Being English, fish & chips was a big part of my husbands' life. We used to have a "fish fry" almost every Sunday evening. But when I went gluten-free, I switched to pan-fried (unbuttered) fish that I would eat when he would do a fish fry. And slowly the fish fry tradition kind of fell away. Now, whenever my parents come to visit, he uses it as a "excuse" to do a fish fry, and I started working on a gluten-free batter. It took a few tries to get a batter that was tasty, and also crunchy. And this past weekend, we finally nailed it (with some expert fish fry advice from my husband). Try is along side peas, fries or sweet potato wedges and a quick tartar sauce for a delicious weekend treat.
Batter Ingredients:
3/4c tapioca flour ot arrowroot flour
1 tbsp almond flour
1 tbsp coconut flour
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp sea salt
club soda/tonic water
2 pounds of whitefish - we use halibut or cod (defrost first if frozen), cut into strips
oil, for shallow pan frying (I use a mix of red palm fruit oil and coconut oil, that I filter after using and store in a jar in our fridge, and only use for fish).
Place a medium saucepan on medium heat on your stove, and fill about half inch with your oil of choice.
Combine all dry ingredients in a wide bowl. (I like to make a big batch and store in a container so it's easier next time).
Pat fish dry with paper towels, then dredge in dry ingredients.
Add a few splashes of club soda to the remaining dry mix to create a batter. When you first add the liquid, it will feel starchy and hard to stir. Add some more liquid, and keep stirring until the batter loosens a bit.
When your oil is hot, dip one piece of fish into the batter, and place into the oil. Cook for about 7 minutes, until the batter is golden brown and crispy, and the fish is cooked through. Remove the fish from the pan, and place on a cooling rack or plate with a piece of paper towel to keep it from getting soggy.
Repeat with remaining fish.
If you're making a lot, like we usually do, James will preheat our oven on low (about 200F), and put the cooked fish on a cooling rack, on a baking sheet in the oven to keep it warm while he cooks the rest of the fish.
Quick Tartar Sauce Ingredients:
1/4c primal kitchen mayo
1/4c organic mustard (I usually go for yellow mustard, but dijon or grainy mustard can add a nice touch too!)
1 tsp dried dill (or 1 tbsp chopped fresh dill if you have it) - leave out if you don't like dill
pinch of salt
pinch of black pepper
something acidic: 1 tsp lemon juice/or 1tsp diced capers/ or 1 tbsp diced pickles or relish (I change it up based on what's in our fridge)
Combine ingredients in a small bowl. You can refrigerate leftovers too, to enjoy later with any leftover fish.
Enjoy!!
I am so super excited that this one turned out crunchy, (with the addition of the club soda). Not that it will be back in regular rotation, since it is fried, but it's nice to have yummy options as a treat once in a while (or for our monthly fish fry when my parents come to visit!).
Try it out and let us know what you think.
Next, hopefully we can figure out a crispy chicken-style breading!!