Fish · Air fryer adaptation

Jamie Oliver Cheats Fish and Chips (Air Fryer)

Fish and chips without the deep fryer, Jamie's got a trick. Crispy bacon-crusted cod, smoked paprika roast potatoes, and smashed peas come straight from your oven, no hot oil splashing about while the kids are underfoot. It's the takeaway fix that's cheaper, healthier, and honestly just as fun to make.

R By Richard · Adapted from Jamie Oliver · Published 10 June 2026
👁 244.2k source views ❤️ 5.7k source likes
⏱Prep 20 min
🌡Temp 200°C
⏲Air fry 30 min
🍽Serves 4
Cheats Fish and Chips | Jamie: Keep Cooking Family Favourites

Source video by Jamie Oliver on YouTube. This recipe was adapted with strict source-fidelity rules and is marked for human review.

A family-friendly twist on classic fish and chips that swaps the deep fryer for a crunchy smoky-bacon breadcrumb crust. Cod fillets are coated in a processed bread, bacon and olive oil mix for a golden, protective crust that keeps the fish flaky and succulent. Served with potato wedges seasoned with smoked paprika, vivid mushy peas (with edamame and broad beans), and a punchy smashed mint sauce. Originally cooked in a 220°C oven, adapted here for the air fryer at lower temperature and shorter time.

Air fryer notes: Source recipe roasts potatoes at 220°C for 40 minutes and bakes the breadcrumbed fish at 220°C for 15 minutes (added at the 30 minute mark). Adapted for the air fryer at 200°C: wedges around 20 minutes with a shake halfway, then fish added for a further 10-12 minutes. Fish should be cooked in a single layer (batch if needed) to keep the breadcrumb crust crisp. The mushy peas and mint sauce remain hob and pestle work, unchanged.

Ingredients

Chips
  • 800 gMaris Piper potatoes, washed, cut into wedges
  • olive oil, for drizzling
  • smoked paprika
  • to tastesea salt and black pepper, to taste
Fish
  • 4 filletscod fillets, skinless; haddock or pollock also work
  • stale bread, for breadcrumbs
  • 1 rashersmoked streaky bacon
  • olive oil, to drizzle into breadcrumb mix
  • 2 eggslarge eggs, beaten
  • plain flour, for dusting
Mushy veg
  • 500 gfrozen peas
  • frozen edamame beans
  • broad beans
  • asparagus, trimmed
Mint sauce
  • 1 bunchfresh mint, leaves picked
  • sea salt
  • 1 tbspvinegar
  • olive oil, drizzle

Method

  1. Preheat the air fryer to 200°C. Wash the potatoes and cut each into roughly four wedges.

    ~3 min

  2. Toss the wedges with a drizzle of olive oil, salt, pepper and a sprinkle of smoked paprika.

    ~2 min

  3. Add the wedges to the air fryer basket and cook for around 20 minutes, shaking the basket halfway through.

    ~20 min

  4. Meanwhile, blitz the stale bread and the rasher of bacon in a food processor with a drizzle of olive oil until you have moist, smoky breadcrumbs. Tip onto a plate.

    ~3 min

  5. Set up a production line: flour on one plate, beaten eggs in a bowl, breadcrumbs on a third plate. Dust each cod fillet in flour (shake off excess), dip in egg, then press into the breadcrumbs on both sides, applying a little pressure so the crust sticks.

    ~5 min

  6. When the wedges have had 20 minutes, push them to one side or transfer to a tray. Add the breadcrumbed cod to the air fryer in a single layer (cook in batches if it does not fit) and cook for a further 10-12 minutes at 200°C until the crust is golden and the fish flakes easily.

    ~12 min

  7. While the fish cooks, bring a pan of water to the boil. Add the peas, edamame, broad beans and any extra greens like asparagus. Boil for 4-5 minutes.

    ~5 min

  8. Drain the veg and mash to your preferred consistency. Season to taste.

    ~2 min

  9. For the mint sauce, bash the mint leaves with a pinch of salt in a pestle and mortar until mushy. Add the vinegar and a drizzle of olive oil and muddle into a vivid green sauce.

    ~3 min

  10. Plate up: a pile of smashed mushy veg, the crunchy bacon-crumbed cod, the paprika wedges, and a spoonful of mint sauce alongside.

    ~2 min

Frequently asked

Do I need to preheat the air fryer?
Yes, ideally. A 2-3 minute preheat at 200°C helps the breadcrumb crust crisp up from the moment the fish goes in, rather than steaming on the way up to temperature.
Can I use a different fish?
Yes. Jamie suggests any sustainable white fish: haddock and pollock both work well. Aim for fillets of similar thickness so the timing stays the same.
Can I make this without bacon?
Yes. Jamie suggests blitzing the bread with sun-dried tomatoes, rosemary or anchovies instead, to give the crumb seasoning and flavour without the bacon.
Can I cook the wedges and fish together?
Only if your air fryer is large enough to keep the fish in a single layer on top or alongside the wedges. Otherwise, cook wedges first and add the fish for the final 10-12 minutes, then briefly reheat the wedges with the fish if needed.
Can I freeze the breadcrumbed fish?
Yes, provided the cod was not previously frozen. Freeze the breaded fillets on a tray, then bag up. Cook from frozen in the air fryer at 200°C, adding around 5 minutes to the cook time.
Extraction notes (transparency): Source is an oven recipe adapted to air fryer. Flour quantity for the breading station not stated in transcript (left null). Mint quantity given as 'a nice bunch' (estimated). Olive oil quantities for the wedges, breadcrumb mix and mint sauce not specified. Air fryer times and temperature are an adaptation, not from source. | Second-pass critique flagged 6 fabricated and 1 quantified issues. See critique.issues for detail.