Beer battered fish and chips, a British classic comfort food that has found its way onto dinner tables across the globe. It is one of those dishes that I simply can’t resist, and never seem to get tired of. What’s not to love? A crisp, light battered crust giving way to a moist, flaky fillet, a pile of freshly fried chips on the side, then marry it all with a refreshing sweet and sour tartare to cut the grease.
For some reason, fish and chips we get served in the East just don’t cut the mustard. From lackluster choice of fish, to a soggy hollow crust, I’ve seen it all. Only way to satisfy my fish and chips nowadays, is to make it myself. From where I am from, I’d confidently claim that this homemade fish and chips will be better than what you’d get at most local restaurants.
This recipe makes a classic golden battered, crispy beer-battered fish and chips! Serve it up with homemade chips, some tartare sauce and a fresh lemon slice for an amazing meal with great flavors!
Some of the key must-haves for crispy and puffy batter:
Icy cold beer – the use of beer adds extra flavour yet you can barely taste the alcohol as it will cook out in the hot oil. The use of beer is recommended as the fizz in the beer is what lends the batter its light, airy texture. If you really must substitute for a non-alcoholic version, use soda water or carbonated drinks such as Sprite instead.
Combination of 75% plain flour + 25% rice flour to keep batter crispy! Make sure to sift – it makes a world of difference.
Why Use Beer for the Batter? What’s the Best Beer for this?
Carbonated beer aerates the batter so you get that puffy light crust. When you drop your cold batter into hot oil, bubbles froth up, it expands your batter. Using beer also cooks and thus browns quicker. This is because alcohol evaporates faster than water. If you use water for your batter instead, you run the risk of overcooking the insides (your fish) before your crust browns properly. So what beer works best? Light lager/pilsner works best. Get pale carbonated ones instead of heavy dark ones. Dark ones like Stout are a big no-no as the deep flavor would overwhelm the taste. When incorporating beer into your batter, a heavy cream-like consistency is what you want.
Best Fish for Frying
Cod fish is the best option for flaky texture, but it is expensive and not as widely available for many. Essentially any firm white fish would work; such as perch, pollack, halibut, bass – just to name a few.
It is fine to use frozen fish, which is more accessible, just ensure to defrost ahead of time. You will also want to blot dry the thawed fish fillet to remove excess moisture.
To achieve perfectly crisp and flaky fried fish, ensure to pat dry each fillet, salt and let rest in refrigerator for up to 30 minutes to firm up. The dry air in the fridge plus salt would further remove moisture from fish. The cooking time depends on the thickness of your fish. For a thickness of around 2 cm, 5 minutes would do.
Ensure oil is hot enough at 190°C so that the batter would puff up nicely. Coat fish in a layer corn or rice flour (dust off excess) before completely submerging it in the batter. Remember to lay the fish into the pan away from you and not towards you to avoid splattering yourself! cook fish for approximately 3 minutes per side until golden brown. Try not to overcrowd the pan as it drops the temperature of the oil, so fry in batches if you’re using a smaller fry pan.
One of the tip here is to drain on wire rack and serve whilst still warm! If you allow the fried fish to rest on kitchen towels, condensation may cause the fish to get soggy on the bottom.
We suggest using 150-200g of fish fillet per person.
How to Make French Fries? What Potatoes Should I Use?
Like butter on toast, you simply can’t have fried fish without chips. Russet potatoes make the best fries as they have lower moisture content. Whether you fancy a traditional thick cut or a thinner crisp one, fries are undoubtedly the perfect accompaniment. As my family members have different preferences, I made both.
Thick Cut 
French Fries cut
After cutting the potatoes into desired thickness, soak in water to remove starch, rinse and ensure to pat dry completely with a clean tea towel before frying. This will not only avoid oil from splattering but also to get them extra crispy!
The secret to delicious chips is to double fry. Again, frying time depends on the thickness. For potato the thickness of a finger, fry them for about 4-5 minutes. Remove and let drain on baking tray lined with paper towel, as you prepare your fish. Once we are done frying all the fishes, scoop out any remaining bits of batter floating in the oil before returning the chips back into the pan. We will refry the chips to crisp them up further just before serving. The second fry should take another 4 minutes.
Homemade Tartare Sauce
The perfect condiment for fish & chips! Sure, you can use store bought tartare sauce but it is so easy to make your own! You basically just add all the ingredients into the bowl, most of which are basic ingredients that you would already have in your pantry:
- Real mayonnaise
- Red onion
- Fresh dill
- Pickled gherkins/capers/green chilli
- Lemon juice and zest
- Sugar, salt, pepper
Combine all ingredients in a bowl, give it a good stir and you’re done! It is THAT easy! Once you try, trust me, you will never go back to bottled tartare sauce again!
Capers or gherkins are the more traditional ingredient in tartare sauce, but we didn’t have that handy so we used pickled green chili instead which works just as well. Just in case you are wondering – no, it won’t be spicy at all. I discarded the seeds to be even safer. The prepared tartare sauce can be stored in fridge for up to 4-5 days so you can even prep ahead of time if necessary.
It is best to start digging in within 15 minutes to ensure that your beer battered fish and chips are still crispy! Enjoy!
Here’s a recipe video to guide from you start to finish:
Beer Battered Fish & Chips with Homemade Tartare Sauce
Ingredients
Homemade Tartare Sauce
- 150 g real mayonnaise
- 1.5 tbsp chopped red onion
- 1 tbsp chopped fresh dill
- 2 tbsp chopped green chilli / gherkins / capers
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¾ tsp sugar
- pinch of lemon zest
Fish
- 750-800 g whitefish fillet
- salt
- oil for frying
- ⅓ cup rice flour for coating
- ¼ tsp salt & pepper
Chips
- 2-3 large potatoes
- ½ tsp salt
Beer Batter
- ¾ cup all-purpose plain flour
- ¼ cup rice flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp turmeric powder optional
- 1 cup light lager beer cold
Instructions
Homemade Tartare Sauce
- Stir well to combine all ingredients in a bowl. Let rest in fridge.
- Store in airtight container in fridge for up to 5-7 days.
Fish
- Pat fish dry using paper towels and salt generously on both sides. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to firm up fillet.
Chips
- Peel and slice potatoes either into thick cut wedges or french fries strips. Soak in water for 30 minutes then rinse well to remove starch.
- Pat dry using paper towels or tea towels ensuring that all pieces are completely dry to avoid oil splattering.
- Heat enough oil, approximately 2-3" high in a large heavy based pan/pot over medium high heat until oil reaches 190°C.
- Fry thick cut chips for 4 minutes per batch. For french fries strips, fry only for 2 minutes per batch. Remove from oil and transfer to a lined baking sheet. We will double fry the chips just before serving.
Beer Batter
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, sift in plain flour, rice flour and baking powder. Whisk in salt and turmeric powder. Remove beer from fridge, then slowly whisk in cold beer until combined and smooth. Ensure to add beer just before using so it doesn't lose the fizziness.
Frying Fish & Chips
- While oil is heating, coat fish fillets in seasoned rice flour and shake off excess.
- Dip fish in the prepared batter, and briefly allow excess to drip off. Carefully lower into hot oil, dropping it in away from you, one fillet at a time. If you are making a bigger batch, ensure not to crowd the pan; fry in batches. Fry for 5-6 minutes, flipping after about 2-3 minutes on each side, until golden brown. Drain on wire rack.
- Once you're done with all the fish fillets, ensure to scoop out remaining batter in oil. Return all chips to the hot oil and fry for several minutes until deep brown. Remove from oil, drain and season with salt.
- Serve fish & chips hot with homemade tartare sauce and lemon wedges!
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Thanks for sharing this amazing recipe.my family loved it.will be sharing this recipe with my friends.they will like it.