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Food Guide to Cooking

How to make the perfect British fish and chips, mushy peas and tartare sauce

Forget the pub, and instead make the scrummy British classic fish and chips at home



Fish served with double-cooked chips, mushy peas and tartare sauce
Image Credit: Anas Thacharpadikkal/GN

Makes 4 portions

Ingredients

4x180gm haddock fillet 180gm per portion, cleaned and filleted - you can also use cod or hake

600ml batter

800gm mushy peas

300gm tartare sauce

800gm hand-cut chips

2 lemon halves

300gm seasoned flour (salt, pepper and curry powder mixed together)

8gm Maldon sea salt (to season)

1lt Sunflower oil for frying

Batter

350ml sparking water

250gm flour (sieved)

8gm baking powder

1 tbsp oil

8gm curry powder

3gm salt and ground pepper for seasoning

Chips

4 large potatoes (Maris Piper)

Mushy peas

150gm frozen peas

10gm white onions (peeled, and finely diced)

5gm butter (unsalted)

5gm fresh mint (washed, picked and chopped)

2gm garlic cloves (peeled and finely chopped)

50ml vegetable stock (cook root vegetables such as onion, celery and stalks of mint for 30 minutes)

Tartare sauce

200ml mayonnaise

25gm capers (finely chopped)

25gm gherkins (finely chopped)

25gm shallots (finely chopped)

2gm flat leaf parsley (washed, picked and chopped)

Seasoning to taste

Method:

The batter

1. Firstly, prepare the batter by mixing together the flour, baking powder and curry powder.

Step 1
Image Credit: Anas Thacharpadikkal/GN

2. Add some oil to bind it together.

Step 2
Image Credit: Anas Thacharpadikkal/GN

3. Add the sparkling water to make a smooth batter.

Step 3
Image Credit: Anas Thacharpadikkal/GN

4. Add the seasoning and leave to rest in the fridge for a minimum of 1 hour.

Step 4

Step 4b

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Tartare sauce

To make the tartare sauce, mix all the ingredients together in a mixing bowl, and correct the seasoning.
Image Credit: Anas Thacharpadikkal/GN

Mix all the ingredients together in a mixing bowl, and correct the seasoning.

The mushy peas

1. Blanch the peas in boiling salted water, and drain immediately. Run under cold water, drain again then dry.

Step 1
Image Credit: Anas Thacharpadikkal/GN

2. In a heavy-bottomed pan set to medium heat, add the butter, onions and garlic. Let them sweat until they don’t change colour.

Step 2
Image Credit: Anas Thacharpadikkal/GN

3. Add the vegetable stock, bring to the boil, remove from the heat and then allow to cool a bit.

Step 3
Image Credit: Anas Thacharpadikkal/GN

4. Add the peas.

Step 4
Image Credit: Anas Thacharpadikkal/GN
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5. Blend the mixture to a coarse texture.

Step 5

Step 5a

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6. Add the mint and season to taste.

Step 6

Step 6a

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The chips

1. Peel the potatoes.

Step 1
Image Credit: Anas Thacharpadikkal/GN

2. Wash the knife and use the wet knife to cut potatoes lengthways into roughly half inch slices.

Step 2
Image Credit: Anas Thacharpadikkal/GN

3. Cut each slice into thick chips.

Step 3
Image Credit: Anas Thacharpadikkal/GN
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4. Rinse in a colander under plenty of cold water to remove excess starch.

Step 4
Image Credit: Anas Thacharpadikkal/GN

5. Dry on a kitchen paper.

Step 5
Image Credit: Anas Thacharpadikkal/GN

6. Heat a deep, heavy-bottomed saucepan with the sunflower oil to 130C. It's important to use a cooking thermometer and check the temperature regularly. Or you can use an electric deep-fat fryer heated to 130C.

Step 6
Image Credit: Anas Thacharpadikkal/GN

7. Lower the chips into the oil using a metal spider or slotted spoon and stir carefully. Fry for 10 minutes, or until cooked through, but without any colour. Remove from the oil, drain onto kitchen paper, and set to the side.

Step 7

Step 7a

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8. When ready to serve, reheat the oil to 190C.

Step 8
Image Credit: Anas Thacharpadikkal/GN
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9. Place the chips in the oil using the spider or slotted spoon, and cook again for 4 to 5 minutes or until the chips are crisp and golden-brown. Carefully remove from the oil and drain on kitchen paper. Season with the Maldon sea salt.

Step 9
Image Credit: Anas Thacharpadikkal/GN

The fish

1. Reheat the sunflower oil to 180C, and as soon as the oil gets hot, add a little of the batter to test if the oil is ready - it should sizzle up.

Step 1
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2. Add the fish to the seasoned flour and dust all over.

Step 2
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3. Remove all the excess flour, then dip into the batter mix.

Step 3

Step 3a

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4. Carefully lower battered fish into the oil, being careful not to drop it in so the oil doesn’t spill out. Cook for 6-8 minutes, depending on how thick the fish is. Keep moving the fish around in the pan while cooking.

Step 4

Step4a

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5. When the batter is a golden brown and super crispy, use a spoon or tongs to remove the fish from the oil and drain on the kitchen paper. Sprinkle with the sea salt.

Step 5
Image Credit: Anas Thacharpadikkal/GN

Serve with the double-cooked chips, mushy peas with the tartare sauce and lemon wedge on the side

Golden crunchy fish and chips
Image Credit: Anas Thacharpadikkal/GN
Christopher Lester
Executive Chef of Caesars Bluewaters Dubai

Note: This article was first published in May, 2021.

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