How To Recreate McDonald's Filet-O-Fish Using Store-Bought Ingredients

Are you dreaming about a Filet-O-Fish from McDonald's but you're not bothered heading to the drive-thru? We love that square, fried fish patty tucked inside a steamed, soft bread bun and smothered in tartar sauce and American cheese. McDonald's Filet-O-Fish sandwich is iconic all around the world, a 380-calorie bundle of flavor with enough protein to keep you going — especially if you are avoiding eating chicken or beef. 

And, happily, you can recreate it at home without having to go anywhere near a McDonald's. It only takes a few store-bought ingredients to recreate McDonald's Filet-O-Fish, and you could even get the required ingredients from your local grocer in one quick trip. Boiled down, you just need the fish, cheese, sauce, and bread to make this delectable sandwich work. 

Choose the right brands and styles of ingredients and you won't be able to tell the difference between a McDonald's Filet-O-Fish and your own creation. Making a DIY Filet-O-Fish is a pretty easy process too. And since it's homemade, you can take it a step further with all kinds of condiments and customizations, such as adding lettuce, onions, or dill pickles to dress up your version of the classic McDonald's menu staple.

We're all about finding store-bought ingredients to recreate McDonald's meals in all shapes and forms, and the Filet-O-Fish is super easy to prepare at home. The key is to start with the right frozen fish filet. McDonald's uses wild-caught Alaskan pollock (white fish) for their patties. Find frozen white fish patties in a square shape that's panko-breaded from brands like Stouffer's or 365 Whole Foods in the freezer section. Look for brands marked "for sandwiches" to find fillets that are built big enough to fill one. Then, mosey on over to the bread aisle for soft hamburger buns and to the refrigerated section for pre-sliced yellow American cheese.

Tartar sauce is the finishing touch for a DIY Filet-O-Fish, and it's obviously a crucial part of the sandwich. McDonald's version is known for being creamy, tangy, and one of the best versions of tartar sauce around. We know not all store-bought tartar sauce is created equally, and McDonald's tartar sauce has a very distinct flavor. Sir Kensington's Tartar Sauce offers an almost exact recreation of the McDonald's version with a hint of citrus. There are, of course, some other good tartar sauce brands you can use to recreate the iconic Filet-O-Fish: Hellmann's brings a bit more of a pickle flavor, while Duke's and Heinz tartar sauces are slightly sweeter.