Fish & Chips with Tartare Sauce

Ingredients

• 1kg pontiac potatoes
• vegetable oil, for deep frying
• 8 white fish fillets (flathead, whiting, ask your fishmonger for boneless fillets) – 800g
• 1 can cold beer (375ml)
• 200g plain flour
• ½ cup extra plain flour, for dusting
• salt and ground white pepper
• tartare sauce and lemon cheeks, to serve

Tartare Sauce

• 1 cup home-made mayonnaise or good-quality whole egg mayonnaise
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• ¼ cup finely chopped capers
• ¼ cup finely chopped dill pickles (gherkins)
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped dill

 Method

Chips

1. Pre-heat oven to 100°C.

2. Pre-heat deep fryer (filled to recommended level with clean vegetable oil) to 160°C. Alternatively, half-fill a large pot and use a kitchen thermometer for temperature.

3. Peel the potatoes and cut into 1cm thick chips. Fry for about 8 minutes or until a pale golden colour, then remove from the oil and drain well in a colander.

4. Turn the temperature of the oil to 190°C.

5. Fry chips for a second time, for 6-8 minutes, or until golden brown and crisp. Sprinkle with salt then place in oven on a lined tray to keep warm while the fish cooks.

Fish

1. Place flour and beer and 2 teaspoons salt into a bowl and mix.

2. In a shallow dish, combine extra plain flour with salt and pepper. Dip the fillets in the flour then carefully into the batter. Allow excess batter to drain, then lay each fillet gently, directly into the hot oil. (Don’t put it into the basket then lower into the oil, as the batter will get stuck.) You should be able to put 3 or 4 fillets in the fryer at one time. Cook for around 4 minutes, or until golden brown and crisp. Sprinkle with salt. Put fish in oven with chips while waiting for further batches.

3. Serve hot and crunchy with tartare sauce and lemon cheeks, and a little fresh salad.