IPA-Battered Fish and Chips Recipe on Food52 (2024)

FAQs

Can I use IPA for beer battered fish? ›

This traditional pub food gets a twist, as the beer batter has a hoppy IPA added to it. There's also a recipe for homemade chips included as well. Tartar sauce, aioli, and malt vinegar.

It's the fish batter used by all the best fish 'n chips shops. Here's what makes beer batter so good: Yeast and carbonation in beer acts like yeast in bread, making the batter go puffy as it cooks so it's thin and light rather than thick and greasy.

Ingredients For Homemade Beer Battered Fish

Beer – Beer is what makes this batter fluffy and crispy at the same time.

Made with all-natural, wild-caught Alaska Pollock, the fillets are coated in a light, crispy batter made with Hop Valley's Kraken Stash IPA, a hoppy, flavorful beer that adds a delicious depth of flavor. Each piece deep-fries to a mouthwatering golden brown and delivers a great crunchy texture.

Swap the beer for soda

Found among the beer and wine, but lacking the alcohol, is the perfect swap for beer battered fish: club soda. Full of bubbles due to its carbonation, club soda can give the same lightness to a batter as beer would.

Use a Cooling Rack – You worked hard (ok, not too hard) to get that crispy fish coating, don't lose it by setting the fish on paper towels or newspapers to drain. This action will cause steam to form between the fish and the coating, making your fried fish quickly lose that crisp coating.

Alcohol evaporates faster than water, so a beer batter doesn't have to cook as long as one made only with water or milk. The faster the batter dries, the lower the risk of overcooking the food. If the chef works fast enough, he can create a beautiful lacework in the coating that yields that classic beer-batter crunch.

Beer Batter Ingredients

These are the simple ingredients you'll need to make this basic beer batter recipe: Flour: This homemade beer batter starts with all-purpose flour. Cornstarch: Cornstarch ensures an extra crispy, light fry every time. Egg: An egg creates a more delicate crust and helps seal in moisture.

Rice flour and cornstarch work particularly well because they fry up crispier than wheat flour. They also absorb less moisture and fat during the frying process, making the products less greasy. This is why rice flour is often used when making tempura because it produces a very thin and crispy, dry crust.

How do you get batter to stick to fish? ›

Milk: The proteins in milk help the batter adhere to the fish and promote browning. Water: Use very cold water for the crispiest results. Baking powder: Baking powder ensures a light and crispy exterior. Salt: A teaspoon of salt enhances the overall flavor of the fish batter.

Use the freshest fish—When making this classic version, be sure to use the freshest cod, pollock, or haddock that you can find for the best results. Frozen fish is also fine, but make sure it is thoroughly defrosted and dried with paper towels first.

What do beer battered fish, Bolognese sauce and tiramisu have in common? The answer is their recipes contain alcohol. Most people know that alcohol is not Halal for Muslims to consume.

Stir in enough club soda to make a batter about the consistency of thin pancake batter. You don't want it too thick, just thick enough to nicely coat a spoon. Season the batter to taste if desired with seasoning of your choice.

There is no definitive answer to this question, as different beers will impart different flavors to the batter. However, a light, mildly flavored beer is generally a good option for fish batter. If you want to avoid using beer altogether, you can substitute sparkling water or club soda.

Different beers will yield varied flavors. I like a robust beer, like an IPA or stout, but any American light lager (Coors Light, Bud Light, Miller Lite, etc.) works great, too. Fish with white fillets are ideal for beer batter.

Substitutes for Beer in Fish Batter

Seltzer water and nonalcoholic beer such as O'Doul's Amber make suitable substitutes for beer when cooking crispy battered fish. The distinct difference in flavor, however, is a good reason to stick with the favorite and make beer battered fish.