Name: Fish and Chips
Prep time: 45 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 120 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: British
Ingredients: 125 g plain flour (German type 405); 1 tsp baking powder (replaces the self-raising flour of the original); 0.5 tsp salt; 0.5 tsp turmeric; 200 ml wheat beer; 1.3 kg floury potatoes, peeled; 2 l vegetable oil for deep-frying; 700 g cod or haddock fillet, skinless (cut into 4 large pieces); 40 g plain flour (German type 405) (for dusting); sea salt and freshly ground pepper (for fish and chips); 2 lemons, cut into wedges (to serve); English malt vinegar (to serve)

Preparation

Sift the flour, baking powder, salt and turmeric into a bowl, make a well in the middle and whisk in half of the beer, then stir in the rest of the beer. Cover the batter and chill for 1 hour.
Cut the potatoes into sticks about 1.5 cm thick, put them briefly in cold water to release the starch and then pat thoroughly dry.
Heat the oil in a tall pot to 160 °C and blanch the chips in batches for about 5 minutes until cooked through but still pale; drain on a rack and let cool.
Pat the fish dry, season with sea salt and pepper and keep it cold until frying. Preheat the oven to 50 to 60 °C.
Heat the oil to 190 °C, fry the chips in batches until golden brown and crisp, drain, salt and keep warm in the oven.
Let the oil cool to about 170 °C. Turn the fish pieces in the flour, tap off the excess, dip them in the batter and lay them carefully in the hot oil. Batter test: a spoonful of batter should bubble vigorously and turn golden brown in about 30 seconds.
Fry the fish for about 4 minutes until golden brown and crisp, drain on kitchen paper, sprinkle with sea salt and serve at once with the chips, lemon wedges and malt vinegar.

Drink with it

Pale lager · excellent match
Helles lager or pilsner, ice cold
Carbonation and fine hop bitterness carry off the frying fat, and the malt picks up the golden crust.
Pils or Helles: What's the Difference?
Sparkling wine · excellent match
Champagne or Crémant, brut
High acidity and bubbles cut through batter and fat like malt vinegar, and the yeast notes suit the crust.
Sparkling wine, Champagne, and Prosecco: what's the difference?
White wine · excellent match
Sauvignon Blanc, Muscadet or dry Riesling
Slim, precise acidity works like lemon and vinegar and keeps the fish fresh.
Which wine pairs with food? A simple approach to choosing
IPA · good match
English pale ale or bitter
The pub beer with fish: hop bitterness and caramel malt stand against fat and roasted notes; the low carbonation helps less than with lager.
What Is an IPA? Hop Aroma with Many Faces
Fortified wine · good match
Fino or Manzanilla, well chilled
Salty, yeasty dryness cuts the coating like vinegar and lemon, a pairing from the Andalusian fried-fish shops.
Port wine: understanding Ruby, Tawny, and Vintage

Why it pairs well

Fino comes from Andalusia, not the pub, but works like vinegar and lemon: salt and dryness against the frying fat.

Preparation

Sift the flour, baking powder, salt and turmeric into a bowl, make a well in the middle and whisk in half of the beer, then stir in the rest of the beer. Cover the batter and chill for 1 hour.
Cut the potatoes into sticks about 1.5 cm thick, put them briefly in cold water to release the starch and then pat thoroughly dry.
Heat the oil in a tall pot to 160 °C and blanch the chips in batches for about 5 minutes until cooked through but still pale; drain on a rack and let cool.
Pat the fish dry, season with sea salt and pepper and keep it cold until frying. Preheat the oven to 50 to 60 °C.
Heat the oil to 190 °C, fry the chips in batches until golden brown and crisp, drain, salt and keep warm in the oven.
Let the oil cool to about 170 °C. Turn the fish pieces in the flour, tap off the excess, dip them in the batter and lay them carefully in the hot oil. Batter test: a spoonful of batter should bubble vigorously and turn golden brown in about 30 seconds.
Fry the fish for about 4 minutes until golden brown and crisp, drain on kitchen paper, sprinkle with sea salt and serve at once with the chips, lemon wedges and malt vinegar.

Drink with it

Pale lager · excellent match
Helles lager or pilsner, ice cold
Carbonation and fine hop bitterness carry off the frying fat, and the malt picks up the golden crust.
Pils or Helles: What's the Difference?
Sparkling wine · excellent match
Champagne or Crémant, brut
High acidity and bubbles cut through batter and fat like malt vinegar, and the yeast notes suit the crust.
Sparkling wine, Champagne, and Prosecco: what's the difference?
White wine · excellent match
Sauvignon Blanc, Muscadet or dry Riesling
Slim, precise acidity works like lemon and vinegar and keeps the fish fresh.
Which wine pairs with food? A simple approach to choosing
IPA · good match
English pale ale or bitter
The pub beer with fish: hop bitterness and caramel malt stand against fat and roasted notes; the low carbonation helps less than with lager.
What Is an IPA? Hop Aroma with Many Faces
Fortified wine · good match
Fino or Manzanilla, well chilled
Salty, yeasty dryness cuts the coating like vinegar and lemon, a pairing from the Andalusian fried-fish shops.
Port wine: understanding Ruby, Tawny, and Vintage

Why it pairs well

Fino comes from Andalusia, not the pub, but works like vinegar and lemon: salt and dryness against the frying fat.

Fish and Chips

Preparation

Drink with it

Helles lager or pilsner, ice cold

Champagne or Crémant, brut

Sauvignon Blanc, Muscadet or dry Riesling

English pale ale or bitter

Fino or Manzanilla, well chilled

This pairs well too.

Beer-Battered Fish (Backfisch im Bierteig)

Alsatian Flammkuchen (tarte flambée)

Fish Tacos with Cabbage Slaw and Lime

Kedgeree with smoked haddock and egg

Fish and Chips

Preparation

Drink with it

Helles lager or pilsner, ice cold

Champagne or Crémant, brut

Sauvignon Blanc, Muscadet or dry Riesling

English pale ale or bitter

Fino or Manzanilla, well chilled

This pairs well too.

Beer-Battered Fish (Backfisch im Bierteig)

Alsatian Flammkuchen (tarte flambée)

Fish Tacos with Cabbage Slaw and Lime

Kedgeree with smoked haddock and egg