flipFish and chips with malt vinegar
Fish and chips with malt vinegar
Why this dish? Cod, crispy batter, thick chips in paper: fish and chips is the universal British street food, from the industrial north where Haigh grew up to the ordinary evenings of his characters. It's the food of simple people he films with such tenderness.
The great 'chippy' classic: a white fish fillet coated in light batter and fried, served with thick chips, doused in malt vinegar. To eat on the go, ideally facing the sea.
There's nothing more British than walking in the cold with a piping hot cone of fish and chips in your hands. The trick is the malt vinegar — you pour until the paper is soaked, and never mind the purists. When we were shooting near the coast, in Norfolk, we'd dash to the local chippy in the evening, and eat in the car park watching the sky turn grey. It's those little everyday nothings that interest me, really — not the grand gestures.
- •Cod or haddock — 1 fillet (fish)
- •Flour — for the batter (coating)
- •Beer or sparkling water — as needed (batter)
- •Large potatoes — a few (chips)
- •Malt vinegar — to taste (sour seasoning)
Fish and chips with malt vinegar
The great 'chippy' classic: a white fish fillet coated in light batter and fried, served with thick chips, doused in malt vinegar. To eat on the go, ideally facing the sea.
Why this dish? Cod, crispy batter, thick chips in paper: fish and chips is the universal British street food, from the industrial north where Haigh grew up to the ordinary evenings of his characters. It's the food of simple people he films with such tenderness.
There's nothing more British than walking in the cold with a piping hot cone of fish and chips in your hands. The trick is the malt vinegar — you pour until the paper is soaked, and never mind the purists. When we were shooting near the coast, in Norfolk, we'd dash to the local chippy in the evening, and eat in the car park watching the sky turn grey. It's those little everyday nothings that interest me, really — not the grand gestures.
Ingredients (period version)
- Cod or haddock — 1 fillet (fish)
- Flour — for the batter (coating)
- Beer or sparkling water — as needed (batter)
- Large potatoes — a few (chips)
- Malt vinegar — to taste (sour seasoning)
Ingredients
- Cod or haddock fillet — 2 fillets (fish)
- Flour — 150 g (coating)
- Cold lager — 200 ml (batter)
- Potatoes for chips — 600 g (chips)
- Frying oil — 1 L (cooking)
- Malt vinegar — to taste (sour seasoning)
Method
- Cut potatoes into thick chips, blanch then fry first at 150°C.
- Prepare batter by mixing flour, cold beer and a pinch of salt to a smooth consistency.
- Dip fish fillets in batter, fry at 180°C until golden and crispy.
- Refry chips at 190°C to crisp, drain on paper.
- Salt, douse generously with malt vinegar and serve immediately, ideally in paper.
How it was made : Fish and chips spread in the 19th century with trawl fishing and the railway bringing fresh fish to cities. The first fish and chip shops opened in the 1860s; it quickly became the quintessential popular meal, sold wrapped in newspaper.
The contemporary twist : Served on a slate with mushy peas and a lemon wedge, a nod to the gastropub.
Andrew Haigh · Charactorium
