A pub staple, a British classic, or just Friday nights on the couch, fish and chips is a favourite meal for many. For this one, I’ve triple cooked the chips for an extra delicious crunch and made the tartar sauce from scratch.
Classic Fish and Chips
With its roots in British cuisine, fish and chips has become a part of Australian culture as well. Wrapped up in newspaper and enjoyed with beachfront views, fish and chips is uncomplicated. But, it’s the uncomplicated nature that makes this dish such a delight to serve up. The traditional side dish is a tartare sauce and I’ve made it extra zesty and packed full of flavour. So, put down the phone – you don’t have to get takeaway tonight! My recipe is easy and tasty – newspaper for wrapping it is optional!
My tips to get the crispiest fish
Rice flour – it really helps get that batter crispy. It will also leave you with a light batter that isn’t heavy or sticking to the fish!
Fry hot and quick – Deep fry your fish for a short amount of time at a very high heat (190 C). This will prevent the fish from releasing moisture and creating a soggy batter.
Keep your batter cold! When the cold batter hits hot oil it will leave you with the crispiest batter. It will even stay crispy for 30 minutes or more! Just make sure you lay your fish onto a cooling rack to avoid steam from being created.
And, most importantly – use beer! The yeast in beer makes the batter puff up when it cooks so it’s thin and light and not heavy or soggy.
Crispy chips!
Crispy, thick cut chips are crucial to fish and chips, and this step can’t be missed! They are popped into the fridge or freezer to cool as this will remove any remaining moisture and moisture is not our friend when we are looking to get something extra crispy! We cook the chips three times to ensure they are light and fluffy on the inside and golden and crispy on the outside. Parboiling the chips before they are deep fried allows the inside to cook and leave you with that soft and fluffy interior.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which fish is best?
Any firm white fish such as snapper, rockling, flake or barramundi. Being an Australian, I always love snapper for my fish and chips!
What about lemon?
Fish and chips is always delicious when paired with lemon. In some British fish and chip shops they have malted vinegar as well!
Which beer should I use?
I always recommend a light lager for when making a beer batter such as Peroni or Corona beer.
Can I make the chips ahead of time?
To save on time, you can parboil the chips the day before and keep them in the fridge before they are ready to be doubled fried!
Check out my other seafood recipes
Garlic confit butterflied BBQ prawns
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Classic fish and chips
Ingredients
Triple cooked chips
- 1.5 kg Russet potatoes peeled
- 2 L vegetable or grapeseed oil
- Flakey sea salt
Beer battered fish
- 4 snapper fillets (600g)
- 75 g white all purpose flour
- 75 g white rice flour + 1 cup for coating
- 2 g baking soda
- 2 g flakey sea salt
- 340 mL light beer such as Corona
- flakey sea salt to season
Tartar sauce
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1 large handful dill finely chopped
- 1 tbsp capers finely chopped
- 6 small gherkins finely chopped
- 1/2 shallot finely diced
- 1 lemon juice
- 1/2 tbsp red wine vinegar
Instructions
Triple Cooked Chips
- Square off the potatoes by trimming off the edges until you have a square shape. Cut the potato into chip shapes that are roughly 2 x 6cm.
- Place the cut chips into a bowl of cold water and rinse well until the water turns cloudy. This is the starch that has been removed from the potato. Drain into a colander and rinse again under cold water.
- Place the chips into a large pot and cover with cold water. Season with a generous amount of salt. Place the pot onto the stove on a high heat and start the timer for 20 minutes as soon as you turn the heat on. Once the water is boiling, turn the heat to medium. Cook the potatoes until they are fork tender. Drain and place the chips onto a cooling rack to allow all the moisture to drip off. Place the cooling rack into the fridge or freezer until the chips are cold, not frozen. 30 minutes in the freezer and up to 2 hours in the fridge.
- Fill a large pot with vegetable or grapeseed oil and bring to 140 degrees Celsius. Using a slotted spoon, carefully place the chips into the hot oil and fry for 8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the chips from the oil and place back onto the cooling rack. Place the chips back into the fridge or freezer until cold.
- For the second fry, use the same oil but heat it to 180 degrees Celsius this time. Using a slotted spoon, carefully place the chips into the hot oil and fry for 4 - 6 minutes or until golden and crispy. Using a slotted spoon, remove the chips from the oil and place back onto the cooling rack. Season generously with flakey sea salt and serve.
Beer battered fish
- Begin by making the beer batter. In a medium size bowl, combine the all purpose flour, rice flour, baking soda and salt. Using a whisk, slowly stir through the beer until there are no clumps and you have a runny and smooth batter. Make sure you don’t over whisk the batter as this will affect the crispiness later on! Cover and leave to sit in the fridge for a minimum of 30 minutes.
- Using the same oil you fried the chips in, heat it to 190 degrees Celsius.
- Season the snapper with salt and pepper on both sides. Coat each fillet of fish with rice flour and then with the beer batter. Hold the fish up over the bowl so any excess batter can drip off.
- Slowly lower the fish into the pot of oil and cook for 2 – 4 minutes depending on the thickness of the fish. Cook 2 fillets at a time.
- Using a slotted spoon, remove the fish from the oil and place onto a cooling rack to allow any excess oil to drip off. Season with flakey sea salt and serve immediately.
Tartar Sauce
- Combine all ingredients into a small bowl and whisk until well combined. Set to the side until ready to serve.
Hi there what else fan I use to substitute for beer, for a gluten free friend.
You can use soda water and a little seasoning for some flavour such a sweet paprika and garlic powder!
Hi what can I use in place of the rice flour please? Also is Birra Moretti beer okay to use?
I am not too sure what the beer is but if it’s a light lager it will definitely work well!
Hi what else can I use instead of rice flour please?
You can use corn flour or potato starch!