Fish Sticks

Who didn't have fish sticks growing up? I know that was always a staple in our freezer and then my uncle would come visit and say how horrible it was to eat fish like that and just last week he made his own fish sticks from fresh fish he brought back from Alaska the day before... you get the idea :)

My love for fish sticks was developed from my youth, regardless of what my uncles thoughts on the matter were, and I will say that even though I agree that fresh fish probably tastes better, here in SoCal, really good fresh fish is pricey. Besides that, I am not about to eat anything that comes out of our coast, they close the beach because of a sewage spill but hey, lets eat what's swimming in it! Really???

So which ones do I like? Well for starters I am not a breaded fish stick indulger. I prefer the battered kind. Why? Well breaded typically uses bread crumbs and I am not a fan of the consistency on fish, since fish is so delicate. I find the breaded are typically crunchier and if that's what you like then fabulous, I just prefer the delicate crisp-ness of the battered fish.

For brands, I really like the Van De Kamp's. They have a few options, such as beer battered or regular battered, halibut vs cod and other flavor varieties. I chose the classic but have been tempted to grab the halibut ones, I presume the fish would be firmer and that might be a good thing.

So you ask, besides Fish sticks with carrots and tater tots, a typical meal when I was young, how can one enjoy fish sticks? Well, here is a few ways you can prepare them and the ones with the star are JL approved :)

- Fish Tacos, just bake them and cut them into slices
- Fish Sandwiches*, great with cheese, lettuce, tomato, tartar sauce on a french roll
- Fish Fillets on a salad
- Fish Burrito (I know, duplicate... kind of)
- Instead of baking them, you can fry them...*
- Stuffed and then baked, just thaw them out for a few minutes first
- Served with fries* :)

As you may know, I am not a fan of the processed salad dressing so you can presume I am not a fan of jarred tarter sauce, unless I am the one making it... Here is an easy way to whip up some tarter sauce for really cheap!

Mayonnaise
Pickles (diced)
Lemon Juice (or Pickle Juice)
Pepper
Paprika
Onion Powder

Combine about 1/2 cup of mayo with a splash of lemon juice.
Add in the pickles, as much as you like.
Add in a dash of pepper & onion powder and two dashes of paprika.
Combine and taste.

As you can see this recipe is a "wing-it" sort of recipe so make sure and taste it and add the flavors you are missing. Paprika gives a bit of a sweetness where the lemon juice gives the tart-ness. I typically don't add salt to this since the pickles are usually pretty salty already but its up to you!

Live, Laugh, Love & Enjoy!

P.S. This heat is not letting me enjoy a fish stick since I can't possibly imagine turning on my oven. At 106 deg it may just cook us all, why use an oven :/