One of my absolute favorite foods from my childhood was fish sticks and tartar sauce! My parents used to buy High Liner Fish Sticks, which is pretty much just another processed version of a frozen seafood product. As a kid, I absolutely loved them! As long as a food was breaded and had some kind of a dipping sauce, I was all in!
Of course, these days I’m all about getting inspired in the kitchen and recreating past favorites with ingredients I can feel good about (and agree with my gluten-free and mostly dairy-free lifestyle). This recipe will knock your socks off!
I highly recommend that you use homemade breadcrumbs for this recipe. It’s the best way to achieve that crispy crunchy coating! I’ve been making my own breadcrumbs for years…I do this because I have yet to find a commercial gluten-free breadcrumb product that actually tastes good and is not loaded with crap ingredients! It’s also an awesome way to use up the end pieces of your bread loaf. I just store the end pieces from my gluten-free breads in my freezer until I have enough to fill a baking sheet. Check out my Baked Chicken Fingers with Honey-Mustard Sauce to read more about this (and to get another awesome healthified childhood favorite of mine!) 😆
I was inspired by Jessica Seinfeld’s Crispy Fish with Tartar Sauce recipe. It’s from her book Food Swings. Her recipe isn’t gluten-free and she fries the fish fillets, so I’ve made some adjustments and wanted to keep this meal lighter by baking the fish instead of frying.
Oven-Baked Fish Sticks with Tartar Sauce
Ingredients
For the Fish
- 1/4 cup cassava flour or brown rice flour
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 large egg
- 3/4 cup gluten-free breadcrumbs preferably homemade*
- 1 pound wild halibut (or any other white fish) cut into "sticks"
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/8 teaspoon fresh black pepper
- Grated zest of 1 lemon (reserve lemon for another recipe or slice up into wedges and serve with the fish)
For the Tartar Sauce
- 1/2 cup chopped Bubbies pickles (these are naturally-fermented vs brined in vinegar) you can use regular pickles if you can't find Bubbies
- 2 tablespoons chopped capers
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
- 1/2 cup regular mayo
- A few dashes of Tabasco sauce
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- Set up your breading station: On a plate combine the flour and paprika. Crack the egg into a shallow bowl and beat with a fork. Put the breadcrumbs on another plate.
- Cut your fish fillets into strips about 1-1/2 inches wide. Season the fish with salt and pepper and sprinkle with the lemon zest.
- Lightly coat each fish strip with flour, then dip into the egg (shake off the excess) before dredging in the breadcrumbs. Place on the parchment-linked baking sheet and repeat with the other fish strips until done.
- Place into the oven and set the timer for 18 minutes. While the fish bakes make the tartar sauce. Combine all the tartar sauce ingredients in a small bowl. Store in the fridge until the fish is done.