Whether you like gluten free beer or not (and no matter which you might like), this gluten free beer battered fish and chips recipe is sure to please!
Light and crisp, this batter will take on some of the flavors of the beer you choose, and will liven up any flaky white fish. This one impressed even my picky son who finished his whole plate, proclaiming afterwards, “Mom, you should make these into fish sticks for us – even easier to eat!”. I’ll get right on that … as soon as I get more gluten free beer!
Gluten free beer battered fish and chips never last long enough in my house to get a decent picture. They really get gobbled up way too fast! Luckily, I snagged a few pieces the last time I made this recipe and just re-heated them afterwards in my air fryer.
Which brings me to the fact that these CAN be made in an air fryer. I actually loved the results of cooking this gluten free beer battered fish in an air fryer, with one caveat: you should flash fry them first.
Let me explain. Air fryers have baskets. Baskets have holes. Batter goes through holes. Messes are made. Fish + batter won’t come off basket. Frustration ensues.
BUT, if you flash fry the fish in a pan just enough to cook the outside of the batter THEN put it into your air fryer, all is well in the world.
Light, crispy gluten free beer battered fish at home any time you like!
And making these homemade chips is so easy an air fryer. Check out my article on baking gluten free in an air fryer for more recipes and air fryer reviews if you’re interested in adding one of these appliances to your kitchen. I even made homemade gluten free doughnuts in my air fryer — boom!
But don’t think you have to have an air fryer to whip up this yummy gluten free dinner. You can deep fry or simply pan fry these fillets just as easily.
Can you tell which fillets were air fried and which were real-fried? I didn’t think so!
One more note on ingredient choices for this recipe. Be sure to use naturally gluten free beer, not gluten removed beer. For more information on the difference, check out my article; for my gluten free beer tasting notes with loads of reviews so you can pick your favorites, be sure to check out that article linked here as well. You could also just use ginger ale (sweeter), a gluten free hard cider, or sparkling water/club soda if you prefer.
For this most recent batch, I used Holidaily gluten free beers. I really like using IPAs and Blonds for this recipe. I’ve also used Greens, Aurochs and Glutenberg with great success. I can’t wait to hear which you choose for your gluten free beer battered fish!
Also make sure you’re using gfJules Flour, not some blend with lots of rice flour or funky tasting, gritty gluten free flours (like beans – ew!). You want light and crispy fish, right? Stick with what works!
As for fish, I prefer flounder, but another reader swears by using cod. He shared this yummy pic of his gluten free beer battered fish made with a similar recipe and my gfJules Flour (thanks Dave A!). He used this great gluten free beer batter fish recipe from Amanda at EatatOurTable who also loves using my gfJules Flour for her recipe.
Dave recommends adding really cold beer when whisking into the gfJules Flour. Dave also recommends cooking in a high-sided wok, which I tried and have to say worked really well in place of a deep fryer!
Remember, if you need some guidance about choosing the right gluten free beer for the job, have a look at some of my Gluten Free Beer Tasting Notes!
Enjoy this beer battered fish and chips recipe…sure to please even the pickiest eater!
Gluten Free Beer Battered Fish and Chips
Gluten Free Beer Battered Fish And Chips just like you remember -- light and crispy, restaurant style food that's a real treat! Can be fried or made in an air fryer.
Ingredients
Chips
- 1 - 2 lbs small white potatoes, sweet potatoes or yams (use purple sweet potatoes for added color & nutrition!)
- high heat cooking oil (like avocado oil) + extra virgin olive oil for brushing on potatoes
Fish
- 2 cups (270 grams) gfJules All-Purpose Gluten-Free Flour
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. pepper
- 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional)
- 1/4 tsp. dry mustard (optional)
- 16 oz. naturally gluten-free beer (Use soda water or ginger ale if not using beer) - may need more to thin batter
- ~3/4 cup (102 grams) gfJules All-Purpose Gluten-Free Flour for dredging
- 2 lbs. white fish fillets (like flounder, catfish, tilapia, cod, perch or haddock)
- high heat cooking oil (like avocado oil, sunflower, grapeseed, nonGMO canola, peanut or regular olive oil ) if frying
Instructions
Chips
If using large potatoes, wash well, then poke several times with a fork. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 30-45 minutes, or until fork-tender. In the alternative, microwave the potatoes for 7-10 minutes, checking periodically and removing when fork-tender. Set aside and allow to cool.
When cool enough to handle, slice into 1/4- 1/2 inch rounds (skin on) or cut on an angle into steak-fry-size wedges.
If using small white or red potatoes, slice with mandolin or slice thinly with a knife.
To Bake:
Increase oven temperature to medium-broil. Cover a jelly roll pan or baking sheet with low sides with aluminum foil. Lightly cover with olive oil. Rub both sides of the fries in the oil, then spread out on the sheet so they are not touching one another. Broil for 5 minutes on highest baking rack. Flip each slice over and broil an additional 2 minutes, or until lightly browned. They burn easily at this point, so watch them closely!
To Air Fry:
Spray or brush with oil, sprinkle with salt, then place in air fryer basket. Set to "fries" setting on your air fryer, or fry at 350°F for approximately 15 minutes, depending on thickness of chips. Stir periodically if the basket is full.
To Fry:
Fill bottom of large skillet with high heat cooking oil and add chips when oil is hot. Stir frequently to toss and remove when desired crispness is reached.
Remove and serve warm with vinegar or ketchup.
Fish
In a flat-bottomed bowl or pan, whisk together dry ingredients. Form a well in the center and gradually pour in gluten-free beer, whisking it in until a thin batter is formed. Add beer slowly, so that you add only enough to make this thin batter. The batter should be pancake batter consistency. If it's too thick, it will be hard to cook through; too thin and it will slide off the fish.
In another flat bowl or pan, spread the additional cup gfJules All-Purpose Gluten-Free Flour for dredging.
Wash and cut the fillets on an angle if they are large, so that each piece is roughly 4 ounces in size. Dredge each fillet through the flour, then into the batter bowl, covering each side well.
To Fry:
Pour at least enough high heat oil into a large skillet or wok to cover the bottom of the skillet (if using a wok, fill bottom of bowl of wok about 1 inch). Heat to medium-high (if you have a thermometer, oil should be 350°F). For deep frying, fill pan with at least 2 inches of oil.
Lay each battered fillet in the hot oil (be careful of oil splatters!) and fry for 5-8 minutes, flipping half-way through, until crispy and lightly browned; time will depend on thickness of fish. Peak inside the middle of the first piece before removing from heat to be sure it's fully cooked and add time if necessary. Fish should be 145°F when done.
To Air Fry:
Oil the basket of your air fryer and set aside. Flash fry each battered fillet in hot oil for 1 minute per side, then transfer to air fryer basket.
Air fry at 350°F for approximately 10 minutes, flipping in the middle. Test to be sure the batter and fish are cooked through and temperature of the fish should be 145°F when done. Add time if necessary. If batter is particularly pale, spray with cooking oil and return to the air fryer for color.
Serve warm with gluten free tartar sauce, ketchup or plain. My family likes mixing ketchup with vegan mayo to make an easy dipping sauce.
Pin for later!
I’ve made this awesome recipe before and could not find any serious flavor differences between beer and club soda. Keep the batter as COLD as possible and the oil at 350° so it doesn’t burn or get soggy before the fish is done. If your fish is sticking, oil is too shallow and too cool. I’ve found a WOK minimizes both oil usage and splatter. Flat bottomed pans use too much oil for the same depth and 4 large pieces fit easily in a WOK. To help the batter to stick, dry the fish well before flouring. Fresh fish is best. If previously frozen, press fish between paper towels and extract as much liquid as possible to aid with batter adhesion.
AWESOME tips, Dave! Thank you so much for taking the time to share!!!!!!
~jules
This is an outstanding recipe for beer battered fish! My husband says that I have gotten better at gluten free batter cooking. I said it’s because I finally found a good flour blend. Thank you Jules!
Wonderful to hear, Juleigh! And feel free to take all the credit with your hubbie – you deserve it for sticking with it and not giving up! So glad you found my flour and so glad your hubbie is loving your cooking again!
~jules
This recipe is excellent. My neighborhood grocery store did not have gluten free beer, so I used club soda. Also, I did not have much time, so I bought all natural, gluten free frozen French fries. I used haddock fillets.
My daughter, who has Celiac’s, enjoyed the Fish and Chips very much. The fish came out flaky and light. Batter was perfect. I had sticking in the fry pan, however, I think this will not be a problem with a new, non-stick pan.
That is so fantastic to hear, Karen! I’m thrilled that your daughter was able to enjoy fish & chips again! What a great mom you are! Thanks so much for taking the time to let me know it worked out well for you.
All the best,
~jules
I only have soda such as 7-UP or Sprite. Do you think this would work for me?
I think it would work, but be a little on the sweet side, Betty. If you have club soda or sparkling water, that would probably be better, taste-wise.
My sweet husband made this for me last night and it was wonderful! We used haddock and soda water since we didn’t have any GF beer around. Thank you Jules!
Sounds delicious, though, Julie!!
This looks like a delicious recipe. Since cooking GF, I haven’t really experimented much with flours (I typically just make my own, it’s worked well so far) I’ll be interested to see how this turns out with gluten-free all-purpose flour. On a side note, I’d like to thank you for telling me what beer you are using in the batter (beer is something I haven’t had since going gluten-free, and I won’t mind getting back into cooking with them and drinking them).
Additionally, if you’re interesting, I do have a blog of my own where you can check out how I make gluten-free battered fish. Again, thanks for the recipe I’m looking forward to giving it a try!
Great, Revan! Good luck with the recipe -I’m sure you’ll love it!
Hi Jules, I was so excited to find this recipe! I was diagnosed with celiac disease about 2 months ago and have been craving a battered fish or chicken meal. I was sadly disappointed when this recipe became a disaster in my kitchen. I consider myself to be fairly savy in the kitchen and cook dinner just about night, so I was very upset to find that this recipe didn’t work at all. I cook with stainless steel (since my diagnosis, I had to give away my scratched non-stick and decided to go with stainless) and everything I’ve made had been great, except the fish I’ve been craving. I heated my oil to med-hi, and waited for it to get hot, put the fish in and when it came time to turn it, it was as if it was super glued to the pan. I tried raising the temp of the oil and that only burned it. I’m stuck! I tried baking off the rest of the fish but they only became soggy and flavorless. Any advice?
Hi Michelle- we’ve emailed you from [email protected] because your experience was so unusual, we wanted to walk through the steps with you to see what might have gone wrong. Look for the email and we’ll see if we can figure it out together!
Try heating the panto medium high before putting the oil in, then heating the oil. I know it works when deep frying. I was having the same problem when frying catfish and venison. My husband is from the south and thinks everything has to be fried and with the stainless steel I was having the same problem. I haven’t tried it yet with small amounts of oil, but it works with 2-3 cups of oil.
Great tip! Thanks for sharing, Linda!
Christa, have you had much luck doing the WW with the gluten free? I know when I was doing the WW it was very based on increasing your fiber in your carb portions. This is very difficult to do on the celiac diet. No choice in doing that now though with the celiac diagnosis. Can WW help you with this, and are they knowledgeable about what gluten free really means? Do they give you suggestions? I have been hesitant to start back on the WW since healing my gut with the gf diet.
Kim,I did WW a couple of years ago before they changed to the Points Plus program, but I thought it was pretty easy to do it gf. I am not gf but my husband is, so I cook gf for all of us. There were a lot of ww recipes that can be easily adapted. There was even a ww fish and chips that was really good with Jules’ flour. Even my kids ate it!
I lost 30 lbs on WW last year eating gluten free and have kept it off! Like you, I have the celiac diagnosis and unfortunately, as my gut healed, my ability to absorb calories went up and so did my weight. The new points plus program worked for me as long as I have the nutritional content of foods (fat, carb, fiber, protein) I can figure out the points. For good or for bad WW hasn’t figured out the need to take gluten out of their packaged products so I am very appreciative of gf manufacturers like Jules who provide yummy recipes with nutritional content! Most gf packaged foods have that on the label and I definitely went for more fiber containing foods. My snack foods were/are grapes, low fat microwave popcorn, and frozen fruit smoothies, and portion control of yummy things like Jules’ buttermilk biscuits as an occasional treat!
Christa – sounds like you’re doing great and managing quite well for yourself. Great tips on keeping the pounds off. Everything in moderation!
Thanks for your recipes
You’re welcome, Frances! Glad you’re enjoying them!!!
This sounds like an awesome recipe but I am watching my weight watchers points so am curious if this can be adapted to bake the fish in this batter or any other revisions to lighten the fry/oil component?
Christa – you can always flash fry in a tad of oil, then bake it the rest of the time. Broil at the end if you need it more crisp. You’ll love this potato “chips” recipe – it’s not fried at all!
Wow–I used Jules’ flour to batter my flounder fillets last night. It was out of this world–not too heavy–lovely and crispy golden brown–and a heavenly taste! Next time I’ll try chicken nuggets.
Susie
What vinegar do you use with them? Obviously malt is out & it’s depressing. I was thinking just plain white vinegar like Canadians favor. Cider maybe?
Kelly – I prefer cider vinegar because it’s milder, but it’s really whatever suits your taste (except malt, which as you noted, contains gluten so is off the list!).