Hooray for Mac Monday: the ULTIMATE Fish & Chips

Note from Mac:

I have to admit that I cheated a little for this week’s Mac Monday.  This is not my own recipe and I have never cooked fish and chips according to this recipe.  However, I was watching Tyler Florence’s “Tyler’s Ultimate” and saw this recipe and had to pass it on to you guys.  It looked so good that I seriously considered going out to buy a deep fryer and frying thermometer just to make this recipe exactly as Tyler did.  

Ingredients:

• Vegetable oil (for deep frying)
• 3 large russet potatoes
• 2 cups rice flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 3 tsp salt, plus more for seasoning
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning
• 1 (12-oz) can soda water
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• Two 8-oz cod (or haddock) fillets, cut in half on an angle
• 1/2 cup rice flour (for dredging)
• Malt vinegar (for serving)

Directions:

Heat 3 inches of the oil in a deep fryer to 325 degrees (or use a deep heavy skillet).

Peel the potatoes and cut them into chips (aka fries in America) about the size of your index finger. 

Put the potatoes in a fryer basket and lower into the oil.

Fry the chips for 2 to 3 minutes (they should not be crisp or fully cooked at this point); remove the chips to a paper towel-lined platter to drain.

Crank the oil temperature up to 375 degrees. 

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt & pepper. 

Combine soda water and egg; pour into the flour mixture. 

Whisk to a smooth batter. 

Spread the rice flour on a plate. 

Dredge the fish pieces in the rice flour and then dip them into the batter, letting the excess drip off.

Put the chips in the bottom of the fryer basket and carefully submerge in the hot oil. 

Lower the battered fish into the bubbling oil on top of the chips. 

Fry the fish and chips for 4 to 5 minutes until crispy and brown. 

Remove the basket and drain the fish and chips on paper towels; season lightly with salt. Serve wrapped in a newspaper cone with malt vinegar and/or tartar sauce.

For more tips on Fish and Chips, check out The Food Network website.

Mac’s Take on the Recipe:

          I have never cooked fish and chips the way Tyler describes here, but I have tried other methods that are along the same lines.  Tyler uses a list of pretty high quality ingredients here.   If you want to switch it up (and make it a little more affordable),  you can use any white fish, not just cod or haddock.  I have used flounder as well as tilapia in the past.  Each fish has its own distinct flavor and texture, so keep in mind that you are going to have a different taste than the traditional fish and chips.  You can always try using a good stout beer instead of the soda water for the batter.  I've seen a few too many episodes of Iron Chef, and the battles seem to indicate that Guinness is the best choice stout beers.   

Ina Garten's Baked Potato Wedges



          

Baked Fish & Chips

The most important MacSpin on this recipe is that you don’t necessarily need a deep fryer.  You can always just pan fry the fish (be sure to have a splatter screen on hand if you do).  Just cook the fish in a regular skillet as you would for any other dish.  This won’t get you the ideal "fish & chips" results and will take a little bit longer, but it's pretty darn close and a lot easier than buying a deep fryer.  Concerning the chips/fries, you can always bake the potato wedges for a similar result.  Ina Garten, the chef behind the Barefoot Contessa, has a great recipe.  It's midterms week here at Maryland, so I haven’t had too much time to cook, let alone post about it.  I’ll do my best to come up with something extra awesome for next week.  

Remember cook what you love, love what you eat.