At some point, all of us have sat face-to-face with a pile of fish and chips or fried clams. As this usually happens first when we are tiny tots, the experience can alter the course of our dietary existence: After that virginal fish fry, many of us we emerge either as committed fish lovers — or, like many Americans, committed fish haters.
Only about half of Americans eat seafood more than once or twice a year, and I suspect that a big reason for such a gulf between fish eaters and fish haters is what was on that first plate of fish and chips. Try to think back to your childhood now: Did your mom cook her own fried fish, or did she open a box and shake out a few frozen fish sticks?
I have vivid memories of both cases. My mom cooked her own fish. I have a crystalline image in my head of mom busily frying flounder fillets. It must have been the mid-1970s. She’s standing next to a pile of fried flounder, each layer separated by paper towels sodden with oil. We’d eat these with lemon and lots of “tah-ta sauce.” Mom is from Massachusetts.
I also remember eating at some of my friends’ houses. That image is of pre-breaded fish sticks clunking out onto a foil-lined tray that somebody else’s mother popped into the oven, often a toaster oven. I remember these being dreadful.
Fish sticks are eaten by those who do not fish, I soon learned. Over the years, I’ve become a connoisseur of fried fish, and I still seek out superior fish and chips wherever I go.
Batter. When all else boils down, batter is why we love a good fish and chips recipe. Golden brown might be the two best words you can say in the kitchen (other than, perhaps, “More bacon?”), and the magic of a batter that is crispy, yet light, is a feat of culinary prestidigitation.
The Japanese have their tempura batter, which is divine, but fish and chips need something sturdier. They need beer batter. While everyone has their own, beer batters are all basically the same: Beer (what kind you use matters), flour and a little salt.
Mom never battered those flounder she cooked; they were merely breaded and fried. Most fish sticks are the same. Why? Batter can only be done properly with deep frying, and few Americans will deep fry at home. No one ever told me this, so I’ve happily been deep frying since I was in my early 20s. It’s not terribly scary, I assure you.
So long as you watch temperature, you’re fine. Yeah, it can be sporty to have a half-gallon of 360°F oil roiling on your stovetop, but so long as you know it’s that hot, you’re fine. Bad things happen when you don’t, and the oil gets too hot. Thermometers are a must.
I used to use a Dutch oven to fry, but now I use a DeLonghi electric fryer, which has lasted me years. I like deep fryers because they restrict the amount of vaporized grease that gets into the air. And while that aroma really adds to the ambiance of a place like Pike Street Fish Fry, its not so good in your house.
A deep fryer also lets you control temperature, which is important. Soggy, greasy fish and chips happen because the oil was not hot enough. Oil that is too hot will burn the batter by the time the fish has been cooked. My sweet spot has always been about 360°F.
Finally, what kind of fish to use for your fish and chips?
I’ve eaten batter-fried fish six ways to Sunday, but all the best share a few characteristics: They’re all firm, white, and lean. Cod, haddock and pollock are classics in the East, as is halibut or lingcod in the West. In Wisconsin and Minnesota, walleye and yellow perch are king. In the South, it’s all catfish until you get to the Gulf, where redfish take over. Hell, I’ve even used tilapia.
But my absolute favorite? Shark. Dogfish and leopard shark are the perfect frying fish, and in fact are traditional in Northern England fish and chips. The meat is white as snow, very lean, and firmer even than halibut. And, happily none of these fish are threatened, so you can eat with a clean conscience.
What’s more, eaten cold the next day, fish and chips made with halibut or these little sharks tastes astonishingly like cold fried chicken. Go figure.
A word on the chips: I am not very good at making my own French fries, which require double-frying. So instead I make my own chips, which I like just as much. Potatoes sliced just thick enough so the center is soft, just thin enough that a quick bath in hot oil will crisp the outsides.
Classic Fish and Chips
Ingredients
- 2 pounds skinless, boneless fish
- Salt
- Oil for frying
- 2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, sliced into 1/8-inch thick rounds
- 1/2 cup self-rising flour
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- About 1/2 bottle beer
Instructions
- Salt the fish and set it aside at room temperature. Get your oil going: You want it to be 350-360 degrees. Turn the oven to the "warm" setting, and put a cookie sheet inside. Place a wire rack on top of the cookie sheet.
- Mix the flour, vegetable oil, salt and beer together, stirring all the while. You want enough beer in the batter to give it the consistency of house paint, or melted ice cream. Put in the fridge to rest for 20 minutes.
- While the batter is resting, slice the potatoes and put them into a large bowl of cold water. When you are done slicing, remove the potatoes and pat them dry with a paper towel.
- The oil should be hot by now. Fry the potatoes, a few at time, for 3-5 minutes, or until they start to brown at the edges. Don't cook them until they are uniformly brown or you will overcook them; they will continue to brown a little out of the fryer. Salt each batch the moment it comes out of the fryer. Store each batch on the wire rack in the warm oven.
- When the potatoes are done, take the batter out of the fridge. Dredge the fish in the batter and let the excess drip off for a second or two. Lay each piece gently into the hot oil. Do this by letting the bottom end of the piece of fish fry for a second or so in the oil before you let the whole piece get a bath. This helps prevent the fish from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Keep a chopstick or something similar around to dislodge any pieces that do get stuck.
- Fry in batches until golden brown, about 5-8 minutes depending on how large the pieces are. Keep each batch in the warm oven while you finish the rest. Serve at once when you're done.
Hank,
How important is the self rising flour versus using AP?
Beth: Very. But you can use AP flour and a teaspoon of baking powder though for the same effect!
I made this recipe for a Friday night fish fry (big thing here in Wisconsin) and the kids went crazy for it. They dubbed it “fish nuggets” despite my not having cut the walleye into small portions, but now they ask for “fish nuggets” ever Friday regardless!
Having this tonight with fresh Walleye out of the Columbia River. Went with a local IPA for the batter. Can’t wait
How did it turn out Tim?
Typically, IPAs are not recommended for cooking use as you will lose most of the nice aromatics/fruity hop notes and really crank up the bitterness. IPAs are great for sauces and other non-heated dishes though.
Perfect recipe all around… I’m cooking lingcod and rockfish caught off Simpson reef out of coos bay oregon, and this time I’m using corona familiar for the batter… the darker the beer the better the batter! And completely optional dust the chips with zaterans garlic and herb flavor it’s the perfect amount of crunch on the soft chips… once prepared match your meal with a twelve pack of pacifico and enjoy
Hank,
I’m about to fry some beautiful Pollack fillets using your recipe. I am using Shock Top (an unfitered belgian wheat beer with a “citrusy” finish). I’ll let ya know how it comes out.. Looking forward to the outcome ?
Simple recipe and exponentially better than other more complex ones I have tried. Thanks Hank for the best of the rest. I’ve tried many of your recipes and they’ve all exceeded my previous attempts
Caught a few Columbia River Sturgeon this year, just fried up some. We borrowed some seasoned panko breading from an award winning fish & chips restaurant in Seattle, and put that up against this basic beer-batter. And guess what, the beer batter won unanimously! Really complemented the fish. Now its just time to mess around with different beers! (We started with Rainier)
I just made this with the first fish I ever caught as an adult (a bream/bluegill). Absolutely the freshest, most delicious fish I have ever had and the chips were pretty good, too! I am hooked! No pun intended! 🙂
This is just delicious! Easy, quick, yummy, what’s not to like?!
Hi Hank. I’ve caught dogfish my entire life and just thrown them back. How do you prepare dogfish?
Matt: When they come over the side, kill and gut immediately, then put on ice. Fillet as normal, skin and cut into pieces you’d like to fry. Done this way, they’re awesome.
You should come up to eastern Canada, or even New England to learn how to make/cook fish & chips. Properly done, both the fish and the chips should be twice cooked. To do both in one fry is definitely not normal. Hard or burnt chips and fish. love your blog, just have a problem with this recipe. camp cooking! Cheers.
Frank: I know perfectly well how to make fish and chips and the fish certainly does not need double frying. If you actually ate these you’d see. I am sure you can make fish and chips just fine, but there are many many ways to get a great result. This is one of them.
Made this yesterday with sea bream. The family loved it! I also added 1 Egg and powderd garlic. Thx!
Keep up the excellent work on this site. I am a regular “lurker” 🙂
mahi mahi makes great fish and chips. For the chips I make fries. We like the fries much better.
I deep fry outside with a propane burner, same one we use for frying turkeys,canning etc. I love fried potatoes but with my southern roots have to say hushpuppies are my favorite with fried fish. Cook them in the same oil soon as the fish is done and draining. Like my mom made just cornmeal, salt, and boiling water. Going to try your batter recipe thanks Hank
This is sooo good!! In the batter I added an egg, a pinch of garlic pepper, and seasoned salt, which gave it a better flavor and texture. 10/10 would recommend!
Woow, never eat shark until now.
For frying fish, I usually use instant multi-purpose seasoning flour. It is very good for making fried chicken,fish, prawn, squid, tofu, etc. Crispy and savory, no need to add egg and spices anymore.
Yeah,it is suit for lazy boy like me.
Dave: Fries with gravy is not really a uniquely Newfoundland thing, as you can pretty much get gravy for your fries anywhere in Canada.
However, Newfoundlanders are about the only people who put stuffing and gravy on top of fries.
Intrigued….
@Hank: Checked this evening and the the temp is off by 30 degrees F (low) according to Thermapen (need to do final check with Thermapen and boiling water). I’ve had it for several years and used it (only once every few months) with no problems, but the last two times I’ve used it have been bad. I guess I’ll have to see if I can recalibrate it or maybe just switch to the dutch oven.
Joe: I reuse it. Here’s how: Once the oil is cool, I set a strainer over a 4-cup measuring cup. I then set a paper towel in the strainer and pour the oil through. This filters out a lot of the debris. The oil is actually better the second or third time you use it. I keep mine for about 5 uses before tossing it.
JW Hammer: Weird. Gotta be a temperature thing with the potatoes. That happens. As for the batter not sticking, I suspect that’s because the fish was too wet before you dipped it. I make sure my pieces of fish are pretty dry before dunking. As for the fryer, I’ve never had a problem with mine, so maybe you got a bum model?
My potatoes came out soggy and my batter didn’t stick. Do you think that is oil temp related? I have different model of the same deep fryer you use, but my last batch of fries was soggy too and I’m wondering whether the thermostat is busted. Should have checked the oil temp with my Thermapen. Based on how seldom I deep fry, what a hassle the thing is to keep clean, and now suspicions of poor performance… whether a deep fryer with an accurate thermometer is really an upgrade to oil in a dutch oven.
What do you do with the leftover oil? Are you able to keep it for any length of time?
I’ve made a number of trips to Newfoundland, and enjoyed the fish and chips at “Ches’s Fish and Chips” enormously. The thing that Newfoundland adds to the Fish and Chip standard is brown gravy! They pour that stuff all over the chips and on the fish too. I prefer it on the side so I can dip gently, but it’s an amazing thing.
Hank, if you grew up in Westfield like your sister you may have had F&C at the Chippery in Fanwood. It turns out their F&C were amazing, and ranked up with the best Newfoundland could provide (and vastly superior to any I’ve had in London, UK, which is now a sad and ugly F&C wasteland).
I get around the pain in the butt aspect of doing good fries
by nuking the taters with the skins on, then allow them to cool,
sometimes over night in the fridge if I’m not in a hurry.
The nuker tends to dry them out a bit, a good thing if you like
crispy fries. There’s usually enough moisture left so that the
potatoes will congeal enough for slicing once they have cooled.
P.S.
Enjoyed your book.
To the point about soaking dogfish shark meat made earlier, soaking in salt water will only make it salty. As Hank said, quick gutting and icing are key. Any off flavors (none are likely if the fish is handled correctly)can be neutralized with a quick soak in ice water with a bit of lemon juice squeezed in.
Secret_Ingredient if you’re looking for Liquor, you can only really find it in London’s dwindling Pie and Mash shops.
The Liquors a bit like what you’d have on a fried chicken and mash dinner in the states. It’s a butter, cornflour and chicken stock base, spiked with chopped parsley and some mashed roast garlic.
In Chippies, you’d usually get your fish and chips with Malt Vinegar or – the grand daddy – ONION JUICE! That stuff is seriously amazing, it’s the pickling brine from the pickled onion jars. It hits the acid notes you need to cut through the fried flavour whilst having some of its own character.
If you’re in London let me know, I might be able to locate a pie and mash shop near you
This reminds me that I’m still looking for the sauce known as “liquor” that was served with fried eel at English (London?) fish & chip mongers. It may have had malt vinegar as one of the ingredients. Anybody have a clue?
Hank…you’ve come through again! I’ve got a cooler full of fresh halibut and rockfish… I’m gonna brave the fryer.
Just got back from Loreto Mexico with Fresh Mahi Mahi and Cabria Bass. Will try out the fish and chips recipe with some of the smaller fish fillets and bits. While reading your recipe for the Beer Batter the question arose “What is the difference between Self-Rising Flour and All Purpose?”. I found this site which gave insight:http://www.buzzle.com/articles/self-rising-flour-vs-all-purpose-flour.html. Could make a note that if only have All Purpose Flour to add 1 1/2 tsp.Baking Powder, 1/2 tsp. salt for every 1 cup All Purpose Flour & Sift twice. Although not as good as Self Rising Flour from store it can substitute. Thanks for all the yummy recipes and humorous dish notes.
If you make it to Astoria, try the Bow Picker, they do albacore, right up there with halibut
Kitty: Any type of beer is good, actually. What I mean is that your end batter will change depending on the beer. In winter I use a stout or porter, and in summer anything from Budweiser to Sam Adams. The only thing to watch out for is a hoppy beer. Really hoppy beers can make your batter bitter (say that 5 times fast!), so I avoid them.
Hank, you mention that the type of beer matters. What’s your favorite type?
We make do with bluegill and largemouth bass here in Northern Indiana. As to your comment of making more than you need, I once served a heaping tray of pan-fried fish and fries to my then very young six children. After saying Grace, 12 small hands simultaneously dove for the huge golden brown pile of fried goodness in the center of the table. I did manage to get a couple pieces, but it was pure joy watching the kids indulge themselves! There were no leftovers that night.
Hank, great batter.
Here is mine. 1 cup s/r flour,1TBS tapioca flour, 1 bottle of pale ale I use cascade or little creatures here, pinch of salt and 2 egg yolks.
In southern Australia our fish and chip shops use mainly Gummy Shark, as the main fish but you can order from big range of fish.
Hank, I prefer my fish with just a pinch of lemon and a dash of salt and I know you said you don’t like tarter sauce, but please give this one a try. It’s from “Women’s Home Companion Cook Book” circa 1946: 3/4 cup mayo, 3 Tbsp chopped dill pickle, 2 Tbsp chopped capers, 1 Tbsp parsley, 1 Tbsp chopped onion, and 1 Tbsp horseradish. It has converted many a tarter hater, myself included!
Frank
Ingrid: True, but as I said in the post I find that making traditional French fries is a huge pain in the ass, so I do these chips instead.
The ‘classic’ fish and chips would be with American fries – as American chips are actually British crisps. Confusing fried potato products, but all tasty.
I make French fries often using Joël Robuchon’s method (q.v.), and though they aren’t quite as good as classic twice-fried fries, they sure are easy.
I was lucky enough to get out for some halibut fishing off the Oregon coast this spring. This translated into some of the best fried fish I’ve ever had. Fresh halibut is pretty hard to beat when it comes to fried fish. I did one batch with beer batter and one with panko bread crumbs. Both were great. I even did some barracuda a few years back like this that was awesome.
With all the halibut I got kind of motivated and made some tartar sauce. I don’t usually like tartar sauce but I liked this. Dill Pickle, garlic spears, sweet onions, extra lemon, green olives, mayonnaise, salt and pepper.
Kevin: I agree, I prefer crappies, too.
Carter: Nope. I don’t really like tartar sauce, actually…
Bpaul: I’ll take you up on that. And I am in Portland with some frequency.
Daniel: I gut the sharks as soon as they come over the rail, then get them on ice. They taste A LOT better when you do that. If you do this, you won’t need a salt water soak.
I like using straight PBR and good sour dough pancake mix with a little bit of chipotle pepper powder to give it a kick. I have caught a few sharks in my day, ate a dog fish once and didn’t like it. Do you soak you shark fillets in buttermilk or salt water before you use them?
If you’re ever in Portland Oregon, we can go to The Horsebrass pub and have fish and chips. My favorite for a long time. I think you’d appreciate them.
Mmmm, fried goodness. There’s nothing like crunching into a thick, crispy finger of fish covered in tartar sauce. I’ve never tried shark fish and chips, but I have a hard time imagining a better piece of fried fish than the lingcod. Moist, mild, firm enough to hold up to the cooking process, but still just flakes apart as you bite into it.
Do you have a special tartar sauce recipe? I’ve experimented lots, but haven’t found one I love. So many seem to be based upon bread and butter pickles which I just can’t stomach in a tartar sauce.
Catfish may be ubiquitous here but IMHO Crappie are superior.