and fresh fish filets, like the  High Liner Simply Fish haddock. Do not use frozen.

So who’s in for giving this recipe a shot? I am so excited, it passed the “Mike test” because I swear he is the pickiest person I know when it comes to deep fried haddock. So if he gives this a thumbs up, you know it’s a great recipe!

Happy cooking everyone!

Love you more than chocolate,

Karlynn

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How to make the best battered, deep fried Haddock at home! This is the best batter ever! #deepfried #fish

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The Best Deep Fried Haddock

How to make the best battered, deep fried Haddock at home!
4.94 from 58 votes
Close up of Delicious deep fried haddock recipe
Prep Time
5 minutes
Cook Time
10 minutes
Total Time
15 minutes
Course
Dinner
Cuisine
American
Servings
4
Calories
570
Author
Karlynn Johnston

Ingredients
 

Batter Ingredients

  • 1 cup flour
  • 3 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup beer
  • 1 tablespoon dill
  • 1 dash pepper
  • 2-4 High Liner Simply Fish Haddock Filets

For flouring

  • 1/2 cup flour
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch

Instructions
 

  • Combine the batter ingredients and mix until smooth.
  • Preheat 2-3 inches of oil in a heavysauce pan to 375 degrees F.
  • Combine the "flouring" ingredients together in a small bowl.
  • Dredge the filets through the flour, then the batter until covered with a thick coat of batter.
  • Cook two at a time in the hot oil, for approximately 4 minutes per side or until a medium golden brown.
  • Remove and drain on paper towels.
  • Serve and enjoy.

Nutrition Information

Calories: 570kcal, Carbohydrates: 48g, Protein: 78g, Fat: 2g, Cholesterol: 243mg, Sodium: 1546mg, Potassium: 1656mg, Fiber: 1g, Vitamin A: 255IU, Calcium: 184mg, Iron: 3.2mg

All calories and info are based on a third party calculator and are only an estimate. Actual nutritional info will vary with brands used, your measuring methods, portion sizes and more.

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Karlynn Johnston

I’m a busy mom of two, wife & cookbook author who loves creating fast, fresh meals for my little family on the Canadian prairies. Karlynn Facts: I'm allergic to broccoli. I've never met a cocktail that I didn't like. I would rather burn down my house than clean it. Most of all, I love helping YOU get dinner ready because there's nothing more important than connecting with our loved ones around the dinner table!

Learn more about me

Site Index Deep fried Fish Haddock

Reader Interactions

Comments & Recipe Tips Share a tip or comment!

  1. Susan Brosh says

    Made this with all Gluten-Free ingredients (GF beer, GF flour) and it came out really good. Only issue I has was maintaining the oil temp: first batch came out great – brown and crispy, but temp dropped when I took out that batch and the batter for the next batch just did not stick… for the third batch I knew what to look for so it was better. Another recipe for my recipe book…!4 stars

  2. BBracy says

    Made this batter last night. Just two of us and less than 1 lb of haddock, so I halved the recipe, which was just the right amount. I omitted the dill because my tarter sauce recipe is made with sweet relish, dill relish, minced onion and dill weed. Wanted to love this batter, but I’ve got a similar recipe in my wheelhouse that fries lighter crumb than this did. Thanks for posting.3 stars

  3. Leyza T. says

    This is my second time making this recipe and my partner and I love it! We are New Englander’s and love our fish and chips but in the Winter (and with the pandemic) it is hard to come by so I needed to find a recipe.

    These are the minor adjustments I made. I use fresh fish and replaced the dill with my favorite seasoning. The batter is quite thick but worked fine with a whole beer and some water. The thickness is easy to adjust according to preference. Just eyeball it.

    As for the heat, 375 is super hot so I cook it at 350 and it comes out crisp and nicely browned. If making more than one batch, keep what you have cooked warm in the oven (low heat). Instead of placing on paper towels to drain off the oil I used a metal cooking rack on top of a long plate and just add the cooked fish to this as I make it. Works great!5 stars

  4. BRIAN says

    Not for a New England boy. Packaged fish??? Frozen fish??? Nope. Thick batter?? Nope. Dill in the batter?? Nope!

  5. jane cooney says

    Made it to the recipe but without the dill and I have never tasted batter so good !! Thank you.!5 stars

  6. Ginger Valene says

    All Highliner seafood is/was frozen…states so right on the package. Lots of stores display it thawed rather than in a freezer compartment. People…some people…think they’re buying fresh fish, never frozen, but it ain’t so.

  7. Joanne says

    Excellent loved it! I used half beer and half water. Will make it again for company.
    Beautiful batter to work with.

    • Franco says

      Fantastic batter. I had to add a bit of water to the beer because it was too thick. I also did some shrimp with the same batter. Great. Salt and pepper all before the flour dredge. Even the shrimp. I will for sure make this again. 😀5 stars

  8. Claire MacDonald says

    I followed this recipe exactly (except for halving the flour mixture and batter because I was cooking only four pieces of haddock). My issue is this: I heated the oil to 375 degrees, using a thermometer But as soon as I put the fish in the oil, it crisped up immediately, resulting in a too-crisp coating. Any suggestions as to where I went wrong? Personally, I think the oil was just too hot. It seems though, from all the comments, that many people had great success . I look forward to your reply.

  9. Jasmine Joyce says

    The batter turned out really good even if I used 1cup of very cold water instead of beer. So crispy and tasty. My husband and kids loved it! I cooked spicy fries on the side. Homemade fish and chips 😊Thanks for sharing your recipe. 5 thumbs up!!!

  10. Sharon Churchill says

    This is my go-to recipe! Works perfectly!5 stars

  11. Tica says

    Everybody loved it, but I didn’t enjoy the combination of this batter with fish. I actually fried some of the batter on its own and liked that bettet4 stars

  12. Matt Wall says

    Not deep fryer friendly. A lot of the batter floats off of the fish, making a huge mess out of the fryer oil. Held the temperature of the oil throughout cooking process, cooking the fish 3.5 to 4 minutes. Fish came out very dark in color and you could not even see the dill in the batter because of it’s darkness. Fish was very good overall, but it would have been with any other batter as well. This recipe does call out for a pan fry, instead of a deep fryer. So my bad, lesson learned. I like my outside propane deep fryer when cooking, so pan fry recipes are dead to me.

  13. Sima Abenson says

    Absolutely delicious!!!
    Hard to get Haddock here in NY but we had some today and i wanted to surprise my British My kids fressed it!!
    The batter was a little surprising and thick but result was top notch!!!!5 stars

  14. derwood says

    Ack Puke, I am from new England and the last thing I want to taste with my haddock is Dill YUK

    • Nancy says

      I made this tonight without the dill. Made a side tartar sauce.
      Best homemade fish I’ve had!

    • Jeff says

      Just made this tonight. My wife and daughter loved it. Batter was a little thick. I will just add more beer next time! Thanks….

      • Karen says

        Wondered if adding more beer helps? I thought it was disappointing and so thick it was not suitable. I would not bother w this recipe again. There are plenty of other tastier easier ways to cook haddock. We had to remove most of it to enjoy the fish!

  15. Tarry says

    So, the recipe states – do not use frozen haddock. I have, each time I have made this and it is still great! So much better than some restaurants I frequent (and I live on Prince Edward Island!). Not mushy, crisp, not too much batter so the fish shines through! Not a big fan of deep frying so tonight will try to sauté in shortening. This is a great, no fail recipe…to be continued.5 stars

  16. sue says

    i just made this with fresh haddock, probs the best battered fish i have had in a long long time

    • Mary Tribble says

      The batter was way too thick, added a whole beer and was too thick. I liked the taste of it, but not going to use again.

  17. Diane Cyr says

    Made this tonite, along with fresh scallops. AWESOME!!!! Family loved it. This would also make a wonderful batter for chicken fingers. THANKS SO MUCH!!!5 stars

    • Diane Cyr says

      This rated a 5 star review. NOT very proficient on computer.

    • Phil Parent says

      Best homemade Haddock I have ever had !
      Loved the Dill.
      I misinterpreted and dredged after the wet..made it perfect for the deep fryer.
      Thank you so much5 stars

  18. April says

    I had to substitute cornstarch with instant potatoes and beer With gingerale…had to add extra to make it liquid enough. It turned out amazing! I want to post a pic <35 stars

  19. ryan hilton says

    did no one actually try this? i followed the recipe to a T and the batter was literally thicker than cookie dough. wouldnt even stick to the fish. not to mention even after adding more than three times the amount of liquid it was STILL too dry to coat the fish. finally after getting even a small amount to coat it all just slipped right off in the oil and the fish disintegrated. what a waste of ingredients

    • Mr. Kitchen Magpie says

      Well, this is our go-to that we (and others we know) have used for years without a single issue. As you can see below, so have others. I’m not sure what happened in your case but thanks for trying it!

    • Arleen D says

      Did you accidentally add the dipping flour to the batter?? This works perfectly for me!5 stars

  20. Shawna M Ore says

    Sounds yummy, it’s making my mouth water at 316 in the morning. lol

    • Kelly Galloway says

      This recipe is awesome! Entire family loved it! It exceeded my expectations and we also live in Prince Edward Island (Canada) where restaurants know how to cook seafood.

      The batter is indeed a bit thick, but that seems to help it stick well to the fish. Well, that and I think the initial flour and cornstarch dredge also helps it stick.

      I also used thawed, previously frozen haddock loins which I allowed to drain and squeezed between paper towels to remove excess water.

      I omitted the dill because I didn’t have any. I made a delicious dill tartar sauce with chopped up dill pickle that made up for that.

      My only question… any suggestions for how to keep the pieces warm once they are cooked until the entire batch has been deep fried? I made a triple batch (feeding 5 hungry people) and placed the cooked pieces in a large bowl with paper towel in the bottom and kept in the oven at medium heat.

      40min later when they were all fried and we were ready to eat, a few pieces had gotten a bit soggy, or stuck to each other, ripping the otherwise beautiful, crispy, batter.

      I’m thinking I should have spread them out in a single layer on a rack or on paper towels over a cookie sheet and put in the oven to keep warm.

      Any suggestions?5 stars

  21. Mark Wicklund says

    beer batter is excellent. especially if you use a beer like a summer shanty. It has a hint of lemon in the beer itself. what goes with fish? Lemon

    • The Kitchen Magpie says

      Smart man makes for a good cook! \U0001f609

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