Last week I was in the supermarket and I saw fish for an extremely low price. At $3.76 a pound, fillets of tilapia locally are a decently priced protein, especially since they are pure protein, no bones. But occasionally I see it on sale for $2.46 a pound and that is when I stock up. This fish was being sold for $3.14 for a package of 800 grams, or $1.78 a pound. It wasn’t a fish I was familiar with, but Google translated it for me and said it was pollack, and my friend with me said it was good for batter frying.
At that price, even though my freezer was full, I bought 2 packages.
That night we had a family birthday party for my youngest daughter, and I decided to make fish shnitzel as part of the dinner we were going to have with the cake since my daughter loves both shnitzel and fish.
Because I can’t eat eggs, I used a batter as part of the dredging process. If you want to make this glutenous, just sub out the gluten free flour and starches with wheat flour (and you can ignore the xanthan gum). Additionally, I used gluten free crumbs I made from unopened packages of crackers that crumbled on my trip to Georgia. Feel free to use whatever crumbs you like- I make crumbs in the food processor with gluten free pretzels (everything seasoning pretzels make the best crumbs), corn flakes or other gluten free cereal, or occasionally out of leftover gluten free bread.
The first time I made this fish, frying it in a pan on the stovetop, I didn’t realize that pollack didn’t hold together as well as tilapia, which I usually use. While the fish schnitzel was super tasty, many pieces broke apart when flipping or moving them around the pan. Additionally, the fish took longer to cook than I expected, which led me to the idea of baking them in the oven after frying. They were devoured.
The next time I made them, I wanted to account for these issues, so I decided to bake them in a way that didn’t require flipping, minimizing the risk of breaking before serving. It worked perfectly.
The honey mustard in the recipe gives the fish an extra boost of flavor, making these so tasty it is hard to leave any leftovers. But leftovers taste just as good, if not even better. And yes, they still remain crispy! These fish make a perfect addition to any family meal or even a party, and they are sure to please everyone, regardless of dietary restrictions. Plus, with their crispy coating, they can also double as homemade fish fingers or fish sticks, a great kid-friendly option that works just as well for dipping into your favorite sauces (but they are so flavorful that they don’t even need any).
Ingredients
Fish:
- 800 grams pollock fillets
- 1/2 cup vinegar
- Water (enough to cover the fish)
Dry Coating:
- 1/4 cup potato starch
- 1/4 cup rice flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
- 1 teaspoon ground flax
Battering:
- 2 tablespoons mustard
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1/4 cup sweet chili sauce
- 1/4 cup rice flour
- 1/4 cup potato starch
- 2 tablespoons water (if needed)
Coating & Cooking:
- Gluten-free crumbs as needed (e.g., bread crumbs, cracker crumbs, or cornflake crumbs—your choice)
- Oil (as neededx)
Instructions
- Put your pollack fillets with enough water to cover them in addition to the vinegar. Let them soak for at least 30 minutes, but if frozen, soak them until fully defrosted.
- Strain the fish well.
- Coat the fish evenly with the dry coating ingredients, ensuring every part is covered. The batter and breadcrumbs won’t adhere properly to any areas that aren’t fully coated.
- Add mustard, honey, sweet chili sauce, rice flour, potato starch, to the fish and then add as much water as needed to create to create a thick batter. You want the batter to be a little thicker than pancake batter.
- Coat each fillet in gluten-free crumbs and set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 400 Fahrenheit. Take a baking pan wide enough to fit all the fish fillets in a single layer without overlapping. Pour enough oil into a baking pan to cover the bottom and place it in the oven to heat.
- Once the oil is hot, place the breaded fish fillets flat in the pan and bake for 15 minutes.
- Carefully spoon some of the hot oil over the fillets, then return them to the oven for another 10 minutes.
- Serve hot with your side dish of choice.
- Enjoy!
Are you a fan of shnitzel? How about fish fingers? Does this look like a recipe you’d try?
How would you prepare pollack if you were able to buy it as cheaply as I did?
