Fish & Chips

Continuing our isolated lifestyle we have sought comfort in food, maybe a little too much lately but so be it. We decided to make fish and chips the other day and for us this was a challenge because we've never been very good at frying. This is one of my favorite comfort foods so it seems like a good time to try and make it.

I know the fish is simple so better to pay attention to the chips. There is nothing better than freshly sliced real potato french fries. It turns out, it is all about keeping and maintaining oil temperature.

help support the site - this is one I use to control my egg! - actually I use an older version of this one.

Research:

I relied on Julie here, no specially referenced instructions.

Ingredients:

• A couple of fresh cod fish fillets from the counter at whole foods.
• Bread crumbs in a dipping bowl
• All purpose flour in a dipping bowl
• Mix in about a teaspoon of salt.
• Egg - couple of whipped up eggs in a dipping bowl
• Oil - the best type of oil to use here is debatable - use one with a high smoke point. We used canola but I bet peanut oil would be good. The most important thing here is to use a lot of it. You need a large enough mass so that we don't change the oil temperature too much as we add and remove our ingredients.
• A good quick read thermometer is important here because we want to read the oil temp before we add ingredients and then again as we add ingredients to make sure we don't add too much to overwhelm the oil with too much cold ingredients too fast such that the temperature drops below 330 degrees.

Execution:

Make your assembly line, flour, egg wash, bread crumbs and then into the hot oil.

Oil temp is important here. Around 360 degrees with enough volume of oil to keep the oil temperature stable as you add the fish and take it out. Don't put so much in it that it drops the oil temperature below 325 or your fish will be greasy. Again, read before and as you add ingredients.

Bing, bam, boom

We cooked these based on time and what they looked like Maybe 5ish minutes. I could have pulled them out a few seconds sooner? Quick measure the center of the fish. Needs to be about 145 degrees for perfect flaky fish. Again, balance the oil so that we can get the center to 145 and not burn the outside.

Okay, let's make the chips.

Freshly sliced russet potatoes are good because the enemy is moisture. So as you can see in the background, after slicing them, dab them with a towel to dry as much as you can. Cool the oil to more like 340. You don't want it so low that it drops below 320 when you add the fries. The thinner the fry the higher you can make the oil temp but never above 370. You need to balance the oil temp so that the potato cooks in the center while getting golden on the exterior. Some people recommend twice frying for this reason but you can do it in a single pass if you get the temperature correct.

Add them to your oil slowly, again it is all about maintaining oil temperature. If the oil temp gets too low your fries will be greasy.

Pull them out as they get golden then add salt. Maybe  5 minutes-ish.

Add your fish and yeah, probably went a bit overboard on the chips, let's not judge.

Overall, this is a great comfort food. We added a little homemade coleslaw but mashy peas would be best...

Verdict:

We love this meal - great cheat meal if you are being keto, turned out fresh, light, not greasy. It is like a warm hug from a loved one.

We probably could have pulled the fish out a minute sooner but despite the darker color here, they were perfectly fine.

We would love it if you would drop us a note in the comment section and let us know how your cook went. We are always looking for suggestions and improvements! We have opened up the comments so that anyone can post now, so please do. I'll try not to delete anything unless it is spam or stabs me in the heart.

Please help support our site, buy something you like on Amazon. Simply click through the links below and though you can pick anything, I suggest the thermometer and knives below:

So apparently Thermoworks doesn't sell through Amazon anymore. You must buy direct. Still the thermometer to have. Go here and order direct. unfortunately, we don't get a dime for this but still, it is one you want.

Aaron Franklin's Favorite trimming knife:

Dexter-Russell (S131F-6PCP) - 6" Boning Knife - Sani-Safe Series

Aaron Franklin's Favorite Brisket cutting/serving knife:

Sani-Safe S140-12SC-PCP 12" Scalloped Roast Slicer

Decided to add a link to the replacement cap I use on my BGE - this is a great replacement because it sheds water if you get caught in the rain.

Whiskey and Coffee BACON on the BGE

Hello people of the world. I realize it has been a few moons since last we spoke. Have you missed me?

In these days of isolation and self sufficiency the more important things in life come into focus. Family, the love of a good dog, whiskey and bacon are the ones that immediately come to my mind. As such, it is important for me to learn the art of making bacon. Let's see if we can do it.

help support the site - this is one I use to control my egg! - actually I use an older version of this one.

Research:

I used this great blog post to read about the process and used one of the suggested recipes

Ingredients:

Pork belly - I sourced mine at my local butcher but I hear Costco may carry them also
1 teaspoon - Pink curing salt  <- I bought this on Amazon. It goes a long way.
1 cup of coffee
1/2 cup of whiskey

Execution:

If you stop reading right here, take to heart this first and most important step. Pour yourself about 2-3 oz of Bourbon or in this case, rye. Drink it.

Combine the salt, coffee, whiskey, and bacon into a large ziplock bag and mix it up

Do yourself a favor and put that bag in a shallow pan because it will likely leak at some point.

Place said bag and pan in the fridge for one week. Now, your spouse may at some point during this week, question you on what this concoction is. Pay no never mind to such nonsense as we would say here in the South.

Flip that bag and coat the belly every 12 hours for the next week.

One week later, remove your glorious meat and rinse off the residual liquid. Then return to fridge on a rack to let a film form on the exterior of said meat. I let mine remain open to the fridge for about 4 hours.

Fire up the Big Green Egg. Get it steady and burning clean at about 220.

I used a remote thermometer to get it close but then tested with my instant read thermoworks for accuracy. Internal temp should be about 150 not much more because you will lose your fat to rendering. 

I would say it took about 1-2 hours. Not real sure because was drinking whiskey.

Pulled these beauties off and put them in the fridge to cool and firm up for slicing. 

I used my serrated sani-safe knife to slice these. I wanted thick cut but this may have been overboard. Honestly, I'm not sure I could have sliced it thinner without a meat slicer. Maybe I'll look into that.

You are welcome.

Verdict:

If you don't have a lot going on in your life and perhaps could use a little help finding someone to love you and treat you well, then look no further. A person who can make and cook their own bacon clearly demonstrates that they have it all figured out and that is an irresistible trait. I'm not suggesting that you MUST name your first child after me but I would understand if you do.

We would love it if you would drop us a note in the comment section and let us know how your cook went. We are always looking for suggestions and improvements! We have opened up the comments so that anyone can post now, so please do. I'll try not to delete anything unless it is spam or stabs me in the heart.

Please help support our site, buy something you like on Amazon. Simply click through the links below and though you can pick anything, I suggest the thermometer and knives below:

So apparently Thermoworks doesn't sell through Amazon anymore. You must buy direct. Still the thermometer to have. Go here and order direct. unfortunately, we don't get a dime for this but still, it is one you want.

Aaron Franklin's Favorite trimming knife:

Dexter-Russell (S131F-6PCP) - 6" Boning Knife - Sani-Safe Series

Decided to add a link to the replacement cap I use on my BGE - this is a great replacement because it sheds water if you get caught in the rain.

Aaron Franklin's Favorite Brisket cutting/serving knife:

Sani-Safe S140-12SC-PCP 12" Scalloped Roast Slicer