Crispy golden brown fried flounder is a restaurant-quality dish that the whole family will love. Lightly breaded with seasoned panko bread crumbs and quick fried, the sweet, flaky filet of flounder will almost melt in your mouth.
Serve it with lemon wedges and tartar sauce and you’ll think your sitting at a fish house off the Jersey Shore. The secret is getting the oil hot enough to quickly fry the breaded flounder.
*The only time you get greasy fried foods is when the oil isn’t hot enough.
You have to be careful handling the flounder once it starts to cook, it’s a delicate sweet fish that won’t take rough handling.
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A Fine Mesh Skimmer is a great tool to have on hand if you’re deep-frying foods. It works really well on recipes like my Fried Shrimp and Fried Lobster Tails.
This is the thermometer I use to test the oil to make sure it’s hot enough.
What ingredients do I need to make Crispy Fried Flounder?
Let’s start by gathering the ingredients we need to make fried flounder In Chef Speak this is called the “Mise en Place” which translates to “Everything in its Place”.
Not only does setting your ingredients up ahead of time speed up the cooking process, it also helps ensure you have everything you need to make the dish.
What type of fish is flounder?
Flounder, also known as Fluke (winter flounder) is a sweet, mild-tasting fish with a delicate, flaky texture. It’s a slightly fatty fish, but not fishy-tasting at all. Fresh flounder should have no distinct odor.
How do I make Fried Flounder?
The process is really simple for fried fish, shrimp, or scallops.
Dip the flounder fillets in egg wash (beaten eggs with water or milk) and then into the seasoned bread crumbs. I seasoned my bread crumbs with sea salt, black pepper, paprika (to help bring out the golden brown color), grated Romano (or parmesan cheese), and chopped parsley.
The most important lesson you need to learn when deep frying any food is that the temperature of the oil must be at least 325 degrees F. I prefer 350 degrees F because when you put food into the oil, the temperature drops. The extra 25 degrees helps compensate, ensuring your food gets crisp and not oily.
If you’ve ever had oily fried food, you can be sure that the oil wasn’t hot enough, because properly fried foods will never be overly greasy. Crispy, crunchy, golden brown, and delicious. Those are the only terms you should ever use when describing fried food.
Then it’s time to serve up the flounder with a side of tartar sauce and a wedge of lemon.
Being a Southerner I always enjoyed eating fried fish. And if you’re looking for another delicious fried fish recipe my friends at Cook with Soul have the best Southern Fried Catfish Recipe you’ve ever tasted! Bonus it’s gluten-free and dairy-free.
Easy homemade tartar sauce
The recipe for homemade tartar sauce is very simple. Some recipes call for dill pickles or dill relish, but then you need to add sugar to compensate. Many recipes have a slew of ingredients but what they’re making is actually a remoulade. Tartar sauce is a very simple creation and can be modified to suit your tastes.
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 1 tbsp sweet pickle relish
- a squeeze of lemon juice
- salt and pepper to taste
Recipe FAQ’s
Vegetable oil is the best oil to use for deep frying at home. Some recommend canola oil but I still have my doubts about the health risks involved with canola. Peanut oil has always been a favorite for frying but if you’re cooking for anyone with a peanut allergy that can pose a problem. Avocado oil is also a good alternative.
The reason that fried foods look greasy or oily is due to the fact that the oil was not hot enough to properly fry the food. Oil temperatures need to be a minimum of 325 degrees to fry food. The problem with starting at 325 degrees is as soon as you add food to the oil, the temperature drops. That’s why I always suggest the fryer be at 350 degrees to start.
You certainly can. Using an oil mister spray the breaded flounder with a generous amount of your favorite cooking oil for the air fryer.
Set the air fryer temperature to 400 degrees F, on the air fryer setting. Using your air fryer basket, cook the breaded flounder for 5 minutes, then carefully flip the flounder, respray with cooking oil and continue cooking for 3-5 minutes, or until golden brown.
More Seafood Recipes You’ll Love!
Easy Fried Flounder Recipe
Ingredients
- 16 oz flounder fillets
- 1 ½ cup panko bread crumbs
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1 tablespoon grated Romano cheese
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup cold water or milk
Instructions
- Dip the flounder fillets in the egg wash (beaten eggs with water or milk) and allow them to drain the excess egg wash off for a few seconds.
- Dredge the flounder in the seasoned bread crumbs, completely coating the fillets.
- Heat a deep frying pan with enough oil to cover the flounder while its cooking. About an inch depth of oil should be enough. Too little oil and the fish will stick ot the pan. It should be able to float as it cooks.Gently press the flounder down to get the top of the fish cooked properly. If you are able to turn the flounder without breaking it, go for it. But remember the flounder is a very delicate fish.
- When the flounder is floating (about 6-8 minutes depending on the thickness of the fillets) it should be fully cooked.
- Allow the flounder to drain on paper towels briefly, then serve and enjoy!
linda says
Thank you for sharing !
katen marie bender says
love flounder and this is to perfection. many thanks
Chef Dennis Littley says
You’re very welcome. I’m happy to hear you enjoyed the flounder.
OldCop876 says
I’m a senior citizen bachelor who never really learned to cook when I was working. But now that I have more time, I’m trying some new things. I had never fried fish before trying this recipe. I had some frozen flounder filets and decided to giv it a shot. There were some things I didn’t have, most notably a thermometer to set the oil temperature. I decided to fry in avocado oil, and set the temperatutr fairly high. I only had plain bread crumbs on hand, so I added black pepper, parmesan cheese, ad since i like spicy food, some crushed red pepper to my breading. At first I fried only one piece, and in on;y three minutes my fish was unintentionally blackened. The test piece was however crunchy and the fish inside was delicious. I turned down the heat slightly an my next pieces were a perfect golden brown in about 5 minutes per piece. The fish was great with tartar sauce and some Louisiana cocktail sauce. Next time I will have a thermometer to set the oil to 350 degrees rather than guessing. I will also experiment with the spices used in the breading, but I feel I am off to a good start. This was a really easy recipe to prepare.
Chef Dennis Littley says
I’m happy to hear you enjoyed my fried flounder. Living at the jersey shore most of my life, flounder has always been a favorite and I do love fried seafood!
JanePier Katzowitz says
Making tonight my husband wants breaded flounder. I like my fish pretty much on the bone boiled with potatoes and than drizzled in amazing olive oil. Or whole fish baked with garlic and lemon in small slits. But that being said im sure this will be amazing thank you as you read i keep fish simple and happy i can make from your recipe they way he wants. Cheers.
Chef Dennis Littley says
Let me know how your husband enjoyed the flounder.
Sherry says
Just tried this and for the first time ever, my flounder came out perfectly browned and crispy and not burnt! Cutting into it, it was cooked just right. Thank you Chef Dennis!
Terrance Chapman says
I used to jump right to the recipe, well that ship has sailed, after reading Chef Dennis commentary. It’s amazing the amount you can learn. Chef Dennis has really great recipes and he also teaches you the proper way to cook them. I give Five Stars to Chef Dennis, he has taught me so much
Chef Dennis Littley says
Thank you! You made my day with your comment!
Reenie says
The fish turned out so good. My fillets were thin so I only cooked about two minutes on each side. Nice and crispy.
Diane says
We made this recipe using some fluke that we caught at the Jersey Shore. It was fantastic! So much better than any fried fish we’ve ever gotten out at a restaurant! Made exactly as described and wouldn’t change a thing!
Chef Dennis Littley says
There is nothing better than Flounder or Fluke from the Jersey shore. I still spend summers in New Jersey and we eat flounder (baked, stuffed, and fried) at least once a week.
Jenifer says
Is the 33g of carbs from the bread crumbs? Can I use a carb-free alternative and it will be carb-free?
Chef Dennis Littley says
all but 1 carb comes from the bread crumbs, the rest is in the eggs used in the egg wash, which is really minimal since all the egg isn’t used.
Victoria says
What do you do with all the extra oil after you cook?
Chef Dennis Littley says
You can strain it (use a coffee filter) and save it for other fried seafood dishes or dispose of it.
jennifer says
Great recipe and so easy to follow. First time I have cooked flounder and it came out perfectly. Will add a touch more seasoning because I’m from the South and we just need to! The flounder meat was very light and had very little fishy taste to it. If you don’t eyeball your cooking time, it wouldn’t take much to overcook. 8-9 minutes just as Chef calls for in recipe!! Thanks Chef Dennis🙌
mary_p says
Very good recipe. I used to coat the fish in flour first, then egg, then breadcrumbs. This is simpler, and tastier.
Pam says
Since I already had fish grease left from a previous fish fry in my deep fryer, I deep fried the flounder. It was delicious. I always make my tartar sauce which is like yours except I add in a leaf or two of fresh basil, rolled and sliced, I forget what that’s called) and a bit of lemon zest. Served with homemade coleslaw, Virginia Light Rolls and iced tea. A delicious meal. I will use this recipe again.
Mary W. says
Can this be cooked in a deep fryer?
Chef Dennis Littley says
absolutely, it will come out the best in a deep fryer
Lisa says
This was better than my favorite seafood restaurant and a lot less expensive! thanks for sharing the recipe.
Chip says
This was great. Our fillets were smaller and thin so we only put a small amount of Canola oil and not the deep fry amount. We flipped twice and eased the fillets over with two spatulas. Served with buttered and backed white rice and a small salad, but coleslaw would have been better.
Chef Dennis Littley says
Thanks for letting me know you enjoyed the flounder. Sometimes getting it out of the pan without breaking is a challenge, I’m glad you were able to get them out of the pan.