Fish and Chips

Ingredients

For Fish:

2	cups flour (Half recipe: 1 cup)
1	tablespoon baking powder (Half recipe: 1½ teaspoons)
1	teaspoon kosher salt (Half recipe: ½ teaspoon)
¼	teaspoon cayenne pepper (Half recipe: ½ teaspoon)
	Dash Old Bay Seasoning (Half recipe: 1 teaspoon)
1	bottle brown beer, cold (Half recipe: 6 ounces)
1½	pounds firm-fleshed whitefish (tilapia, pollock, cod), cut into 1-ounce strips
	Cornstarch, for dredging

For Chips:

1	gallon safflower oil
4	large Russet potatoes (Half recipe: 2)
	Kosher salt

Directions

1. Prepare chips and batter for fish one hour in advance:
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil
2. Cut potatoes into long sticks, ½" on each side, 12 sticks (chips) per potato.
3. Submerge chips in boiling water and boil for 8 minutes.
4. Careful to avoid breaking chips, remove from water into a strainer and run cold water over them to stop the cooking. Thoroughly drain the chips and place uncovered on a plate in the refrigerator for at least one hour.
5. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cayenne pepper, and Old Bay seasoning. Whisk in the beer until the batter is completely smooth and free of any lumps. Refrigerate at least 15 minutes, up to one hour.
2. Heat oven to 170 degrees F.
3. Heat the safflower oil in a 5-quart Dutch oven over high heat until it reaches 375 degrees. (Or use a Fry-Daddy or other deep fryer.)
4. Fry chips in oil until crisp and golden brown, about 5 minutes. (Fry in batches if necessary, don't over-crowd your fryer.) Remove and drain on a roasting rack. Season with kosher salt while hot and hold in the oven.
5. Allow oil to return to 350 degrees. Lightly dredge fish strips in cornstarch. Working in small batches, dip the fish into batter and immerse in hot oil. When the batter is set, turn the pieces of fish over and cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Drain the fish on the roasting rack. Serve with malt vinegar, lemon, tartar sauce, and/or ketchup.

Source

Adapted from Alton Brown - Good Eats, Season 2 Episode 10, Fry Hard