Frying with Butter vs Oil

I grew up eating pan fried fish vs deep fried. My mother dredged fillets (panfish, walleye, pike – doesn’t matter) in flour and seasonings and put just enough butter in the cast iron skillet to keep the fish from sticking. Awesome golden brown & crispy.

I’ve switched over to Shore Lunch vs flour, but still think it beats the heck out of deep frying in oil.

I use oil for shore lunches and feeding the masses, but for an evening meal for me and the Mrs., much prefer pan frying with butter.

Just curious if anyone else prepares fish the same way as I’ve never seen a post discussing butter for frying fish.

Pete

I use all the methods and like them all for their differences. That being said I typically deep fry fish but change it up with pan and butter for the bigger fillets sometimes. That’s the only way we prepared pike this winter and it was heavenly.

I have been pan frying for a while now. Seems to be much less oil left on the fish from frying. I like the flour with a touch of salt and pepper for pan frying. Light and flaky. Now I am hungry

If you like butter, try lard.

-J.

Personally, you can get peanut oil much hotter than butter. Fish prepared at the right temperature will not soak up the oil like a sponge. Butter is very tasty but not very healthy. Oil is not all that healthy either.

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If you like butter, try lard.

-J.

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X2

Lard is the way to go for a lot of frying.

If I’m doing catfish or bass chunks or bluegill or crappies dipped in Frying Magic I deep fry. When doing beer batter I usually pan fry. I use canola oil for deep frying but the local watering hole owner said I could buy peanut oil from him. $30.00 for 30 gal. is what I think he said.

For me the fish doesnt matter, i just always use oil when im cooking outdoors, while i use butter indoors. This is probably a basic question for most of you, but why does it smoke so much when using oil? My smoke alarms go nuts every time i try to cook fish with oil. any suggestions?

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For me the fish doesnt matter, i just always use oil when im cooking outdoors, while i use butter indoors. This is probably a basic question for most of you, but why does it smoke so much when using oil? My smoke alarms go nuts every time i try to cook fish with oil. any suggestions?

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Fresh oil and lower the heat? All oil has a “burn point” where they start to smoke. That’s why most people use peanut oil.

Wiki

Looking at that I just learned I should be looking for refined oils for higher burn points.

Last spring we forgot to bring any fish coatings up north with us. Ended up frying the fish in butter and just seasoned with salt and pepper. That was some fantastic fish.

Odd I have never tried the butter in the house, but will have to. Only use it now with onions in a foil tub on the grill…. and always like it.

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If you like butter, try lard.

-J.

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I’ve been experimenting with cocoanut oil. Started w/eggs and American fries in a teflon pan and graduated to chicken. Working pretty well, am now up to cooking with cast iron pans. Not at all offensive taste jerr

Butter ruins nothing. NOTHING!!!

If your oil is any cooler than about 350f you will have oil on the fish or fries or what ever you are trying to cook. I use vegetable oil and have had good results. Oil that is not hot enough is the biggest problem I have seen with most frying.

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I’ve been experimenting with coconut oil.

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Me, too. So far, I like it. Did grilled cheeses with it the other night–YUM!

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If you like butter, try lard.

-J.

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X2

Lard is the way to go for a lot of frying.

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Fish fried in bacon grease tops all.

/end thread.

I’m going to have to try cocoanut oil. Where do you get it from?

I want to fry up some bacon in cocoanut oil. Mmmmmm

Got mine from the food co-op in Hudson. Spendy, think I paid $8 for a pint. Great diet supplement for your pooches too jerr

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If your oil is any cooler than about 350f you will have oil on the fish or fries or what ever you are trying to cook. I use vegetable oil and have had good results. Oil that is not hot enough is the biggest problem I have seen with most frying.

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I keep my oil at about 385F…remember to allow the oil to get back up to temp before dumping a new batch of fillets in.

We also ate alot of fish, pan fried in bacon fat/lard. Deep frying was what dad did, when the masses were there. You can deep fry fish for more people, so everyone can eat together, as opposed to pan frying would take twice as long to cook all the filets. I love fish cooked all ways

I going to have to try the coconut oil as it looks to be healthy as for oil concerns.
I pan fry and I use clarified butter. Clarified butter has a higher burn point that of peanut oil or lard.
We bring clarified butter up to the cabin as to keep the number of things we bring up down.
Kill two birds with one stone. We have a high temp medium for frying and still have butter for for eggs or american fries and more.
I’ll have to try that frying bacon in butter.

And I am going to have to try clarified butter for my Big Sunday Breakfasts. It annoys me when the butter burns and the bottom of the eggs get toasted with a crispy skin. Not to mention the taste ain’t so hot.

Pan fried in good old butter!
Nothing finer.

I like to blacken fish when i get the right size filets. A nice 17 inch walleye is ideal. Turn the stove up about as high as it will go. Dip your filet in melted butter and sprinkle some of your favorite seasons on top of it. And let the filet cook on each side for just a few minutes, and flipping repeatedly. Best way to prepare fish in my mind

I have never fried in butter. Usually peanut oil. I will say that when we do a shore lunch I have a good old coffee can with two holes punched toward the top with a wire to make a handle, fill 2/3’rds with lard and put the lid on. While prepping the fish we take the lid off and put the can near the fire or on the butane burner, after we have had enough fish to eat, carefully carry the can with a welders glove to the waters edge and submerge the bottom half of the can, cooling the oil. Once the oil returns to semi-solid, return the lid and the oil won’t spill in the boat. Hard to find a metal coffee can now, but use your imagination.

pan fry with butter in the house. deep fry outside with oil, as I cannot stand the smell of fried food inside. The blackened fish sounds awesome, I’ll have to give that a try. and as far as the coconut oil goes.. That’s the BEST stuff to make popcorn with. I’ll have to give lard a shot.