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Crispy Beer-Battered Fish Recipe for Perfect Fried Fish

Beautiful, tender, creamy white fish in the crispiest golden batter. This chip-shop style fish is ridiculously tasty, and surprisingly easy to make at home. Ask your fishmonger for extra-large fillets (supermarket portions are often small) for an authentic chippy-fish experience.

A tall, overhead shot of beer-battered fish. There is one beer-battered fish fillet, topped with flakes of salt, on a bed of chips. The food is on top of a newspaper. To the left of the fish and chips are two wedges of lemon. In the top left of the image, there is a black bowl of mushy peas, with another wedge of lemon to the right of it. In the top right of the image, there is a grey dish of tartare sauce. This is all on a wooden board. On the bottom right of the wooden board, there is a clear dish of sea salt. This is all placed on a white marble background.

Living in a seaside town in southern England has made fish and chips a local staple for us. Our fishmonger supplies fresh, generous fillets—ideal for making chip-shop style fish at home.

That crunchy, golden batter paired with flaky white fish is a classic. Serve with mushy peas, chippy chips and plenty of tartare sauce for a perfect meal.

Table of Contents

  • 📋 Beer Batter Ingredients
  • Overview of recipe steps
  • Pro Tip
  • 🍽️ What to serve it with
  • 🍲 More fantastic fish recipes
  • Beer Battered Fish Recipe

📋 Beer Batter Ingredients

An overhead shot of the ingredients for the beer batter is laid out on a wooden board. They are as follows: self-raising white flour, IPA (beer), baking powder, and cornflour.

Beer – Use a pale ale, lager or light beer for a crisp, light batter. It must be very cold. For a non-alcohol version, substitute soda water, sparkling water or alcohol-free lager.

Fish – Extra-large fillets (around 250g / 8.8oz) give you an authentic chip-shop portion. Smaller supermarket fillets (around 130g / 4.4oz) work too but won’t feel quite as traditional. Smaller pieces will cook in about 3 minutes.

Overview of recipe steps

Full recipe with detailed steps is in the recipe card below.

  1. Mix the dry batter ingredients, then whisk in the cold beer until smooth.
A wide, overhead shot of the finished beer batter. The batter is in a clear, glass bowl with a whisk wooden handle in the batter. All this is laid on a wooden board.
  1. Chill the batter in the fridge (up to 3 hours) to keep it cold.
  2. Pat the fillets very dry and dredge in seasoned cornflour (cornstarch). This helps the batter stick.
  3. Coat the fillets in the batter and carefully lower them into hot oil. Fry 3–4 minutes until golden, then transfer to a wire rack to drain.
  4. Repeat with remaining fillets and serve immediately.
  5. Full recipe and exact measurements are in the recipe card below.
A wide, close-up shot of three fish fillets, battered in the beer batter. There are three golden battered fish fillets laid side by side on a copper wire rack. They are topped with flakes of salt. The wire rack is on a white marble background.

Pro Tip

Drain the fried fish on a wire rack so air circulates around each piece. Using paper traps steam and can soften the batter; a rack keeps the coating really crispy.

A wonderful summer dinner, ready in less than half an hour.

A tall shot of three fish fillets, battered in the beer batter. There are three golden battered fish fillets laid side by side on a copper wire rack. They are topped with flakes of salt. The wire rack is on a white marble background.

🍽️ What to serve it with

  • Classic chippy chips (thick-cut fries) are the perfect partner.
  • In some parts of the UK fish, chips and gravy are common—try it if you like a savory twist.
  • Mushy peas, tartare sauce and curry sauce are all great accompaniments.
A tall, close-up shot of beer-battered fish. There is one beer-battered fish fillet, topped with flakes of salt, on a bed of chips. The food is on top of a newspaper. In the top middle of the image, there is a black bowl of mushy peas, with another wedge of lemon to the right of it. This is all on a wooden board. On the bottom middle of the wooden board, there is a clear dish of sea salt.

🍲 More fantastic fish recipes

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Curries

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A square, overhead shot of three fish fillets, battered in the beer batter. There are three golden battered fish fillets laid side by side on a copper wire rack. They are topped with flakes of salt. The wire rack is on a white marble background, and in the top left corner, you can slightly see a blue napkin.
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Beer Battered Fish

By Nicky Corbishley
Beer Battered Fish – tender, flaky white fish coated in a light, crisp golden batter. Easy to make at home and perfect with chips and peas.
Prep Time:15
Cook Time:8
Total Time:23
Servings: 4
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: British

Ingredients

Beer Batter:

  • 120 g (1 cup) self-raising flour
  • 2 tbsp cornflour (cornstarch)
  • ½ tsp baking powder
  • 240 ml (1 cup) very cold pale ale (or cold soda water)

Fish:

  • 4 extra-large white skinless fillets (cod, haddock or pollack)
  • 4 tbsp cornflour (cornstarch)
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ½ tsp black pepper
  • Oil for deep frying

Instructions

  • Place the self-raising flour, cornflour and baking powder in a large bowl and mix.
  • Whisk in the cold pale ale until the batter is smooth. Refrigerate while you prepare the fish; batter can be chilled for 2–3 hours ahead.
  • Set a wire rack over a tray and place a couple of sheets of kitchen paper beneath it to catch drips. This is where the fried fish will drain.
  • Heat oil in a large heavy-based pan to 180°C / 350°F. The oil should be at least 7.5 cm (3 inches) deep.
  • Mix the cornflour, salt and pepper on a plate. Pat the fish fillets dry with paper towels—dry fish gives the crispiest batter.
  • Dredge each fillet in the dry cornflour mixture, then dip it in the chilled beer batter until fully coated. Allow excess batter to drip off, then carefully lower the fillet into the hot oil. Fry in batches (two at a time) so the oil temperature stays steady.
  • Fry for 3–4 minutes until the batter is golden and crisp. Remove to the wire rack to drain. Repeat with remaining fillets.
  • Serve immediately with chips, mushy peas and tartare sauce.

Notes

Note 1 – fish size:

We used large fillets (~250g / 8.8oz each) for a proper chip-shop portion. Smaller supermarket fillets (≈130g / 4.4oz) work, but will cook faster and won’t feel as chippy.

Using a frying basket?

If the fish sticks to the basket, lower it with long tongs and hold for 20–30 seconds to seal the coating before releasing.

Flour substitution

If you don’t have self-raising flour, substitute the same amount of plain (all-purpose) flour plus 1 tsp baking powder, and still include the extra ½ tsp baking powder called for in the batter.

Swaps for pale ale

Use lager, or for a no-alcohol version use cold soda water or non-alcoholic lager. The liquid must be cold for a light, airy batter.

Why a wire rack?

Draining on a rack allows airflow around the fish so it stays crispy. Paper traps steam and can soften the coating.

Make ahead?

For best results serve fresh. You can prepare the batter a few hours ahead and keep refrigerated, but cooked fish loses some crispness if reheated or frozen.

Nutritional information is approximate and based on a 250g fish fillet. Oil absorption and exact values will vary.

Nutrition

Calories: 595kcal | Carbohydrates: 35g | Protein: 48g | Fat: 26g

Nutrition information is an approximation and should be used as a guide only.

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