A Fish & Chips recipe that will Hook Ya ! This recipe produces the best Fish & Chips hands-down, and for the fraction of the cost of ordering out. Superior Crunch Batter with perfectly cooked Cod or Haddock with some Seriously Good Homemade Fries. Plate it up with a side of Coleslaw & some Tartar Sauce.

Enjoy it for your next Seafood Saturday or Sunday!

What Fish to use for Fish & Chips

When it comes to Fish & Chips, the most commonly used fish are Cod & Haddock. These white, flaky fish are known for their mild flavor and ability to hold up well in the frying process. Both fish varieties offer a delicious and satisfying eating experience.

Go with Fresh if you can, since frozen fish fillets will be water logged, which can create a mushy fish. That’s not to say you can’t use frozen fish fillet, I almost always do. But the drying out process is much more extensive. Either Fan Drying the fillets out or refrigerating them for quite some time.

Fresh Fish Fillets

Fresh Fillets are by far the best but pricey. You still need to dry the fish out, but fresh fillets are not waterlogged like frozen fillets are. Fresh fish fillets are usually thicker than the frozen variety, too. Drying out Fresh Fillets can be as simple as patting it dry with paper towel or resting them on a rack and refrigerating for one hour or so.

Thawing Frozen Fish

The simplest way is to take the fish out of the freezer and place into the refrigerator to thaw overnight. I still opt to remove the fillets from the packaging and place on a rack on top of a pan so that they are not left sitting in water and instead air drying a bit with any excess water dripping into the pan below.

Fan Drying Thawed Fish Fillets

This method is for previously frozen fish fillets and does a wonderful job at drying out the fish, so they cook up with flaky meat.

Place thawed Fish Fillets on a rack and lightly season with salt. Place a fan pointed directly at the fish and leave for 2+ hours to air dry. Flip the fish over halfway through. It is ready to be battered when the fish is dry to the touch and has formed a skin on it.

Quickly Thaw Frozen Fish

Thaw Frozen Fish out in a bowl of cold water for about 10 minutes, or until completely thawed in its original packaging. Remove from the packaging and pat dry with a paper towel. Once thawed, you will still need to dry the fish by either refrigerating it or placing in front of a fan.

If your fish does not come individually packaged, most often seen with boxes of Fish you can purchase. Then place them into a Ziploc bag and thaw as above.

Thaw and dry the fish fillets any way you feel is ideal. The objective is to get rid of as much water as possible. So much so that the Fish Fillet is dry to the touch. This is very important for the batter to adhere well and create flaky white meat.

Deep Fried Fish Batter

The secret to this Fish Batter is in the combination of JAH Poly Flour & Cornstarch that creates the Crispiest coating for Deep Fried Fish. It’s an all-around excellent batter for deep-frying, producing some major crunch.

Make the JAH Poly Flour first, which is needed in order to make the Deep Fry Batter. Then when ready, add Vinegar & Water to make the batter.

Fish Batter Consistency

Add liquid and mix. Not too thin like Tempura, but not too thick as well. This gets kind of tricky. Add more liquid to the batter if necessary to get a pancake-like consistency. This recipe errors on the side of thick, which is easier to fix by adding more liquid to adjust the consistency.

You should be able to batter the fish, holding it by the tail. Pick it up and let excess batter drip off then slowly lower into the oil allowing the thicker part to cook first and crust up then lay down the rest of the fish gently.

The batter should be just thick enough that when the fish is placed into the Oil, it doesn’t fall apart. The amount of water in the fish and in the batter is what needs to be right for this not to happen.

Beer Battered Fish

Use Beer instead of Water. Everything else is already there in the batter to create that nice golden crisp batter.

Fish batter Seasoning

With the base Batter down, you can choose to season the batter to add extra flavor. Experiment here, I often do. Use Old Bay Seasoning, Cajun, or Creole Seasoning. One of my favorites to add to the batter is the below. It really has a nice flavor for fish.

• 2 tsp Dry Mustard
• 1/4 tsp each of Ginger, Garlic, and White Pepper

JFC Fried Fish

There is another version, JFC Fried Fish, that uses JFC Breading for a Southern Style Fish & Chips.

Homemade Fries

These Homemade Fries are just too good. You can just deep-fry some store bought fries, but if you have the time, definitely makes these. Extremely Crispy with the Potato Flavors really coming through.

Deep Fried Fish FAQ

The main troubleshooting for Fish & Chips is really all going to come down to water content.

You will see from the FAQ below, that if you ensure your fish is dried through and that the batter is the consistency of thin pancake batter with the oil at 375 F you eliminate a lot of potential issues that can arise from Deep Fried Fish.

Why is my batter not sticking to the fish

The Fish should be dry to the touch when battering. Some people will dredge the fish in flour before battering. But this still ignores the fact that the fish contains too much water. It also creates a paste film around the fish. For proper deep-fried fish, ensure that the fish fillets are dry to the touch. This also ensures the Batter stays crunchy.

Why does my Batter flake off

Your batter contains too much water and is too thin. Another cause is that the Fish is still too wet, not allowing the batter to stick and instead flakes off when it hits the hot oil.

If at first, you are fine, but then the last few fish are flaking off. The Fish is still wet. When dipping the first few pieces in, it’s fine, but the added water from the fish into the batter is thinning it out.

Why does my fish batter go soggy

Your fish contains too much water, which is steaming the batter as it sits. Make sure that the fish is dried, and you are deep-frying at a high temp, 375 F is best.

Why is my Fish mushy

You either have waterlogged fish or low-quality fish. The Fish must be really dry. Other reasons may be your Oil is not hot enough or the batter is too thick, not allowing water to escape and trapping it in the fish.

Why is my Fish Rubbery

You dried the Fish too much or cooked for too long. About 5 minutes is all that is needed at 375 F.

Should I dredge the Fish in Flour

Dredging the fish in flour is still ignoring the fact that you are not starting off with dry fish. This may help the batter stick, but can still cause the cooked batter to go soggy because of extra moisture in the fish. Dredging the fish in flour also causes a thin paste to form around the fish, which is undesirable.

Batter is too thin

Add equal amounts of JAH Poly Flour & Cornstarch to thicken the batter. Keep in mind that this also thickens a bit when refrigerated.

Batter is too thick

Add more liquid to thin out. Keep in mind that this also thickens a bit when refrigerated.

Fish & Chips Side Dishes

Bring to the table some Tartar Sauce, a bottle of Heinz Chili Sauce or French’s Ketchup, and some Malt Vinegar and/or Lemon Wedges. Don’t forget the carbonated drinks.