Fish and Chips is one of Australia’s most popular dishes and nothing is better for a day at the beach. Chippies, as fish and chip shops are known, often line the streets adjoining beaches. This makes it an easy treat to find.

There are many different options for batter. The most important element is to inject bubbles to get a light, crispy texture. You can do this by adding beer or soda water, or even by adding bicarbonate soda. You want the beer or soda water to be very cold and it should be made as close to frying as possible. If you have time, you can even refrigerate the batter beforehand.

Another important issue when frying fish is to make sure that you don’t overcrowd the pan. If you place too many pieces of fish in at the same time it will reduce the temperature too far. This will result in soggy batter.

For this recipe, I am combining rice flour with traditional plain flour for an extra crispy texture. If you don’t have any rice flour you can use all plain flour.

Any white fish will work for this recipe, but my favourite is barramundi.

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INGREDIENTS

2 filets of fish of your choice

1 russet potato

60 grams plain flour

50 grams rice flour 

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

150 mls cold beer or soda water

Salt and pepper to taste

Oil for frying

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Heat the frying pan to 160 C, or 320 F.

2. Cut the potato into chips, lengthwise.

3. When the oil is ready, fry the chips until they are limp, but not browned. Remove and set aside. 

4. Increase the temperature of the oil to 200C, or 400F.

4. Mix the rice and plain flour and baking powder together in a large bowl.

5. Add the cold beer or soda water and mix until it is smooth. Mix in salt and pepper to taste. If the mixture is too runny add extra flour, or if it is too thick add more beer or soda water.

6. Pat dry the fish. Cut into pieces if desired.

7. Cover the fish with the batter and then fry until golden brown. Remove and drain any excess oil.

8. Place the chips back into the fryer and fry until golden brown. Remove and drain any excess oil.

9. Serve with lemon and/or malt vinegar. Enjoy!