Recipe: Pub-Style Beer-Battered Walleye & Chips

Print Recipe

Synonymous with British fare, the classic fish and chips has its origins centuries ago as an inexpensive working man’s food served at pubs and “chippy” shops … and is the perfect complement to a couple pints of beer.

Most often comprised of cod, haddock, or pollock, it is served crispy out of hot oil and into newspaper with deep-fried chips and often, a side of uniquely-British mushy peas.

Fortunately you don’t need frequent flyer miles to enjoy it. Harvest some firm-fleshed fish like walleye, pike, or small bass, and you’re in business.

Yield: 4-5 hungry anglers/family

Ingredients

• 2-2.5 lbs. walleye or similar fish fillets
• Beer Batter Mix
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup corn starch
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 can cold pilsner- or lager-style beer plus a few ounces of a second can

Chips

• 3-5 large russet baking-style potatoes
• Canola oil

Mushy Peas

• Two 12-ounce bags of frozen peas
• Optional 2-3 cloves of diced garlic and some minced mint leaves
• Water – ½ cup water per bag (follow directions on bag)
• 1 stick of butter

Preparation

The key to making this meal is staging everything. The first thing I do is peel the potatoes then run through a french fry cutter, although you can cut into fries/chips by hand, too (but the inexpensive gadget is pretty handy). I then place the chips in a large bowl and rinse thoroughly with cold water to remove excess starch. Then place the chips in a large pan, cover with water, and bring to a boil, blanching the fries for five minutes in a rolling boil. Strain hot water, then rinse again and cover with fresh cold water and place in the refrigerator. This pre-cooking will make for better chips that are crisp on the outside and tender on the inside.

I use a deep fryer but you can also heat your canola oil in a Dutch over or deep cast iron pan with a thermometer. The oil should reach 380 degrees for frying the chips and 360 for frying the beer-battered fish.

Once the oil is heated, I take out the blanched chips from the refrigerator, strain the water off and dry all the chips with paper towel on a cookie sheet. Then I start in batches until the fries get slightly golden brown and float in the oil, then place on a newspaper-lined cookie sheet in the oven at 200 degrees to keep warm and drain some of the excess oil.

Mushy Peas

Next, I combine two standard 12-ounce bags of frozen peas and 2-3 cloves minced garlic (optional) in a pot with 1 cup water and bring to a boil for several minutes and until the water begins to evaporate; no need to strain the little bit of water left. Then drop in a half- to full stick of butter and turn the heat off, using a potato masher to get the peas to their mashed-like texture. You can also place into a blender for an even smooth consistency but that can get kind of messy. I then place in a bowl and place in the microwave until the fish are done and I can quickly reheat the peas for 2 minutes before serving. If you want to be traditional, add some diced mint sprigs to the mash prior to serving.

Fish

Cover the fish fillets in a dusting of flour, salt, and pepper (and Old Bay Seasoning if preferred), to help keep the beer batter on when you get to that step. I do this on a cookie sheet.

Mix all beer batter ingredients in a large Tupperware bowl or Zip-Lok bag making sure all ingredients are thoroughly liquified with the cold beer (carbonation and temperature adds to the crispiness).

Use tongs to immerse the fillets in the beer batter, letting excess drip back into the bowl or bag. Drop in into fryer, and repeat until you have four or five pieces frying at the same time. You do not want to overload the fryer or Dutch Oven, which will bring the oil temperature down.

Fried at 360 degrees, the fillets emerge golden brown but not too dark, which I’ve found when frying the fish at the same 380-degree oil temperature as the chips. When floating and golden brown (typically 3 to 5 minutes), transfer the fish to the other side of the newspaper-lined cookie sheet in the oven and proceed until all fish have been fried.

The Table

Once all the fish are in the 200-degree oven, I reheat the mushy peas for 2 minutes in the microwave and set condiments on the table: obligatory malt vinegar for true British-style fish and chips, quartered lemons, tartar sauce, salt and pepper, etc. I then bring the entire cookie sheet from the oven to the hungry anglers, get the mushy peas out of the microwave, and you’ll have a pub-style beer-battered fish and chips dinner that’s about as close to as you’ll find anywhere stateside. It should feed four to five hungry anglers or family! Enjoy!

---