If you have never tried a Saltfish Fritters recipe before then you are in for a treat. These bite size treats are made using gluten free flour along with a handful of ingredients. The fritters are generously seasoned and lightly fried for a golden crisp coating with a soft chewy interior. I call them the pan ultimate Caribbean appetizer.
Saltfish Fritters aka stamp and go or (flitters as my grandmother called them) is my absolute favourite Jamaican savoury appetizer so much so, that I felt compelled to share the recipe with you all.
The crispiest, Caribbean style fish cakes that are lightly seasoned then the batter is fried to a golden crisp.
This recipe is every seafood lovers culinary paradise, don't be fooled by the use of gluten free flour (it's a wheat free alternative for those who can't tolerant wheat products) the results are the same as using regular flour.
I wish I could take the full credit for this recipe, but like so many that I have on my website. This recipe was passed down from my grandmother, to my mother and now to me.
In essence this is a family recipe, like so many Caribbean cuisines. Each Islander will make their fritters slightly different. For example, some add scallion, raising agents i.e baking powder, additional spices, thyme and/or sweet peppers while others don't.
There's really no right or wrong when it comes to fritters because the results are near enough the same - crispy with a soft centre.
You can also checkout my other fritters recipes which are Banana Fritters, Pumpkin Fritters and Crispy Oven Baked Prawn Fritters .
My family are partial to adding the leaves from the stems of fresh thyme, we don't really add bell peppers to our fritters and scallion is included sometimes because we use a great deal of onion.
These bitesized treats are served mostly for breakfast, lunch or as an appetizer but you are more than welcome to embrace the recipe by eating any it time of day. You can even include a dip if you wish....
The homemade saltfish recipe
I tweaked the recipe slightly by making it using my unrefined "saltfish method. Please feel free check out my variation of making my own D.I.Y saltfish using a few fillets of fish and some himalayan pink salt.
This replicates a much healthier version of the saltfish that most Caribbean people are used to consuming. It's free from white table salt, preservatives and overall helps to create much better control over the salt content.
Ingredients you will need
- Gluten free flour: I like to use Bob Red mills 1 to 1 baking flour
- Saltfish: See my homemade version in the recipe post above.
- Onion: Chop the onions up, yellow ones that is!
- Tomato: You only need one tomato to do the job.
- Black pepper/Garlic: Used for seasoning and flavour.
- Fresh thyme: I like to use fresh thyme where possible but dry works too.
- Water: Essential for creating the batter
- Oil: coconut or olive (both have a high smoke point) for frying.
How to make saltfish fritters
- Place the shredded saltfish in a medium sized bowl (picture 1)
- Mix together the onion and garlic until fully combined (picture 2)
- Pick the leaves from the stems of the thyme and sprinkle in along with the black pepper into the saltfish. (picture 3)
- Add the scotch bonnet (if using), tomato and fold in so all of the ingredients are evenly distributed. (picture 4-5)
- Add the flour and then slowly mix in the water to form a smooth batter - shouldn't be too runny nor too thick. (picture 6-7)
- Preheat a sturdy non stick frying pan on medium heat and pour in the oil (I used a total of ¼ cup for the entire batch) and spoon a small amount of the fritter mixture into the frying pan. repeat...being careful not to overcrowd the pan. (picture 8)
- Reduce the heat to low-medium and cook each side until golden brown, carefully move the pan from side to side to distribute the oil evenly (helps the fritters cook quicker).
- Once cooked place each fritter on some paper towel to absorb any extra oil
- Repeat the above 3 steps with the rest of the batter.
Frequently asked questions
Can you make saltfish fritters using the air fryer?
Yes, although this depends on the type of air fryer you have. Also you will need to add up to another cup of flour in the batter to make it more dense and air fryer friendly.
I'm Caribbean but not gluten free, will this recipe still work with regular flour?
I understand that many Caribbean people are not partial to using gluten free flour. Yes, if you aren't wheat intolerant, use regular flour instead.
Is it okay to use more oil if necessary?
Yes, I try my best not to use a lot of oil because I batch cook, which takes more time but saves on oil.
However add more if you need to. You shouldn't need cups worth of oil or what constitutes deep fat frying.
Can you make this with a dipping sauce?
Yes, you can. Try the following;
Serving suggestions
Callaloo (spinach)
Another type of vegetable.
Notes and tips
- Don't spoon too much of the batter into the frying pan. The fritters will naturally increase somewhat in volume which is why I don't use raising agents.
- Don't pile on too much batter onto each fritter. In order for them to crisp up well they shouldn't be too dense when cooking in the pan.
- Make sure your batter isn't too thick nor too runny. It should be a medium consistency, if it's too runny add a tablespoon more of flour. If too thick, thin it out with a splash of water.
- The membrane of the scotch bonnet is where the heat is, how much you use it up to.
- If you don't care for heat then leave out the scotch bonnet.
- If you cannot get hold of scotch bonnet use a harbanero or chilli instead
- Feel free to add scallion and bell peppers -½ if using. Add them along with the onions, just mix them in!
- I used a total of 270g of shredded fish to make my saltfish. That's 2 cups worth in total. If you aren't using the method then use a pack of saltfish
- Make sure to use a non stick frying pan to eliminate using an excess amount of oil. It will take awhile for it to crisp up with the amount of oil I used but it's healthier than deep fat frying your fritters.
More fish recipes you may like
Jamaican Saltfish and Callaloo
Spicy Sweet Shrimp and Plantain
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Jamaican Saltfish Fritters
Ingredients
- 2 cups of saltfish shredded(see post for unrefined version)(270g)
- 1 cup of gluten free flour 140g(Bob red mills 1 to 1 flour)
- 1 small onion chopped
- 1 small tomato chopped
- 1 garlic clove chopped finely
- 1 tsp of black pepper
- 5 sprigs of fresh thyme or ½ tbsp dried thyme
- 1 cup of water 8oz/ 250ml
- ½ bell pepper chopped (optional)
- Olive or coconut oil for frying I used ¼ cup, non stick frying pan
- scotch bonnet optional, I used ½ for extra heat!
Instructions
- Place the shredded saltfish in a medium sized bowl
- Mix together the onion and garlic until fully combined
- Pick the leaves from the stems of the thyme and sprinkle in along with the black pepper into the saltfish.
- Add the scotch bonnet (if using), tomato and fold in so all of the ingredients are evenly distributed.
- Add the flour and then slowly mix in the water to form a smooth batter - shouldn't be too runny nor too thick.
- Preheat a sturdy non stick frying pan on medium heat and pour in the oil (I used a total of ¼ cup for the entire batch) and spoon a small amount of the fritter mixture into the frying pan. repeat...being careful not to overcrowd the pan.
- Reduce the heat to low-medium and cook each side until golden brown, carefully move the pan from side to side to distribute the oil evenly (helps the fritters cook quicker).
- Once cooked place each fritter on some paper towel to absorb any extra oil
- Repeat the above 3 steps with the rest of the batter.
Notes
- Don't spoon too much of the batter into the frying pan. The fritters will naturally increase somewhat in volume which is why I don't use raising agents.
- Don't pile on too much batter onto each fritter. In order for them to crisp up well they shouldn't be too dense when cooking in the pan.
- Make sure your batter isn't too thick nor too runny. It should be a medium consistency, if it's too runny add a tablespoon more of flour. If too thick, thin it out with a splash of water.
- The membrane of the scotch bonnet is where the heat is, how much you use it up to.
- If you don't care for heat then leave out the scotch bonnet.
- If you cannot get hold of scotch bonnet use a harbanero or chilli instead
- Feel free to add scallion and bell peppers -½ if using. Add them along with the onions, just mix them in!
- I used a total of 270g of shredded fish to make my saltfish. That's 2 cups worth in total. If you aren't using the method then use a pack of saltfish
- Make sure to use a non stick frying pan to eliminate using an excess amount of oil. It will take awhile for it to crisp up with the amount of oil I used but it's healthier than deep fat frying your fritters.
Nutrition
HOW DO YOU GET YOUR FRITTERS TO HAVE THAT YELLOW COLOUR,?
I fried them until they were very golden but it might also be from the lighting and my camera setting too.
It was such an easy recipe to follow and my family loved it.
Thank you Sandy
I did this fritter omg it was awesome. A must try!
Thank you so much for your feedback Zafirah.
So good! I even made the saltfish from scratch. Delightful and healthy!
Yay! That's what I like to hear.
Hey! For some reason I used the bobs 1 to 1 flour too and everything seemed fine till I added the flour. When I fried it they turned out very gooey like the flour left a gooey consistency and couldn’t eat them. I followed the exact recipe :/ any idea what could’ve happened?
Sorry to hear that Alisha. Did you over mix the flour? That could be the first culprit. Also, how thick were the fritters? You want them to be on the thinner side, definitely don't pile on the batter when adding it to the pan. While fritters do yield a slight gooey texture (gluten free or not) they definitely shouldn't be gooey to the point of being inedible. There should be a high ratio of saltfish to flour
When buying the saltfish do you soak it for a bit so it won’t be too salty?
The traditional method is to soak the saltfish in water overnight then rinse off the saltfish and use a fresh batch of water to boil off the excess salt.
Thank you for sharing instructions on how to make your own salted cod fish! I did not grow up with this food staple and never learned how to remove the salt without soaking away the flavor! My Caribbean husband will love these fish cakes!
You are welcome. I always aim to make my recipes as user friendly as possible especially for people like yourself who may not be Caribbean but want to make a recipe for whatever reason. I hope your husband enjoys the fritters!!
One of my favourites done to perfection
Glad you are a fan of fritters too Tanesha