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Gordon Ramsay certainly wasn’t slacking during lockdown.
The TV chef shared quick 10-minute cooking tutorials from his home, filmed (and heavily critiqued) by his three daughters Megan, Holly and Matilda, with an occasional guest appearance from one-year-old “sous chef” Oscar.
His fish and chip recipe, which he managed to cook in just 10 minutes, is the perfect way to celebrate National Fish and Chips Day – expect light and crispy beer-battered fish with proper chips. Oh, and a side serving of shade from his daughters.
You will need:
For the fish and chips:
- 120g self raising flour and additional flour to coat the fish with
- 175g white fleshed fish (like cod)
- 1 medium egg white
- 160ml (1/2 cup or just under half a bottle) light beer or lager
- 1 large waxy potato, peeled
- Sunflower oil
- Salt
- 1 tsp curry powder
- 1 tsp baking powder
For the tartare sauce:
- Tablespoon of gherkins (chopped)
- 50g of crème fraîche
- 200g mayo
- 3/4 of a shallot, diced
- A teaspoon of lemon juice
- A splash of hot sauce (optional).
Ramsay’s method:
You can watch the video above to see exactly how Ramsay did it – or read the instructions below.
Heat the oil in a large frying pan (or saucepan) on a medium-high heat. But don’t use too much oil, he says, as the aim is to shallow fry, not deep fry. Aim to have an oil depth of a couple of centimetres.
Grab a bowl and whisk together the 120g flour, tsp baking soda, tsp curry powder and 160ml beer.
In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until there are stiff peaks, adding a bit of salt part of the way through. Fold the egg whites into the batter mix once they’re ready. If the batter is too heavy, add some water. “You want the batter dropping through the whisk,” says Ramsay.
Pop your additional flour into a bowl and add a teaspoon of curry powder to it for a bit more flavour (this bit is optional). Season the fish with salt and then coat it with the flour.
Knock off the excess flour and put the fish into the batter mixture. Make sure the fish is fully covered in batter and then put it in the frying pan.
Get a spoon and baste the fish with the hot oil from the side of the pan (watch the video for the proper technique). Let the first side cook until it’s golden brown, then flip it and baste the other side. Take the pan on and off the hob so that the oil doesn’t get too hot throughout the cooking process. All in all, the fish should take about three to three-and-a-half minutes to cook. Once it’s done, put it on a paper towel on a plate (to soak up the oil) and stick it in a warm oven.
Now for the chips! Ramsay shows us how you should chop your potato into a square to give you a chance at easily slicing it into skinny fries – the thinner, the better. Dry off the fries with a paper towel to remove any excess moisture. Then add them to the pan (you can use the same oil) and cook the potatoes at a high heat – again, shallow frying them.
Once the fries are a lovely shade of golden brown, remove them from the oil, place on a paper towel, and then transfer to a plate, adding salt.
Grab the tartare sauce ingredients and mix them together in a bowl. Add some salt to taste.
Pop it all on a plate and enjoy.
You can also catch Ramsay making carbonara, Mediterranean sea bass and a stir fry, all in 10 minutes, over on his YouTube channel.