I had a craving for Fish n Chips

I was napping on the couch the other day, half watching Chuck’s Day Off, as food tat guy was making some fish Po Boy sandwiches. I suddenly had a craving for Fish n Chips, so off we went to the Superstore in search of halibut. I nearly crapped myself when I saw the price of halibut, but as Mamma G reminded me, it would cost 50 bucks to buy fish and chips for 5 of us anyway.

Working with a home size deep fryer can be a bit of a challenge when trying to feed a small army, as one needs to plan things well. We cook the fries first and then keep them warm in the oven while the rest of the fries and the fish cook.

To begin with, set up your fryer to bring it up to temperature.

Fries

You can use any type of tater, depending on what you prefer. I grabbed what was left of the bag of white potatoes in the cupboard. I prefer to leave the skins on. Not only are they better for you, but the skin goes nice and crispy. If you have a mandolin, it makes quick work of making fries. Otherwise, use a large knife and start cutting.
I soaked the freshly cut fries in water for a while to remove some of the starch. You want to drain them well so the water doesn’t cause an overflow in the fryer.
With the oil at 375 degrees, our fries took about 5 minutes for each batch. This may vary depending on how thick your fries are.

Once done, put the fries on a baking sheet and stick them in a warm oven. Not too hot, as you don’t want them to cook further, just stay warm.

While all of this is going on, you can prep your beer batter.

Beer batter

Beer batter really is one of the most simple things to make. In a mixing bowl, combine about 1 cup of all purpose flour, 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt and a 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper. Add a bottle of beer to this and whisk together until smooth.

Fully coat each piece of fish in batter, working right beside the fryer. Quickly, but carefully lower your fish into the hot oil. Following the instructions in the fryer book, we found that just under 6 minutes was the right time for perfect fish.

Our fish was light and flaky on the inside, with a satisfying crispy shell on the outside. While it may have cost more than buying from a fish n chip shop, the batter was so much better!