
Battered Fish
Battered Fish
Ingredients
- Rockfish, halibut, or any other tasty fish
- 1 12 oz beer (Light and crisp or malty beers works well. Try your favorite pilsner or Oktoberfest)
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1 egg, whites only
- Seasoning, generous to taste
- Oil
Directions
Combine beer, flour, egg whites, and seasoning. Allow the batter to sit while you prep your fish. This helps the flavors to blend and the batter to thicken a bit.
Cut your fish into manageable pieces. There's no perfect size here, just make sure you'll be able to flip them easily.
Set up a station so you can work fluidly from fish, to batter, to pan, to cooling rack.
Heat/manage oil. You'll want a good amount. Enough to come at least half-way up the side of your fish. You'll want this hot, but not so hot that it burns or smokes. For each batch, check to be sure you have enough oil. If you add oil between batches, allow it to heat up before adding fish. If you're oil seems to have gotten too hot, you can add a bit more oil to cool it down.
Batter, cook, and rest your fish. You'll do this in batches, filling the pan, but allowing room for each piece.
Drop each peice in the batter, move it around so it is coated, ease it into the hot oil with tongs to avoid splashes (careful, oil is hot). Once in the pan, if needed, you can use a spoon to carefully add a bit of batter to the top of any piece that looks a little light on batter. Watch for the batter to puff up and brown on the edges (approximately 5 minutes, but time depends on size of fish, heat of oil, etc.). Using a spatula, peak at the underside. When browned, flip. Cook the next side until browned (this usually takes a bit less time than the first side).
Remove cooked pieces to your cooling rack or paper towels. This helps any surface oil drain off so they won't be oily and will be nice and crispy. If you're making a lot, you can serve in batches or, if serving all at once, you can place early batches in a warm oven while you finish the rest.
Present on a plate or serving platter, finish with a bit of coarse or kosher salt.

Easy Ginger Soy Grilled Canary Rockfish
Easy Ginger Soy Grilled Canary Rockfish
Ingredients
- 1½ to 2 pounds of canary rockfish
- ¼ cup honey
- ½ cup soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
- 2 to 3 cloves of garlic, chopped or crushed
- 1 cup olive oil
- 3 tablespoons vinegar - apple cider, white, or rice vinegar
Directions
- For marinade, whisk ingredients in a shallow bowl. Add rockfish and let sit for at least an hour.
- Grill on medium for 2 to 3 minutes per side (for 6 to 8 ounce pieces approximately ½ inch thick). More grill time may be required for thicker pieces; a little less time if thinner. Meat should appear white after 1½ minutes.
Recipe courtesy of California SeaGrant.

Pan Roasted Rockfish with Crab and Tomato Salsa Fresca
Pan Roasted Rockfish with Crab and Tomato Salsa Fresca
For the salsa fresca
- 1/2 pound crabmeat
- 2 ripe tomatoes, seeded and chopped
- 1 small cucumber, peeled, seeded, and chopped
- 1 tablespoon capers, drained
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
For salsa fresca, in a bowl, mix all ingredients gently so not to break the crabmeat. Set in refrigerator to allow flavors to develop.
For the fish
- 4 (6-ounce) rockfish fillets
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
In a 10-inch sauté pan, heat oil over medium heat. Season both sides of the fillets with salt and pepper. Add fillets to the pan and cook for about 3 minutes until first side is golden brown. Turn and cook for about 2-3 minutes longer until golden brown on both sides and opaque in the center. Place rockfish on a plate and spoon crab and tomato salsa fresca on the top or side.
Recipe adapted from Chef Simos Marmaras, NOAA Chef, 2005 Great American Seafood Cook-Off
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