Fish And Chips

I made some Fish and Chips (commonly known in the UK), using some fresh Halibut fillets and fresh cut potatoes. The batter that coated the fish fillet was light, crunchy, and flavorful. Like all fried food, it’s also a tad oily; but, can’t be helped I supposed. As for the chips/french fries, they were soaked in cold water for at least an hour or overnight to remove the starch so that the fries will be crispier. The fries are then done using a two stage-fry method: the first, fried at 340˚F and the second stage, fried again at 390˚F. They were fantastic, best eaten immediately to enjoy the fries’ maximum crispiness.


Recipe adapted from The Dean & DeLuca Cookbook by David Rosengarten with Joel Dean & Georgio DeLuca

Fish And Chips
(Printable Recipe)

2 Pieces Halibut Fillets, halved
Sea Salt
All-Purpose Flour

Batter
¾ Cup All-Purpose Flour
¾ tsp Sea Salt
½ tsp Freshly Ground Pepper
¼ Cup Milk
¾ Beer
1 Egg
1 Tbsp Melted Butter

French Fries/Potato Chips
6 Large Russet Potatoes, peeled
1 quart Vegetable Oil for deep-frying
About 1 cup Cornstarch for light coating
Coarse Salt

Method

Chips/French Fries: Trim the potatoes in the shape of a rectangle. Cut into ¼ inch slices and then cut into ¼ inch fries. Put in a bowl of cold water and soak for at least 1 hour or preferable overnight.

When ready to fry, heat oil in a deep, heavy, straight-sided pot to 340˚F. Add a small batch of potatoes straight from the water. (Stand back as the oil will splatter. Make sure to separate the French fries from each other, with a fork, right after you add them to the oil.) Fry the potatoes, in small batches, for about 3 to 4 minutes, until they look blistered on the surface. (This step essentially blanches the potatoes, so there should be very little color on the potatoes.) Remove to a sheet tray lined with paper towels.

When ready to serve, heat oil to 390˚F. Place the once-cooked potatoes in a large colander, and toss lightly with cornstarch. Fry potatoes, again in small batches, for about 2 minutes, until French fries are deep golden brown and remove to a sheet tray lined with paper towels and sprinkle generously with coarse salt. Serve immediately with for maximum crispiness.

Fried Halibut: In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, salt and pepper.

In a small bowl, add the milk, beer and egg, whisk the mixture until smooth and whisk in the melted butter.

Then whisk the beer mixture into the flour, whisking until smooth. Let rest for 1 hour.

When ready to cook, dry fish well, salt and coat lightly with flour, and then dip in the batter. Let excess batter drip off, and then fry the fish in 360˚F vegetable oil until golden brown outside, just cooked within. Serve immediately.