Is cod the wrong fish? I can do it on sea bass, but who can afford that all the time?? How do restaurants do it?
When you say “thin crust,” do you mean like a beer batter crust, or like a tempura crust?
Just a thin “cooked” crust, no breading or anything
Remove the fish from the fridge 15 minutes before you cook it, so it gets to room temperature. Pat the fillet dry, season and fry in a very hot pan with sizzling hot oil (not olive - it doesn’t get hot enough. Use sunflower or vegetable instead). You can press the fish down into contact with the oil with a spatula to enhance the crusting.
reduce the heat when the crust forms
You could also try dusting the fish with flour.
Tried that, it stuck and fell apart
I’m not that familiar with cod, is it firm enough to be prepared that way?
Might try cooking it in an air fryer?
Yes. Cod is too flakey, it needs some kind of batter or bound breading to hold it together.
Sounds to me like your fish was not fresh enough. Cod is an excellent fish for pan frying, one of the best. Although skin on will be far more successful. And tastier.
Definitely better skin-on, but also agree with the rest. The fish will stick to the pan if you try flipping it too early, as well, or if the pan isn’t hot enough to begin with. Could that possibly be a source of the problem? (Though, to be honest, I’m not entirely sure what the “thin skin” is supposed to be. Like a sear of some sort? You also have to make sure the fish itself is patted dry. And if you’re cooking cod that has sodium tripolyphosphate in it [used to retain moisture], you’re not going to get a good sear, anyway.)
You can also try a light dusting of rice flour on the fish. It won’t create a batter or impart any noticeable flavor, but it will brown nicely and get crispy.
Dip it in a thick miso first. Cod isn’t oily enough to produce its own fond.
This is correct. Cod is delicate and flaky and isn’t a good candidate for pan-searing without any breading. And even breaded or battered it still wants to fall apart.
A firmer, more robust fish (like halibut or salmon) will stand up to searing, and you can get a good brown crisp crust by sprinkling the tiniest amount of sugar over the fleshy part of the fish, then searing it sugar-side down. The sugar will caramelize and crisp and lose most of its sweetness. I learned this on America’s Test Kitchen.
Yum, salmon seared to about medium-rare with a crisp brown crust is the best.
Seriously, you need to source better quality, fresher cod. It can be beautiful pan seared.