This weekend's fish fry was "healthier" than normal.
For the beer batter, I used the "Heart Healthy" Bisquick and Labbatts Blue Light beer.
Instead of Crisco, I fried them in Canola oil.
They still turned out yummy.
Here's my recipe, I don't measure anything, but will give you my best guess at what I usually dump in the bowl:
1 1/2 cups corn meal
2 cups Bisquick
1 egg
1 can of beer
2 TBS salt
1 TBS pepper
1 TBS garlic powder
Big jug of Canola oil for "healthier" frying.
Put Bisquick in bowl with salt, pepper, garlic powder and mix it up with a fork or whisk.
Add egg and beer, mixing until the consistency is like pancake batter.
Fill Cast Iron skillet with 1" of oil and heat to Med-High
Dredge fillets in corn meal then dip in batter (let some of the batter drip off before putting in the pan - don't want the batter too thick) and fry until golden brown on the outside. Remove and let cool on paper towels.
This is just the base recipe. If you like spicy, you can add some cayenne pepper or some Red Hot.
If you're not doing the "healthy eating" thing, substitute regular beer for the light beer, original Bisquick for the "heart healthy" Bisquick, and fry 'em up in Crisco. Actually, I doubt if my recipe is any healthier anyhow, but having ingredients with "Light" and "Heart-Healthy" in their names makes me not feel so guilty chowing down on yummy stuff :)
I use this for most everything we keep - crappie, bluegill, bass, perch, bullhead. Salmon and trout are the exception they usually go on the grill. Salmon get a marinade, trout get butter and lemon.
