Nashville Hot Pike Sandwiches

This was honestly the best fish sandwich I’ve ever eaten. Using a slightly modified take on the now-classic Nashville Hot Chicken recipe, I subbed in pike fillets (tasty and tender, yet firm), and put it all on a bun. I used sorrel instead of lettuce because I like the way the tartness cuts through the richness of the fried fish and sauce, much like the lemon or vinegar you get with fish and chips, but you can use regular iceberg or romaine lettuce instead. This isn’t a healthy recipe by any means, so make it a treat and go all in for the heavy oily goodness of the hot sauce that the fried pike gets smothered in!

Prep Time30 min
Cook Time15 min
Total Time45 min
Yield4 sandwiches

Cuisine
- American
- Wild Game
Course
- Main Course
Cooking Method
- Frying

Ingredients

For the pike

1lb boneless pike fillets (see how to properly fillet pike here)
0.5 cups (125ml) buttermilk
2 eggs
1 tablespoon (15ml) Louisiana style hot sauce
1 cup (120g) all purpose flour
1 pinch kosher salt
Vegetable oil for frying

For the sauce

1 teaspoon (2g) smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon (1g) garlic powder
1 tablespoon (6g) cayenne (more if you want it spicier)
1/2 tablespoon (6g) brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon (2g) black pepper
1/4 teaspoon (1g) kosher salt
3/4 cup (177ml) frying oil

For the sandwich

4 sesame seed buns (brioche buns are a great option)
4-8 sweet pickle slices
Mayonnaise
3 cups (225g) shredded lettuce or garden sorrel

Preparation

For the pike:

Cut the pike fillets into large pieces that will slightly hang over your buns. Depending on the thickness of your fillets, you want to end up with 4 or 8 pieces in total (if 8 you’ll be stacking 2 pieces per sandwich).

Whip together the buttermilk, eggs, and hot sauce in a medium-sized bowl.

Mix together the flour and salt on a large plate.

Fill a skillet or frying pan with at least ½” of vegetable oil and heat over medium-high to 375°F.

Dredge a piece of pike through the flour mixture on both sides.

Now dip it fully into the buttermilk/egg mixture.

Now dip it back into the flour once more, making sure it is completely coated.

Gently drop the battered piece of pike into the oil.

Repeat with another piece, and cook two pieces at a time.

Fry for about 4 minutes per side, or until golden and crispy, with the inside flesh flaking easily with a fork.

Remove to a wire rack set over a few pieces of paper towel to drain, then batter and fry the next two, repeating the process until all the pike is done.

For the hot sauce:

Mix all of the spices together in a medium bowl. Add ¾ cup of the hot oil you used to cook the fish. Everything should sizzle nicely when you pour the hot oil over the spices. Mix together well.

Putting it all together:

Toast the buns if you’d like, then slather both sides with mayonnaise.

Plop ¼ of the shredded sorrel or lettuce on the top portion of the bun and put a pickle slice on the bottom portion.

Give the hot sauce mixture a good stir, then take a piece of fried pike and dunk it in the hot sauce, so it gets completely covered.

Put that on the bottom portion of the sandwich (repeat if using two pieces of fish per sandwich like I did), then flip the top half onto the bottom half.

Press down on the sandwich very gently, then serve immediately. Enjoy!