Air Fryer Fish Sticks

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Once you make air fryer fish sticks from scratch, you'll never fry them again! Perfect with homemade tartar sauce.

Fish fingers in the air fryer

Forget the frozen aisle – make healthy fish sticks in the air fryer with cleaner, fresher ingredients that taste much better than packaged ones. They are delicious and taste even better with tartar sauce flavored with dill pickles, lemon juice and dill. These Homemade Fish Sticks in the Air Fryer are also great for meal prep. Double the amount, eat one for dinner and freeze the other for another night. If you don't have an air fryer, make this baked fish fingers recipe instead. Other of my favorite air fryer fish recipes are this Air Fryer Salmon Sandwich, Air Fryer Salmon, and Blackened Fish with Lime Tartar.

Fish fingers ingredients

What type of fish is used for fish fingers? The best fish for fish fingers is a firm white fish, such as cod, sea bass or haddock. You will need 1 1/2 pounds of skinless fillets. If you use frozen fish, defrost it first.
Egg: Beat two large eggs.
Dijon mustard to flavor the fish
Lemon: Squeeze half a lemon into the egg mixture.
Panko: Use seasoned panko breadcrumbs.
Seasoning: Salt and paprika for the eggs and Old Bay for the panko
Tartar sauce ingredients: Full fat Greek yogurt, light mayonnaise, dill pickles, fresh dill, lemon juice, salt

How to Make Fish Sticks in the Air Fryer

Cut the fish into 16 sticks, about four inches long and one inch wide.
Tartar sauce: Combine all the sauce ingredients in a small bowl and place in the refrigerator.
Dredging stations: Combine the eggs, Dijon, lemon juice, paprika and salt in one medium bowl and the panko and Old Bay in another.
Coat the fish: Dip each fish finger into the egg mixture and then into the panko. Set aside and repeat with remaining fish.
How Long to Cook Fish Fingers in an Air Fryer: In batches, transfer the fish fingers to the fryer basket and brush both sides with olive oil. Air fry at 400°F for 8 minutes, turning halfway through, until golden brown and crispy.

No air fryer? No problem!

I also have this fish fingers recipe with oven directions if you don't have an air fryer.

Preheat the oven to 450°F and grease a large baking sheet with oil.
Place the breaded fish on the baking tray, drizzle the top with oil and bake for about 12 minutes.

What is the best air fryer?

I love mine GoWISE USA 8 in 1 Digital Air Fryer! It is the best air fryer I have ever used because it is powerful, spacious and has a dividing basket to cook two foods at the same time. I test all my recipes in the air fryer and you can do it Amazon for around $70.

Variations:

Gluten-free fish fingers: Substitute gluten-free panko.
Egg allergy: Omit the eggs and coat the fish in the lemon-Dijon mixture before dipping in the panko.
Old Bay: If you don't have Old Bay seasoning, add paprika, black pepper, cayenne pepper and panko salt.
Mustard: Swap Dijon for yellow mustard.
Herbs: Replace the dill with chives or parsley.
Tartar sauce: If you don't have time for homemade tartar sauce, buy your favorite brand at the grocery store. You could also serve them with this lemon caper sauce, ketchup or cocktail sauce.

What to serve with fish fingers

Keep it kid-friendly and serve them with:

How to freeze fish fingers

This healthy fish fingers recipe is perfect to freeze and have on hand for easy dinners.

Place the baking sheet with the raw, breaded fish fingers in the freezer for about two hours to freeze them quickly.
Once frozen, transfer them to a freezer-safe bag or container and squeeze out all the air. Freeze for up to six months.
To eat them, place the frozen fish sticks in the air fryer and cook them at 400°F for 8 to 12 minutes, depending on thickness, or until cooked through.

If you want to freeze cooked fish fingers, follow the same process for freezing raw fish fingers. They will keep for up to 3 months and you can reheat them in the air fryer until they are thoroughly heated through. Once air fried, leftover sticks will last for 3 days in the refrigerator.

More air fryer recipes you'll love

Preparation: 10 minutes

Cooked: 24 minutes

Total: 34 minutes

Product: 4 portions

Portions: 4 sticks plus sauce

Cut the fish into 16 sticks, about 4 x 1 inches.
Combine the tartar sauce ingredients in a small bowl and refrigerate until ready to eat.
Combine eggs, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, paprika and salt in a medium bowl.
In a second bowl, combine the panko crumbs with the Old Bay seasoning.
Dip the fish in the egg mixture and then in the panko. Set aside.
Transfer to the fryer basket, in batches as needed, and drizzle both sides with olive oil. Air fry 400F for about 8 minutes, turning halfway, until golden brown and crispy.
Serve hot with tartar sauce.

Last step:

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TO FREEZE:

Place the baking tray with the raw breaded fish fingers in the freezer for about 2 hours to freeze.
Once frozen, carefully transfer them to a freezer bag or container, pushing out all the air.
Freeze up to 6 months.

Serving: 4 sticks plus sauce, Calories: 294 kcal, Carbohydrates: 17 G, Protein: 37 G, Fat: 7.5 G, Saturated fats: 2 G, Cholesterol: 170.5 mg, Sodium: 733 mg, Fiber: 1 G, Sugar: 2.5 G