CHIPS & FISH (NOT FISH & CHIPS!)
PG tested
Crushed chips make an excellent breading for fast oven-fried fish. They’re preseasoned and have just the right amount of fat to crisp in a hot oven. I love this trick of recipe developer Molly Kreuger’s: She marinates the filets in tartar sauce (purchased or homemade) before dipping in the crumbs. It provides flavor, moisture and serves as a binder in place of an egg wash, saving you a step (and cleanup).
If you don’t like tartar, that’s OK. You can just marinate in a few tablespoons of plain mayo instead. Serve with more tartar, ketchup, cocktail sauce, some lemons – whatever you (and your kids) prefer.
4 large boneless/skinless filets of white fish (cod, halibut, tilapia) 1½ cups of tartar sauce (or just plain mayo), plus more for serving
1 cup crushed Doritos chips, or similar
1 cup crushed potato chips
1 cup panko breadcrumbs Optional salt, pepper, garlic and/or onion powder or seafood seasoning
In a large bowl, gently toss fish filets with tartar sauce until they are evenly coated, then set aside to rest, refrigerated, until ready to cook, 2-24 hours.
When you are ready to eat, place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees.
Mix together crushed chips and breadcrumbs until thoroughly combined in a vessel that suits the size and shape of your fish filets (I use a baking dish for longer ones, a bowl for small squares). Taste a bit for seasoning; feel free to dress it up.
Retrieve fish from the fridge. Working one filet at a time, remove from the marinade (if your tartar sauce is especially chunky, you might want to remove any large bits) and lay it down in the breadcrumb mixture. Press gently to ensure that the crumbs are adhering – lift a corner to check. Flip and repeat on the other side until the filet is completely coated, then transfer to a parchmentlined baking sheet. Repeat with all filets. (This recipe doubles easily, and my sheet pans fit 8 large filets without any trouble.)
Once filets are coated, bake immediately. Begin to check for doneness at around 15 minutes, and every 2 minutes until done. Fish is cooked when it yields and begins to flake apart when pressed gently with the back of a spoon.
Serve immediately with garnishes and sauces of your choice.
4,