Approx cost: €6.00
Approx calories (per serving): ~750
Approx preparation time and cooking time: 70 minutes
Aah, the great British classic! I was going to make “real” chips here, but after going for onion rings too I decided that chips might be a bit too much, so I went for a slightly healthier alternative – chipped/wedged oven cooked potatoes. The batter is amazing. Stays crispy long after cooking and is really light and airy. If you prefer not to use real beer/lager than non-alcoholic beer would work just as well, and failing that then sparkling water. Although the taste would be impacted.
Ingredients
The batter
– 250g (1.75 cups) Plain Flour
– 3 tsps Baking Powder
– ~30cl Beer or Lager
– 1 egg
– Salt
– Garlic Powder, if available
The rest
– 2 fillets of cod, haddock or other white fish.
– 4 or 5 potatoes (adjust depending on how many you’re serving and how hungry you are)
– 2 or 3 yellow onions (adjust depending on how many you’re serving and how hungry you are)
– 0.5 litres (1 pint) Peanut Oil for frying
– Olive Oil
– 3 tsps Cayenne Pepper
– 2 tsps Cumin
– Salt
– Pepper
Instructions
- Start by chopping up the potatoes into wedge-shapes, leaving the skin on. Wash them well and dry them off and then put them into a large
baking tray. Pour over some olive oil – you’ll probably need around 3-4 tbsps. Sprinkle on the cayenne pepper and cumin, varying the quantities a little if you prefer it more or less spicy, add some salt and pepper and mix the potatoes well with your hands to ensure each wedge is well coated with oil. Place into an oven at around 120 degrees Celsius. These will need around one hour, so adjust your preparation time accordingly.
- Take the onions and peel off the outer skin. Cut away the tops and bottoms and then cut each onion into thick rings. Carefully pop out each layer. The very small centre pieces, you can either fry these too or save them for a later dish.
- Now we’ll make up the batter. Pour the flour and baking powder into a large bowl. Crack the egg into the flour and then open up the beer. Pour the beer into the bowl along with 2 or 3 tsps of salt and the same again of garlic powder if available. Using a whisk, beat the batter together until you reach a smooth, frothy consistency. The batter should be thick enough to coat items dipped into it, but not so thick that it doesn’t run freely. If required, add in extra beer or flour.
- If you’ve planned the time appropriately, the wedges in the oven should be about 15 minutes away from being done. Turn the wedges and prod them periodically to make sure they’re looking nice and golden. Pour the oil into a large, deep pan. I personally like to use a wok and place on a hot stove to heat up. You may need to add more oil. Ideally it should be about 6 cms deep in the pan.
- While the oil is heating up, place all the rings of onion in the batter and coat well. Occasionally put a drop of batter into the oil – when it sizzles quite agressively you know the oil is hot enough. One of the top ways to fail with deep-frying is by not having the oil hot enough so make sure it’s a good temperature in the pan before starting to fry. Conversely, remember that hot oil on the stove is freaking dangerous so don’t leave it alone and watch it all the time. When it’s hot enough, put the battered onion rings in about 8 at a time, turning them until golden brown. Place on a plate when done and put in the oven with the finishing wedges. Place the fish into the batter and do the same – carefully place into the hot oil and fry, turning regularly, for around 2-3 minutes, or until golden brown. – I prefer to fry each piece on its own but you could probably do two pieces together – just remember that adding more things into the oil will make it cool down.
- Once everything is done you can plate it all up and serve it out. Serve the fish with a slice of lemon, maybe some salt and vinegar, and a tartar sauce, which goes really well with fish
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