Baked Fish Sticks With Tartar Sauce
These fish sticks taste fresher and more flavorful than the packaged kind — and they’re better for you, too, because they are baked rather than fried. The trick for achieving their crisp, golden brown coating without overcooking the fish is to briefly toast the breadcrumbs first. Served with a creamy, yogurt-based tartar sauce, they are easy to pull together and eating them is bound to elicit a childlike joy.
Make ahead: The tartar sauce can be prepared and refrigerated for up to 4 days in advance.
Storage: Refrigerate the leftover fish for up to 2 days, and the sauce for up to 4 days.
Ingredients
For the tartar sauce
- 1/3 cup low-fat or full-fat plain Greek yogurt
- 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup finely chopped sour pickle (1 small pickle)
- 2 tablespoons chopped scallion
For the fish sticks
- 1 1/2 cups panko
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for the pan
- 2 teaspoons sweet paprika
- 1 teaspoon granulated garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1/3 cup whole-wheat pastry flour or all-purpose flour
- 1 pound firm white fish fillets, such as cod, scrod, hake, haddock, halibut or tilapia
- Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, for serving (optional)
- Lemon wedges, for serving
Directions
Step 1
Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 425 degrees.
Step 2
Make the tartar sauce: In a medium bowl, stir together the yogurt, mayonnaise, pickle and scallion until combined. Use right away, or transfer to a lidded jar and refrigerate until needed. You should have about 3/4 cup.
Step 3
Make the fish sticks: In a medium bowl, toss the panko with the oil until evenly coated. Transfer the mixture to a large sheet pan and toast in the oven for about 4 minutes, stirring halfway through, until golden brown. Return the panko to the bowl; leave the oven on. Once the pan has cooled, wipe it clean, then brush lightly with oil.
Step 4
To the panko, add the paprika, garlic and salt and stir to combine. In another medium bowl, whisk the eggs together with the mustard until combined. Put the flour on a shallow plate.
Step 5
Pat the fish dry, then cut into 3- to 4-inch-long and 1-inch-wide batons. Dip each piece of the fish into the flour, shaking off the excess. Then dip it into the egg mixture, shaking off the excess, and finally coat in the panko, pressing to adhere. Transfer to the prepared sheet pan and bake for about 10 minutes, or until the coating is deep golden brown and the fish is flaky and opaque on the inside.
Step 6
Divide among plates, garnish with parsley, if using, and serve with lemon wedges and the tartar sauce.
Substitutions
Scallions >> chives.
Sour pickle >> any pickle of your choice or capers.
Greek yogurt >> sour cream.
Variations
To make these fish sticks in an air fryer, preheat the air fryer on the air fry setting to 400 degrees. Combine the breadcrumbs with the oil and spices without toasting in the oven and proceed with the recipe as instructed with the following modifications: Air fry in two batches, or as needed, for 7 minutes, or until the coating is deep golden brown and crispy.
You can also air fry from frozen, adding 1 minute to the cook time.
