Homemade Fish Sticks

baked breaded fish sticks stacked on a plate.

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5 from 7 votes

Skip the freezer aisle and make your own!

Course Appetizer, Kid Friendly, Main Course

Cuisine American

Diet Low Salt

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 14

Total Time 44

Servings sticks

Calories 35kcal

Author Tracy

Equipment

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs fresh cod filet
1/2 cup all purpose flour

Breadcrumb Coating

2 cups panko breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder divided
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3 eggs
2 teaspoons white wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried parsley
olive oil for spraying
Tartar Sauce for dipping!

Instructions

Toast Breadcrumbs: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In one of the shallow bowls, add panko breadcrumbs, paprika, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, kosher salt, dried thyme, and black pepper. Mix well.
Line a baking sheet with foil and spread mixed panko breadcrumbs in an even layer. Spray the top of the breadcrumbs with oil.
Bake for 3-4 minutes until breadcrumbs are golden, rotating after 1 1/2 - 2 minutes. Return to bowl once toasted and set aside.
Cut Cod: With a very sharp knife, slice cod, along the grain, into 4 - 4 1/2 inch long and 1 - 1 1/2 inch wide strips or "sticks". If there is still a bone in the filet, do your best to slice as close to the bone as possible, but not into it, to ensure boneless strips. Place on tray. Don't worry if they seem long, they will shrink when they bake.
Prep Egg Wash and Flour: Add the eggs, white wine vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder, parsley, and onion powder to one of the wide shallow bowls. Whisk until well combined. Add the flour to the third bowl.
Dredge and Bread: Line a large baking sheet with foil and spray with oil. Set up your area with the bowls of flour, egg wash, and breadcrumbs in that order. Place a small glass or bowl of water and and have a hand towel ready.
Taking one fish stick at a time, first dredge in flour and shake off excess flour. Then dip in the egg wash. (At this point, you can dip your fingers in the extra bowl of water and wipe clean, this will help prevent clumping of the panko breadcrumbs when you coat the fish stick). Add to breadcrumbs, cover with the crumbs and gently press down so the fish stick is well coated. Place on the foil-lined baking sheet.
Repeat with all fish sticks.
Bake: Turn oven heat up to 425 degress F and add baking sheet with fish sticks to the center rack. Bake for 14 minutes.
Serve and Enjoy with your favorite tartar sauce or other dipping sauce!

Video

Notes

The nutritional value is for approximately one fish stick.

Make Ahead

To create the ease of the freezer aisle option, these freeze so well! To freeze, flash freeze by adding the breadcrumb-coated fish sticks (before baking!) to a parchment paper lined tray in a single layer and freeze for 1 hr. After the hour, transport them to a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. You can bake as instructed straight from the freezer. You can also freeze the already baked fish sticks, but we find that the result is that the fish is a little dryer than if you freeze before baking.

Substitutions

Cod: You can use another cut of white fish like haddock, sole, or pollock. You can also use frozen fish filets, just defrost a bit to make slicing easier. But if using frozen fish, do not freeze again.

Panko: You can use regular breadcrumbs, too!

Make it Gluten-Free: Use a gluten-free flour for the dredge and gluten free breadcrumbs.

Seasonings: While you can use fresh in place of dried, we find that dried is best. You can also customize the seasonings to your personal preferences.

Nutrition