I bet you have always wanted to make Long John Silvers fish recipe, now you can with this copycat recipe. You can recreate this crispy fish batter at home.
Do you love this crispy batter-dipped fish? Crispy on the outside, with the fish cooked perfectly on the inside, it is hard to resist this fish. Growing up this was a favorite restaurant of mine. I remember the day when the Long John Silver’s first opened in Pueblo, Colorado. My family got in the car, and we were soon munching on this fish.
This batter is very close to the Fish and Chips that are served overseas. What makes this recipe unique, is that the fish is crispy, but it isn’t done with a beer batter. Club soda is the key ingredient that makes this batter extra special. The batter has both baking soda and baking powder in it, and when combined with the club soda, it gives the batter a special lift you will love.
When you make this recipe at home, you can use any fish that you like. Long John Silver’s uses Wild-caught Alaskan Cod. I have made my recipe with cod I purchased at Costco. I think this would work well with catfish or even tilapia, or any other white fish you may have. You may even want to check out my Long John Silvers Chicken Plank recipe.
For frying, I used vegetable oil. I used my T-fal FR8000 Oil Filtration Ultimate EZ Clean Easy to clean 3.5-Liter Fry Basket Stainless Steel Immersion Deep Fryer, 2.6-Pound, Silver
. I like it because it regulates the heat very well, and it has a filter so you can reuse the oil. I think peanut oil would also work well, but it is more expensive.
I do have some tips on technique. Make sure your fish pieces are no more than 3 ounces when the fish is heavier it will immediately sink in the oil, and the batter may wrap itself around the heating elements of your fryer. If you are simply using a pot to heat your oil in, this may not be an issue. I like to raise and lower the battered fish pieces a few times when I lower them into the oil, this way the batter can cook just a little, and the expansion of the batter is less troublesome. It isn’t difficult to do at all, but this batter does expand while cooking, it is one of the characteristics that make this batter so unique.
I hope you enjoy one of my childhood favorites. You could use this same batter to dip chicken tenders, shrimp, and even onion rings. You may want to serve this recipe with some tartar sauce.
Love Long John Silver’s Battered Fish? Try these great recipes
Long John Silvers Chicken Planks
Fish and Chips in Beer Batter
Captain Ds Batter Dipped Fish
Long John Silvers Fish Batter Copycat Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 pounds cod sliced into 3 ounce pieces (you can use other types of fish)
- 2 cups flour
- 1/4 cup corn starch
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon onion salt
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 16 ounces club soda
- Oil for frying
Instructions
- If you are not using a fryer, heat up 8 cups of vegetable oil in a heavy pot until the temperature reaches 350 degrees. Make the batter by combining flour, corn starch, sugar, salt, baking powder, baking soda, onion salt, paprika, ground black pepper. Stir to combine all dry ingredients. Add club soda to dry ingredients. The batter will foam, continue to stir. Drop pieces of fish into the batter. Coat fish with batter, drop into hot oil. Fry fish for 2 to 3 minutes or until the batter is golden and the fish pieces begin to float to the top of the oil. Drain fish on a wire rack.
Recipe Tips for the Cook
Can't Miss Cooking Tips
- To keep the batter from sticking to the bottom of the basket, gently lower fish and hold it for a few seconds to allow it to form up a crust before dropping it into the basket.
- You can swap the club soda for beer for a great flavor.
- Have a little batter leftover? Slice up some onion rings, and make onion rings.
Trey says
This was a great recipe and goes amazing with Alligator meat however instead of 1/2 teaspoon of salt,i found a whole teaspoon gives it better flavor.Otherwise its bland.Thank you though.It was great otherwise and the club soda makes a difference
larry says
i worked at longjohn silvers as a teenager i was a cook the batter came dry in 5lb bags and you just add water
Paula says
Mine turned out so delicious!! Thank you so much 😋😜💖
Steve says
Batter turned out fine, but something tasted missing. More paprika? More sugar? It was very bland to the taste.
Stephanie says
If you are asking me, I think it could use a bit more salt.
MELODY ASHCRAFT says
APRIL 2, 2020, I ONLY HAD TILAPIA BECAUSE OF THIS CORONA VIRUS, BUT ITS A WHITE MILD FISH AND IT TURNED OUT PERFECT.
CLIFFORD THOMAS says
This was s great tasting. But we had trouble with the batter all coming of the fish. Any suggestions would be appreciated
Stephanie says
Pat the fish dry with a paper towel. Slowly lower the fish into the oil, give it a bit of time to crust up before you release the fish into the hot oil.
Lisa says
Our family loved this! My 7 year old ate two huge pieces. I used tilapia and the batter was thick, not runny at all. Thank you so much, this one is going in our rotation!