Traditional English Fish and Chips — Crispy Fried Fish With Fresh Potatoes

For those who love traditional British cuisine, fish and chips remains its most iconic dish: fresh fish fillets wrapped in a golden, crispy beer batter, served with twice-cooked potatoes and homemade tartare sauce. Here is the complete step-by-step recipe to prepare it at home.

INGREDIENTS (serves 4):

• 800 g white fish fillets (hake, trout or swordfish), skinless and boneless
• 200 g all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 330 ml cold beer (or sparkling mineral water)
• 1 teaspoon salt and a little black pepper
• 4 large potatoes (about 800 g)
• Sunflower or peanut oil for frying (1 liter)
• For the tartare sauce: 4 tablespoons mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon finely chopped pickles, 1 tablespoon finely chopped onion, juice of half a lemon, a little fresh dill, salt

PREPARATION STEPS:

1. Wash, peel and cut the potatoes into thick strips about 1 cm wide. Leave them in cold water for 20 minutes, then drain and dry well with kitchen paper.
2. For the tartare sauce, mix the mayonnaise, pickles, onion, lemon juice and dill in a bowl. Keep in the refrigerator until serving.
3. In a large bowl mix the flour, baking powder, salt and pepper. Pour in the cold beer, whisking with a wire whisk until you get a smooth batter, slightly thicker than pancake batter. Let it rest for 10 minutes.
4. Pat the fish fillets dry with kitchen paper, season lightly with salt and dust with a little flour so the batter sticks better.
5. Heat the oil in a deep pot to 170°C. Fry the potatoes in two batches for about 5–6 minutes each, until softened but without taking color. Drain on kitchen paper.
6. Raise the oil temperature to 190°C. Dip the fillets one by one in the batter, let the excess drip off and carefully lower them into the hot oil. Fry 4–5 minutes per side, until the batter turns a crispy golden color.
7. Fry the potatoes again for 2–3 minutes in the hot oil, until they turn golden and crispy. Season with salt immediately.
8. Serve the fish and potatoes hot, with lemon wedges, tartare sauce and — as tradition dictates — a little apple vinegar drizzled over the potatoes.

Prep time: 20 minutes (+20 minutes resting for the potatoes). Cook time: 25 minutes. Servings: 4.