Crispy, crunchy and finger-licking good!, these keto friendly Old Bay Fried Fish fillets are a delicious way to prepare fish! Best of all, they’re healthy, low carb and gluten-free!
Who doesn’t love fried fish? It’s arguably one of the best ways to cook fish!
These are even better than your average fried fish recipe because they are made with low carb, and sugar-free ingredients so you can enjoy them guilt-free.
What is keto Old Bay Fish Fry?
Don’t let the golden brown, crispy coating fool you, these fried fish fillets are completely keto and use and wheat-flour free batter!
Instead, we use almond flour as a base to make these delicious pieces of fish.
How do I make a keto-friendly fried fish batter and what ingredients are needed?
Ingredients:
- Cod
- Almond Flour
- Old Bay Seasoning
- Parmesan Cheese
- Garlic Powder
- Red Pepper
- Egg
- Sparkling Water
Dip halibut, cod, or any type of white fish into the batter and fry until golden brown.
How do I make low carb tartar sauce?
Tartar sauce is very simple to make with only a few ingredients.
Ingredients:
- Mayo
- Dill pickles
- Onion salt
- Lemon juice
Mix together mayo, minced dill pickles, onion salt and lemon juice. That’s all!
How many carbs are in this keto breaded fish fry recipe?
This recipe has 2g net carbs per serving, which is 1/2 lbs of fried fish.
What to do with leftovers?
You can place these in the air fryer to reheat or make some fish tacos with some slaw.
What is the nutrition information for this keto fried fish recipe?
- 359 Calories
- 6g Carbohydrates
- 2g Fiber
- 45g Protein
- 17g Fat
- 106mg Cholesterol
- 623mg Sodium
- 985mg Potassium
- 118mg Calcium
- 2mg Iron
- 299ui Vitamin A
- 3mg Vitamin C
Any tips for making this keto fish fry recipe a success?
- Hot oil up to temp, otherwise batter will fall off.
- Don’t overcrowd the pan since temp will drop and the batter coating won’t crisp up.
- Try not to let the batter sit for too long, otherwise, it will start clumping and getting thick due to the almond flour.
- If you want, re-fry to make the outside extra crispy.
Looking for other low carb & keto friendly deep fry recipes?
- Fried Calamari
- Japanese Fried Shrimp
- Honey Walnut Shrimp
- Japanese Tonkatsu Pork Cutlet
- Spinach and Artichoke Cream Cheese Balls
Now, let’s get making this Keto Old Bay Fried Fish recipe!
- Prepping Time 5M
- Deep Fry Time 3M
- Total Time 8M
- Net Carb/Serv ~2g
- Serving 2
Ingredients
Fish
- 1 lb Cod Fillets (or any neutral firm white meat fish)
- 1/2 Cup Almond Flour
- 2 tbsp Grated Parmesan Cheese
- 2 tsp Bay Seasoning
- 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
- 1/4 tsp Red Pepper Powder
- 2 Whole Eggs
- 1/3 Cup Sparkling Water
Optional Sauce
- 2 tbsp Mayo
- 2 tbsp Minced Dill Pickles (about 1/2 spear)
- 1/4 tsp Onion Salt
- 1/8 tsp Lemon Juice
Directions
1) Gather all the ingredients.
2) If making the optional sauce, finely mince dill pickle spears and place into a small mixing bowl. Otherwise, skip to step 4).
3) In the same small mixing bowl, combine mayo, onion salt and lemon juice. Mix well and set aside.
4) Prepare fillets by washing with cold fresh water and then drying fillets very well with a paper towel. Cut fillets into about 3 x 2 inch cuts and set aside.
5) Prepare batter by combining Almond Flour, grated Parmesan cheese, Bay Seasoning, garlic powder, red pepper powder, egg and Sparkling Water. Use a hand/stand mixer to mix (you can hand whisk, but batter won’t be as airy).
6) Take a piece of fillet and dip into batter mix and set aside.
7) Pour enough cooking oil to cover half the fillets into a skillet of choice and heat oil up to 375F (if you don’t have a thermometer, just wait until the oil starts to lightly smoke, about 3-5 minutes).
8) Once up to heat, reduce heat to medium, carefully add coated fillets and cook for 1-3 minutes until golden brown. Flip and cook the other side for 1-3 minute until golden brown. Once done, transfer fillets to drying rack and leave for about 1 minute (if you don’t have a drying rack, you can just place them on a plate with paper towels).
9) Once all excess oil has dripped off, transfer the fried fish fillets to a serving plate and serve with optional sauce.
Hope you enjoy your Keto Old Bay Fried Fish!
If you’re looking for other recipe ideas, be sure to check out our growing Recipe Index full of healthy low carb inspired recipes!
Join us on Facebook to be part of our interactive discussions & recipe requests and follow us on Instagram, Pinterest, or subscribe to our New Recipe Notification and be the first to know when we post a new recipe!
Old Bay Fish Fry
Ingredients
- 1 lb Cod Fillets or any neutral firm white meat fish
- 1/2 Cup Almond Flour
- 2 tbsp Grated Parmesan Cheese
- 2 tsp Bay Seasoning
- 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
- 1/4 tsp Red Pepper Powder
- 2 Whole Egg
- 1/3 Cup Sparkling Water
Optional Sauce
- 2 tbsp Mayo
- 2 tbsp Dill Pickles minced, about 1/2 spear
- 1/4 tsp Onion Salt
- 1/8 tsp Lemon Juice
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
- If making the optional sauce, finely mince dill pickle spears and place into a small mixing bowl. Otherwise, skip to step 4).
- In the same small mixing bowl, combine mayo, onion salt and lemon juice. Mix well and set aside.
- Prepare fillets by washing with cold fresh water and then drying fillets very well with a paper towel. Cut fillets into about 3 x 2 inch cuts and set aside.
- Prepare batter by combining Almond Flour, grated Parmesan cheese, Bay Seasoning, garlic powder, red pepper powder, egg and Sparkling Water. Use a hand/stand mixer to mix (you can hand whisk, but batter won't be as airy).
- Take a piece of fillet and dip into batter mix and set aside.
- Pour enough cooking oil to cover half the fillets into a skillet of choice (we use a cast iron pan) and heat oil up to 375F (if you don’t have a thermometer, just wait until the oil starts to lightly smoke, about 3-5 minutes).
- Once up to heat, reduce heat to medium, carefully add coated fillets and cook for 1-3 minutes until golden brown. Flip and cook the other side for 1-3 minute until golden brown. Once done, transfer fillets to drying rack and leave for about 1 minute (if you don't have a drying rack, you can just place them on a plate with paper towels).
- Once all excess oil has dripped off, transfer the fried fish fillets to a serving plate and serve with optional sauce.
Video
Nutrition
*This page contains affiliate marketing links*
I did the recipe exactly, however the batter did not stay on the fish and my pan and oil where Hot!!! ?
Hi Maggie – sorry to hear that. Was the batter thick when you made it? If not, there is a chance too much carbonated water or too little almond flour was used.
Best coating ever, I didn’t have sparkling water but I did have an ice cold Mic Ultra that was the perfect substitute! Thanks for sharing my new go to breading,
Hey Deb! Great to hear you liked the fish batter! Yup, a Mic Ultra will do just fine as well.
I had the same problem with the batter not sticking. I followed the directions because I wasn’t sure with the almond flour how it would turn out, but in normal bartering, you want to go wet-dry-wet. So typically you would coat your fish (wet) in flour (dry) and then dip in the batter. Dipping wet fish (even if it’s patted dry) into wet batter will only result in slide offs unfortunately. Next time I’ll try dipping the fish in either some extra parm or almond flour first.
The taste of what did stick was great, and I modified the sauce by adding some extra lemon juice and some old bay and garlic powder, and it made a great remoulade type sauce to dip it in.
Hey Adam – The only thing I can think of is the fish fillets might have not been thoroughly dried or the batter was too watery. You can try to add some flour before the batter, but if the fish fillets are properly dried, the the flour probably won’t stay on the fillet.
Update – Hey Adam, after getting your comment, we decided to we test this recipe and we found out adding another egg to the batter really helps bind the batter in place once it hits the oil. So if you decide to give this recipe another go, please give that a try!
Made this for dinner tonight and it was so good. I did add 1 tsp more almond flour and patted the fish really dry, the batter stayed on perfectly. I also added a drop of mustard to the tarter sauce but it is a keeper.
Hey Sharon! Glad it came out well for you and you enjoyed the recipe!
hi, can i ask what type of frying oil you guys use?
Hi Toby! We use regular ol’ vegetable oil but you can use whatever your preferred frying oil is. Just make sure the oil is up to temp otherwise it will become a soggy mess (personal experience)!