Fish & Chip

Serves: 2
Preparation Time: 30 minutes

200g (2 pieces) Codfish Fillet – Substitute with other fish if unavailable
300g Potatoes – Cut into 1cm slices, or substitute with ready-packed fries
100g Green Peas
1 Litre Cooking Oil – Substitute with Sunflower Oil or other vegetable oils for healthier alternative
15g (1 Tbsp) Unsalted Butter
10g (2 tsp) Salt – 1 tsp for fish, 1 tsp for fries

Lemon wedge optional but highly recommended.

Batter
300g All purpose flour
5g (1 tsp) Salt
10g (1 Tbsp)Baking Powder
5g (1 tsp) Vji Brand MSG
5g (1 tsp) Vji Brand Pepper Powder
360ml Cold Water

Preparation Method:

1. In a bowl, mix the Batter ingredients together until smooth and without lumps. Put inside chiller for air bubbles to settle.

2. Clean the fish fillets and pat dry with kitchen towel (liquid absorbent thick tissue paper). Spread 5g (1 tsp) of salt evenly over the fish fillets. Put aside.

3. In a pot, boil the green peas with water for around 2 minutes. Discard water, mash the peas together with 15g (1 Tbsp) of unsalted butter while still hot with a masher (or a fork if unavailable).

4. In another pot, if using fresh potatoes, boil the potatoes slices for around 5 minutes. Discard water and let them steam dry. *If using ready-packed fries, ignore this step*

5. In a deep pot, heat up the cooking oil or substitute oil for frying, to approximate 180 degrees celcius.

6. Take out the batter from the chiller. Test for oil temperature using a few drops of batter. If batter sticks to the bottom of the pot, the oil is too cold; The batter should float to the top almost immediately, but not brown immediately.

7. Dust the fish with a thin layer of flour. Dip the fish fillets into the batter, getting a good coating on, then slowly lower the fish into the oil.

8. The fish should be done cooking in around 5 minutes, or when the fish floats to the top of the oil, and the outer coating gets to a golden brown. Remove from oil immediately, and place on kitchen towels (liquid absorbent thick tissue paper) to remove excess oil.

9. Skim off the extra bits of batter broken off from frying the fish. Using the same oil, deep fry the potatoes (or fries).

10. The fries are done when they get all crispy and golden brown on the outside, and will float on the top of the oil.

11. Drain off excess oil with kitchen towel once done, and assemble together with the fish and mashed peas on a plate. Add in an extra wedge of lemon for extra color and flavor.