Chips and Fish

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown

Show: Good EatsEpisode: Fry Hard

Rated: 5 stars out of 5Rate itRead users' reviews (111)

RECIPE
COMMENTS & REVIEWS(111)

Cook Time:
30 min
Level:
--
Yield:
4 servings

Times:

Prep: 20 min
Inactive Prep: --
Cook: 30 min
Total:: 50 min

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Ingredients

For the fries:

1 gallon safflower oil
4 large Russet potatoes
Kosher salt

For the batter:

2 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Dash Old Bay Seasoning
1 bottle brown beer, cold
1 1/2 pounds firm-fleshed whitefish (tilapia, pollock, cod), cut into 1-ounce strips
Cornstarch, for dredging

Directions

Heat oven to 200 degrees F.

Heat the safflower oil in a 5-quart Dutch oven over high heat until it reaches 320 degrees.

Using a V-slicer with a wide blade, slice the potatoes with the skin on. Place in a large bowl with cold water.

In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cayenne pepper, and Old Bay seasoning. Whisk in the beer until the batter is completely smooth and free of any lumps. Refrigerate for 15 minutes. Note: The batter can be made up to 1 hour ahead of time.

Drain potatoes thoroughly, removing any excess water. When oil reaches 320 degrees, submerge the potatoes in the oil. Working in small batches, fry for 2 to 3 minutes until they are pale and floppy. Remove from oil, drain, and cool to room temperature.

Increase the temperature of the oil to 375 degrees. Re-immerse fries and cook until crisp and golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove and drain on roasting rack. Season with kosher salt while hot and hold in the oven.

Allow oil to return to 350 degrees. Lightly dredge fish strips in cornstarch. Working in small batches, dip the fish into batter and immerse into hot oil. When the batter is set, turn the pieces of fish over and cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Drain the fish on the roasting rack. Serve with malt vinegar.

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Comments & Reviews

recipe Chips and Fish
Tyfanie Eugene, OR 11-06-2009
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Easiest & most tasty fried fish recipe I've ever tried
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I love how easy this was, and so VERY tasty. A recipe very hard to screw up... exactly what I need! :)
recipe Chips and Fish
LORI Redlands, CA 10-25-2009
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The search for Fish n Chips is over.
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I love this recipe! I thought it came out just perfect. I used talapia for the fish, and Sam Adams Boston Lager for the beer.... I have a fryer, to be specific, the T-Fal FR7008002 Ultimate EZ Clean Pro-Fryer Stainless-Steel 2-2/3-Pound Deep Fryer. This is my 3rd fryer, and I LOVE IT! Especially the oil filtering and storage feature. Seriously, no muss, no fuss. My fish came out perfectly cooked and yummy. I do think next time I am going to bump up the spice, but I really think Alton gave us room to do that on purpose. Some people don't like spicy, but if they do, they can add it without any significant changes to the original recipes results. I can't wait to make this over and over. After a 20 year search for decent fish and chips, low and behold I found them in my own kitchen. Read more
recipe Chips and Fish
Maureen Chicago, IL 09-29-2009
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Use this batter for anything!!!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

Better then any fish and chips in a pub! I've been all over England and tried many. Love, love, love it!!!
recipe Chips and Fish
Tricia Long Beach, CA 07-27-2009
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I love this batter!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

My husband and I experimented with lots of different batters before we found this one - and we haven't used another one... since. I kick up the spice with Emeril's Essence and more Old Bay and use enough beer to thin the batter to the consistency of heavy whipping cream, but outside of that, I stick to the batter recipe as given. Fish, shrimp, sweet potatoes (cut into thin sticks) and onions have all been used with this batter, and they all came out perfectly. I don't like to use a deep fryer, and I don't want to use a gallon of oil, so I stick with a cast iron skillet. It works great for frying - quick to heat, and retains the heat well. Two things keep my battered items crisp - I don't drop the food in until the oil hits 375, and I work with small batches. The food cooks quickly and browns nicely without the oily sogginess some have mentioned.Read more
recipe Chips and Fish
jamie camp hill, PA 07-25-2009
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first time i ever fried fish....mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

i read the other reviews and followed the advice to add the spices and a little flour to the cornstarch. i also added more... of the spices to the batter than called for in the recipe and an extra half of a beer, (nut brown ale) as others had commented that the recipe for the batter was too thick. i used tilapia and fried whole fillets using 24 oz of safflower oil in a frypan, four minutes each side. it turned out really, really good. i didn't make the fries but i might try those next time. i don't like cooking at all, but the recipe/process for making the fish seemed easy enough, and it turned out yummy enough that i'll be making this again..... Read more
recipe Chips and Fish
Sandie Mauston, WI 07-23-2009
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Eh...
Rated: 3 stars out of 5

After reading the other reviews, I added extra seaoning to my batter. Sadly, though, it still wasn't enough! I added TWICE... the called for amount of cayenne pepper, since I do like things a little spicy, and the same amount of Old Bay as cayenne pepper (so, 1/2 teaspoon each of both spices), and it was still very bland. Being an English-style fish meal, I even purchased a bottle of English beer - Newcastle Brown Ale, and I didn't taste much of that either! My house smells terribly of beer (Yuck!), but there wasn't much of that flavor in my fish. I love Alton Brown and have tried some of his other recipes, but this one was not a winner for me... I drained the fish, after frying them, on a baking rack, per his instructions, and the fish still turned out soggy on the bottom. I think that may have been more to do with the oil temperature, though, because after eating the first couple pieces and noticing this I increased the temp to 375 degrees and they turned out much better. I will continue looking for the perfect Fish 'N Chips recipe until I find it - I know it's out there!Read more