Fish and chips meets Asian fusion in this recipe for Fried Cod with Sweet Chili Sauce from TikTok food creator Laurent Dagenais. A formally-trained chef, he manages to elevate a pub favorite while maintaining a casual feel for hesitant home cooks.

Dagenais combines sambal oelek — a fiery Indonesian chili paste with an impressive kick — with white vinegar, ginger root and finely-grated carrot in a spicy stand-in for typical tartar sauce. Dredged in buttermilk batter and fried until golden, this cod creation is anything but routine.

Dagenais’ arsenal of culinary expertise is clear in his inventive ingredient selections, like the addition of sprinkled seaweed flakes to amplify the fishy flavor. Dressed up or down, Fried Cod is a crowd pleaser with enough pazzazz to wow your (Always) hungry audience. You can find this recipe below, but also in Dagenais' debut cookbook, Always Hungry!

Fried Cod with Sweet Chili Sauce

  • Prep Time:30 mins
  • Cook Time:15 mins
  • Total Time:45 mins
  • Servings:2
  • Medium

    Ingredients

  • 1 cup white vinegar
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 tbsp sambal oelek
  • 1 thick slice ginger root
  • 1 small carrot finely grated
  • 1/4 cup buttermilk
  • 1 cup egg whites
  • 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour divided
  • 1 cup cornstarch
  • 8 ounces cod or other white fish
  • Canola oil for frying
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 tsp dried seaweed nori dulse or flaked sea lettuce
Photo courtesy of Renaud Robert and William Langlais

  • Step 1

    For the sweet chili sauce: In a saucepan, combine vinegar, sugar, sambal oelek, and ginger root. Heat over low heat for 5 to 7 minutes, until syrupy and reduced by half. Discard ginger root. Take the pan off the heat, then stir in carrot. Set aside.

  • Step 2

    For the fried cod: In a bowl, whisk buttermilk and egg whites. To another bowl, add 1/4 cup (60 ml) flour. In a third bowl, mix the remaining 1 cup (250 ml) flour and cornstarch.

  • Step 3

    Heat oil in a large skillet to 350°F (180°C). Cut fish into strips. Bread fish by dipping it first in flour, then in the egg white mixture and finally in the flour-cornstarch mixture. Using a spider strainer or slotted spoon, gently lower fish into the oil and fry for about 4 minutes.

  • Step 4

    Place the fried fish on paper towels to drain. Season with salt, pepper and dried seaweed. Serve with sweet chili sauce.