Fish on Friday – Real English Fish and Chips in Beer Batter
Friday 15th July 2011 ~ St Swithin’s Day, England
Vendredi 15 Juillet 2011 ~ St Donald
Today is St Swithin’s Day in England ~ Swithin (Swithun) was a Saxon Bishop of Winchester Cathedral in the ninth century and a larger than life figure in local religious and political events in Wessex; this was at a time when England was emerging as an important and dominant nation within the British Isles, so he was is an important religious figure in British history. The legend that surrounds him is that when he died, he requested that he be buried outside in the churchyard, where the rain could fall on him and people could walk over him ~ but his remains were removed several years later and placed inside the church as a form of respect; it was after this event took place, according to legend, that that it rained heavily throughout the ceremony and for a further 40 days; the monks of Winchester Cathedral then decided that he should be moved outside to the churchyard again ~ hence this day being famous for its weather predictions! I remember reciting the following verse (that is connected to this day) when I was a little girl!
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| Winchester Cathedral |
St Swithin’s Day, if thou dost rain,
For forty days it will remain;
St. Swithin’s day if thou be fair
For forty days ’twill rain nae mair
For forty days ’twill rain nae mair
dost = does
thou = you
nae mair = no more
Luckily, as I am in sunny SW France, there is no rain today and it is fairly warm with not too many clouds ~ so I think we may be safe from 40 days of rain, fingers crossed! Whilst pondering on old English traditions and customs, I have decided to resurrect and old family tradition of fish on Friday today and I can think of nothing better than to cook my mum’s recipe for real English Fish and Chips in Beer Batter! A family favourite and a treat, as I rarely cook chips (fries) at home. I have some wonderful fresh (sustainable) cod fillets that I bought from the fishmonger, as well as some lovely local spuds, so I am all ready for frying take off later. I will serve the fish and chips in newspaper for 100% authenticity as well as malt vinegar and bread and butter ~ oh yes, and pickled onions too! I must also remember to adorn the tea pot in a knitted tea cosy ~ it is de rigueur don’t you know!
About This Recipe:
I was taught how to cook fish and chips by my Mum when I was about 12 years old; we were living in Hong Kong at the time & it was my Mum’s way of treating us to a little bit of home as a treat. My Mum had this recipe written down on the back of an old envelope stuck inside her Be-Ro cook book from 1952 – I never use any other method now. One trick is to make sure that everything is prepared and assembled ready for frying take-off! If you are cooking for 2 or more persons, have your oven on with a lined tray to keep the fish & chips warm. If you really want to be totally authentic, cut up squares of greaseproof paper and sheets of newspaper – place the fish and chips onto the greaseproof paper and then into a sheet of newspaper……all you need now is a pickled onion, salt and MALT VINEGAR of course. TIPS for CHIPS: Here are a few tips or tricks for chips ~ Make sure they are DRIED thoroughly. Make sure the fat is VERY hot – 190 degrees C. Certain potatoes are better for chipping, such as King Edwards, Desiree, Majestic, Maris Piper, & Romano. You can soak the chips for an hour before the first frying – it extracts excess starch which helps in the “crisping” process. Always drain them thoroughly before serving. I hope these tips will help you banish soggy chips from your life!
Real English Fish and Chips With Yorkshire Beer Batter
Ingredients :
- 4 cod fish fillets or 4 haddock fillets
- 6 ounces plain flour
- 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
- 1 (8 fluid ounce) bottle English beer, Small
- 1/2 lemons, juice of
- salt & pepper
- extra flour
- 3 lbs potatoes, peeled & chipped
- good quality cooking fat or oil
Directions:
Heat fat up in a chip pan or automatic deep fat fryer – mine has a chip setting which is 190°C.
Peel the potatoes and cut into chunky sized chips. Rinse and dry thoroughly.
Fry chips for about 3 minutes until soft but NOT coloured. Drain and shake well and set to one side.
Put some flour onto a plate. Dredge the fish fillets in the flour thoroughly – this is VERY important, it stops the batter sliding off when fried! Leave the fish fillets in the flour whilst you make the batter.
Some people say you should make the batter at least one hour before – I have found little difference – so make it before if it is convenient or now.
Put flour, bicarbonate of soda, salt and pepper into a large roomy bowl. Add the beer gradually, stop when you have a thick coating type of batter. Drink any beer that is left! Whisk thoroughly until it is smooth and there are no lumps.Add the lemon juice OR a splash of malt vinegar if desired. Mix thoroughly again.
Have your plates, newspaper or whatever ready for eating.
Adjust deep fat fryer to fish frying temperature of 160°C.
Take one fillet of fish at a time and holding it by the tail or the thin end (!) swirl it around the batter until well coated – plunge into hot fat immediately. As soon as it has crisped up and set, add your other fillets one at a time, taking out the first ones as they cook – about 6 to 10 minutes depending on the thickness. Place onto a tray and keep warm in the oven.
Turn up the heat setting to 190°C again and cook your chips until golden and crisp.
Serve on plates or newspaper with salt & vinegar.
All you need now is a pint of warm beer and Coronation Street on the TV to set the scene!
NB: This batter is great for small fish goujons, chicken goujons and also tempura vegetables too.
Workinglondonmummy says
Eeeh by gum,that looks delicious. Perfect fish and chips there. Just need some newspaper wrapping!
Karen says
I sometimes make them at home for a treat and wrap them in newspaper!
Chris Blackburn says
Fish Friday it a tradition in our house!! Being a good old Yorkshire man, I love cooking mine in Beef dripping, amazing!!
Lydia Ross says
I have been making this recipe now since I found it on PINTEREST. Been our family favourite since I discovered it! However, in a recent reno I lost said recipe and then thought Iwould look for it again!!
Karen Burns-Booth says
I’m so glad you’ve discovered the recipe again.