Composition of the product
You can prepare many dishes from crab and fish sticks: salads, pizza, casseroles, etc. The cooking recipes are simple and do not require special skills.
What does the sticks contain? The main ingredients are white fish (pollock, cod), spices, and breadcrumbs. More often it is not fillet, but minced fish. Preservatives are also added.
You always want to use a high-quality product, the composition of which will not raise doubts and will not harm the body. You can make your own breaded fish sticks at home. This is a hearty and healthy dish. A large amount of protein and microelements allows you to consume it during fasting, dieting, and include it in children's menus.
How to cook fish fingers, a delicious recipe
Many people love breaded fish fingers. This fairly popular dish appeared in British stores in the 60s and quickly spread throughout the world. There are many semi-finished products that just need to be fried and not even defrosted. But inside such a dish there may be completely low-quality minced fish and various synthetic additives to enhance the taste, increase shelf life and add more weight. Therefore, I want to offer a recipe for breaded fish sticks, which are easy to prepare at home, but from high-quality and fresh ingredients. Believe me, once you try homemade fish fingers, you will not want to buy store-bought ones anymore. This recipe with photo is quite versatile. You can choose your favorite type of fish, or even use ready-made fillets so as not to waste time on processing the fish. The following are used as additives in minced meat: semolina, cream, raw potatoes, carrots, zucchini, apples, cottage cheese, minced chicken, mushrooms, barley, rolled oats. Tastes could not be discussed. The processed cheese gives the sticks a special aroma; the dish comes out with a delicate creamy flavor, and thanks to the cheese, the minced meat sticks together better. We will fry the fish delicacy in breadcrumbs, which will envelop the delicate and juicy filling with an appetizing crispy crust. This is delicious! You can also freeze formed minced fish sticks instead of cooking them all at once, and then you will always have an excellent option on hand for a quick dinner. Well, let's find out how to cook fish fingers at home to please the whole family.
Ingredients:
for minced fish:
- 1-1.2 kg of sea and ocean fish (pollock, cod, hake, etc.);
- 1 tbsp. corn starch;
- 1 egg;
- 1 processed cheese (100 g);
- vegetable oil for frying;
- salt, pepper to taste.
for batter and breading:
- 3 eggs;
- 1 tbsp. ice water;
- 100 g flour;
- 150-200 g breadcrumbs.
Recipe for breaded minced fish sticks
1. For fish fingers, the ideal option would be white fish, a little dry. It tastes best from ocean or sea fish - this is a classic recipe. We choose pollock, hake, cod. They store well in the freezer. But river fish will also turn out quite well. A real delicacy can be made from trout or salmon; pike or asp are also suitable. So, we wash the fish and remove the fins. Cut along the ridge into 2 parts, remove the ridge, remove the skin.
2. Remove large bones from the carcass. This is convenient to do with tweezers. Small bones may remain, they will be crushed and will not be felt in the finished dish.
3. Next, grind the fish fillet into minced meat. You need to twist it 2-3 times so that all the small bones are crushed.
4. Add grated processed cheese to the minced meat. It will give fish fingers a delicate creamy taste.
Homemade fish fingers recipe
The appetizing golden crust and pleasant aroma stimulate the appetite and set the mood for a delicious dinner with the family.
To preserve beneficial properties, it is better to use an oven or microwave. This allows you to maintain the juiciness of the filling and crispy crust.
Ingredients you will need to make fish sticks:
- 750 g pollock fillet;
- 60 g cheese (hard varieties);
- 2 eggs;
- spices as desired;
- 1 pack of breadcrumbs;
- vegetable oil.
Stages of cooking
To prepare fish fingers, you need:
- Cut the finished fish fillet (pollock) into pieces. Excess moisture is removed with paper napkins. The pieces should be oblong in shape.
- The cheese needs to be grated finely.
- In a bowl, beat eggs with spices until completely smooth.
- Pour breadcrumbs into the grated cheese and mix thoroughly.
- Before frying, pieces of pollock fillet should be dipped in the egg mixture and then rolled in breadcrumbs and cheese.
- A baking sheet is greased with oil, pieces of breaded fish are laid out on it.
- Bake in the oven at high temperature until golden brown.
- The approximate cooking time is approximately 25-30 minutes, and then look at the facts.
- Remove the finished fish sticks from the baking sheet, cool, serve with stewed vegetables, you can prepare a sauce, garnish with parsley and dill.
Recipe for 12 servings:
— 500 g of fish fillet in pieces (pollock, hake, cod, sea bass); - 100 g panko (or 50 g panko and 50 g breadcrumbs); - 50 g flour; - 2 eggs, beaten with a little milk; - oil for frying; - a piece of butter; - salt.
Lightly salt the fish, cover, let sit for 20 minutes, then wring out excess moisture with a paper towel. Cut the fish across the grain into rectangular pieces of the desired thickness.
Grind half the panko in a food processor or using a hand blender/rolling pin if you are using all 100g of panko. Place crushed panko or 50g breadcrumbs in a shallow, wide bowl along with the rest of the panko and mix. Crack the eggs into a second shallow, wide bowl and place the flour in a third.
Bread the sticks first in flour, then in egg, shaking off excess, and then roll in panko. Pour oil into the pan until it covers the bottom and heat well. Add fish fingers and fry for two to three minutes until golden brown, then flip. A minute before it's ready, add the butter and move the pan until it melts.
Place the finished fish fingers on a paper towel to remove excess oil, then you can serve them.
Cod fillet sticks
We offer another equally tasty and healthy dish. The recipe for cod sticks is suitable for cooks of any level: for beginners and professionals. For cod fillet fish sticks you will need:
- peeled cod;
- hot pepper sauce;
- garnish for serving.
Products for the recipe:
- 1 kg cod fillet;
- 3 eggs for breading;
- flour;
- favorite spices;
- olive oil;
- breadcrumbs.
Instructions for preparing chopsticks
- The fish must be cleaned and bones removed. Cut the resulting cod fillet into pieces 2 cm long.
- Next, you will need 3 containers in which to separately pour flour, crackers and eggs. Chicken eggs must be beaten until smooth.
- The oblong pieces of cod must first be dredged in flour, then dipped in the egg mixture and finally covered in breading.
- Future fish sticks should be refrigerated for 10-15 minutes. They will become more elastic and will not fall apart during frying.
- Heat up the frying pan.
- Fry the fillet pieces on all sides in hot oil. Many people advise using olive oil - supposedly it improves the taste of the dish.
- The fish will be ready when a juicy golden crust has formed. When cooking, the sticks must be constantly turned over so that they do not burn.
- Place the finished fillet on paper napkins to remove excess fat.
- For a softer consistency, you can additionally fry the cod sticks in the microwave in the “Grill” mode.
Fish fingers in a slow cooker
An excellent advantage of a multicooker is the ability to prepare a full meal from semi-finished products or fish. Sticks prepared in a slow cooker can be frozen for future use, without losing their taste and aroma.
For fish sticks you will need:
- 400-600 g hake fillet;
- 2 eggs;
- 100-200 g wheat bread;
- 70 ml milk;
- salt pepper;
- breading in the form of breadcrumbs;
- parsley dill.
- Pour the milk into a deep bowl and add the pulp of white bread to it. Leave it to swell.
- Prepare minced fish fillet (grind with a hatchet or in a blender).
- Finely chop the greens and mix into the hake mince along with the soaked bread and spices.
- Pour breadcrumbs into a separate bowl.
- The minced meat is thoroughly kneaded, then divided into small oblong pieces and rolled in breadcrumbs.
- The resulting pieces should be placed in the refrigerator for half an hour.
- Oil is poured into the multicooker bowl, into which the fish pieces from the refrigerator are placed.
- Select the “Deep Frying” or “Frying in Oil” mode.
- The sticks are prepared for 15 minutes at a temperature of 180 degrees.
You can use herbs and vegetables to decorate the finished dish. Serve chilled, for example with green peas and mashed potatoes, or as a separate dish.
The benefits or harm of fish sticks
Fish is becoming increasingly popular in the diet of our compatriots, not least due to its fairly attractive price and ease of preparation.
We enrich our diet with it because it has great nutritional value. As for the content of fish itself in fish sticks, it is often minimal, and the degree of processing deprives the product of many valuable components.
What should you know about these frozen convenience foods?
depositphotos.com. igordutina.
Fish on the table
Compared to people in many other countries, we still eat too little fish, although many are aware of its benefits. This product is an excellent source of valuable components, including complete and easily digestible protein. Contains all essential amino acids in a ratio close to ideal for humans.
Fish also provides the body with trace elements (potassium, iodine) and vitamins, including vitamin D, which has a beneficial effect on bone health.
Marine species deserve special attention because they are a storehouse of omega-3 and omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids.
These compounds help blood circulation, increase the level of “good” cholesterol, strengthen the immune system, improve the appearance of hair, nails and skin, and work as an antidepressant.
In other words, there are many arguments in favor of eating fish. But in any form?
Breaded minced meat
This product, which is now widely used, has been known since the 60s of the last century. In 1955, Birds Eye Fish Fingers first appeared in British stores and became instantly popular. This idea was eagerly picked up by other companies.
Store shelves attract us with fish in the form of not only sticks, but also cutlets, and burgers with the addition of cheese or in a spicy spicy breading, etc.
Typically, sticks are made from pre-cut into small pieces and frozen blocks of meat, in most cases pollock, hake, cod, grenadier, pollock, pike perch, flounder, haddock, and sometimes salmon.
We recommend reading: Pike perch: benefits and harm to the body.
However, increasingly, manufacturers use minced fish, a kind of “pulp”: chopped meat of various varieties and, accordingly, of different values, sometimes with skin and even bones. The label modestly displays general information that the product contains “white fish meat.” Therefore, it is better to choose sticks that are made from the specific type indicated on the package.
Fish sticks in the diet
Let's take a closer look at the contents of the semi-finished product. A good product must contain at least 60 percent meat. However, there are “delicacies” in which this figure does not exceed 40.
The quality of the fish is also important. Typically, we can only recognize it during the roasting process. And if, after cutting the stick, it loses its density and water flows out of it, it is better to refuse such questionable food.
Even the relatively high meat content in sticks does not mean that our body will receive a substantial portion of valuable components. As already mentioned, the manufacturer often uses pollock or hake fish.
This fish is lean, but it has its benefits. For example, when stored in the cold, it does not become rancid too quickly. But such “preparations” supply much less unsaturated fatty acids and valuable proteins than fatty fish varieties. In addition, they do not tolerate low temperatures well.
Fish sticks are a high-calorie product. This is due to the breading, which absorbs fat during the frying process, as well as many other additives. These include hardened vegetable fats, the frequent consumption of which increases the risk of obesity, increases the level of “bad cholesterol”, and impairs concentration and memory.
Attention, additives!
In the composition of fish sticks we can find the flavor enhancer monosodium glutamate - a substance with a dubious reputation. It is blamed for damaging brain cells and contributing to the development of many diseases, including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.
But that’s not all: semi-finished fish products can contain many stabilizers and acidity regulators, in particular polyphosphates.
Does this mean that it is better to forget about fish sticks so as not to harm your health? No, not necessarily. Just when purchasing, carefully read the ingredients and choose products made from a specific type of fish (preferably fatty fish, i.e. salmon, halibut, mackerel) and containing as few food additives as possible.