Baja Fish Sliders with Chipotle Crema

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

Beer-battered cod cut to slider size, fried until shatteringly crisp and piled onto soft rolls with crunchy lime cabbage slaw and smoky chipotle crema. Fast, forgiving, and built for a crowd — a dozen sliders out of two pounds of fish and a pantry batter.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/3 cup sour cream
• 2 tsp adobo sauce from canned chipotles (plus 1 minced chipotle pepper for more heat)
• 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
• 1 clove garlic, finely grated
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt

• 3 cups green cabbage, very thinly shredded
• 1 cup red cabbage, very thinly shredded
• 2 tbsp cilantro, chopped
• 2 tbsp fresh lime juice
• 1 tbsp neutral oil
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt

• 2 lb cod or Pacific rockfish fillets, skinless
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 cup cold Mexican lager
• 1/4 cup flour, for dredging
• 6 cups vegetable or canola oil, for frying

• 12 slider buns or small potato rolls
• 2 tbsp butter, melted
• 1 lime, cut into wedges
• pickled jalapeño slices, optional

Instructions

1. Make the crema: whisk mayonnaise, sour cream, adobo sauce, lime juice, grated garlic and 1/4 tsp salt in a small bowl until smooth. Refrigerate until serving (it holds up to 3 days).
2. Make the slaw: toss both cabbages with cilantro, lime juice, oil, sugar and 1/2 tsp salt. Let sit at room temperature at least 15 minutes, tossing once, so it wilts slightly but stays crunchy. Drain off excess liquid before building sliders.
3. Cut the fish into 12 rectangular pieces roughly 2 1/2 inches long, 2 inches wide and 3/4 inch thick — sized to sit inside a slider bun without hanging over. Blot very dry with paper towels and season lightly with salt.
4. Pour 2 inches of oil into a heavy Dutch oven or deep skillet and heat over medium-high to 365°F on a clip-on thermometer. Set a wire rack over a sheet pan nearby.
5. Meanwhile, whisk together 1 cup flour, cornstarch, baking powder, 1 tsp salt, chili powder, garlic powder and cayenne. Pour in the cold beer and whisk just until the batter is smooth and about as thick as pancake batter; a few lumps are fine. Do not make the batter more than 10 minutes ahead.
6. Put the 1/4 cup dredging flour in a shallow dish. Toss 4 pieces of fish in the flour, tap off the excess, then dip into the batter, letting the extra drip off for a second or two.
7. Lower the fish into the oil one piece at a time, frying 4 pieces per batch so the temperature stays above 340°F. Fry 3 to 4 minutes, turning once at the halfway point, until deep golden and crisp; the fish should register 140°F inside. Transfer to the rack and salt immediately. Bring the oil back to 365°F between batches.
8. While the last batch fries, brush the cut sides of the buns with melted butter and toast in a dry skillet over medium heat, 60 to 90 seconds, until golden.
9. Spread chipotle crema on both halves of each bun. Add a fried fish piece, a generous pinch of drained slaw, a few pickled jalapeños if using, and a drizzle more crema. Close and serve right away with lime wedges.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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