Even if the exact origins of the dish cannot be agreed, the marriage of fish and chips is indisputably an English affair. If you are lucky enough to have an excellent local fish and chip shop you will not need this recipe. For the less fortunate, it goes without saying that the key to delicious homemade fish and chips is to source excellent fresh fish (if you have a local fishmonger, they should be able to provide this). The batter should be light and full of bubbles with the consistency of double cream. This recipe uses real ale, but you can also use sparkling water to achieve the same lightness. The chips should be thick cut (not fries), floury potatoes (Maris Piper or King Edward) fried in good quality oil or dripping. Making your own mushy peas and tartare sauce with homemade mayonnaise is also well worth the effort.
Ingredients (for 4 servings):
4 white fish fillets (approx. 200g each) – 200ml real ale – 75g plain flour (plus extra for coating the fish) – 75g cornflour – 4 large Maris Piper potatoes – 300g peas – 25g butter – 1 handful of mint – 120g mayonnaise – 2 gherkins – 1 tbsp capers – 1 handful of parsley – 1 lemon – vegetable/rapeseed oil, for deep frying – malt vinegar, to season – salt and pepper, to season
Method (for homemade fish and chips, mushy peas and tartare sauce):
For the fish:
- Remove the skin and any bones from the fish fillets (freeze the skin and reserve it for crispy fish skin canapés).
- Mix the real ale with the plain flour and cornflour with a whisk until the batter resembles the consistency of double cream but is still full of bubbles.
- Cover a plate with a layer of plain flour, seasoned with salt. Coat all the fish fillets in the seasoned flour and refrigerate until you are ready to cook them.
For the chips:
- Chop the potatoes into chunky finger-sized chips (around four times the thickness of fries) and soak them in a bowl of cold water for 30 minutes to remove excess starch.
- Rinse the chips and add them to a pan of cold water on a high heat. Once the water has boiled, cook the chips until the largest chip is soft (approx. 10 minutes), testing with a knife, which should be easy to push through without resistance. Drain the chips in a colander and run under cold water to stop the cooking process.
- Spread the chips between two layers of kitchen towelling to dry and then freeze for 30 minutes.
- Bring the oil in your deep fat fryer or saucepan (a third full) up to 130°C and cook the chips in batches for 5 minutes at a time to start off the cooking. Pat them dry with kitchen towelling to remove excess oil and return them to the freezer for a further 30 minutes.
- Before you finish the chips and cook the fish, prepare the peas and tartare sauce.
For the mushy peas:
- Finely chop the mint leaves and add to a small saucepan on a low heat with the peas and butter. Cover the pan and allow to simmer for up to 10 minutes. Mash the peas so that they are squashed but not pureed (you want a little texture).
- Cut the lemon into six wedges, reserving four for serving. Squeeze the juice of one of the lemon wedges into the peas, mix and season to taste. Cover the mushy peas to keep them warm before serving.
For the tartare sauce:
- Chop the gherkins into small chunks and finely chop the parsley. Add these to the mayonnaise, together with the capers and the juice of one of the lemon wedges and mix until the chopped gherkins are thoroughly distributed. Season to taste.
Finishing the chips:
- Preheat your oven to 150°C and line a roasting tin with baking paper.
- Bring the oil up to 180°C and cook the cooled chips in batches for a further 2 minutes so that they are crisp and a golden colour. Drain each batch, transfer to the lined roasting tin and pat dry with kitchen towelling. Keep the chips warm in the oven until you are ready to serve.
Finishing the fish:
- Dip the first of your flour coated fish fillets into the batter so that it is well coated. Gently lower the batter coated fish into the oil in the direction away from you (use tongs to avoid injury). Do the same with your second fish fillet and cook both battered fillets for 5 minutes (they will need an additional minute if the fillets are thick) so that the batter is crisp and light brown in colour.
- Drain the battered fish onto kitchen towelling and then into the roasting tin with the chips to keep warm while you batter and cook the last two fish fillets. Serve your homemade fish and chips immediately with the mushy peas, tartare sauce and salt and vinegar to taste.