Home made fish and chips

Today's post is a very rare treat, as we hardly ever make anything deep fried. But the other day the Culinary Consultant had a craving for fish and chips so I thought why not try and make our own, and it turned out much better than expected!

I can still remember the first time I had fish and chips. My sister spent a while in North London as an exchange student years ago and I went to visit her. I think it musth have been my first time in the UK, and we did all the touristy things you do when you go to London for the first time. I remember one evening after a long day of sight seeing, we came back and stopped by the local chippy. My sister told me the Brits have this thing called fish and chips, and they put vinegar on the chips and that's really odd. I remember us going back to her student accommodation where we ate the fish and chips. After dinner we sat in her tiny little room eating Ben and Jerry's Phish Food straight from the tub while watching The X-factor. It was a great visit, but little did we know at that time that we would both end up living in this country permanently.

I have had my fair share of fish and chips while living here in the UK, but I have to admit it's usually not my first choice. The Culinary Consultant however is rather partial to a bit of fish and chips every now and then, and the bigger the fish, the better. As we live pretty much in the middle of nowhere, it's a bit of a drive to the nearest chippy, not to mention the nearest good chippy. So home-made was the only option when a fish and chip craving set in recently. I have to apologise for the photos, as we are now in the time of year when it simply isn't light at any time when I cook, and it's not like you want to keep your fish and chips hanging around until the next day to wait for daylight...

Fish and chips (serves 2):
Salt and pepper
2-3 fillets of white fish of choice (we used cod fillets)
115 g flour plus extra for dusting
150 ml beer (we used an ale called Theakston's Old Peculiar)
1 tsp baking powder
oil for deep frying

3 large jacket potatoes
2 tbsp olive oil
salt

frozen peas
to serve: vinegar and tomato sauce

The Howto:
Peel the potatoes and cut into chunky chips. Preheat oven to 225 degrees C. Parboil potatoes for about 5-6 minutes and drain. Mix with the olive oil and spread onto a baking sheet. Sprinkle lightly with salt. Place in the pre-heated oven and set the oven timer for 25 minutes.

When the oven timer goes off, your chips will need another 15 or so minutes. During this time, cook the frozen peas and prepare the fish. To prepare the batter, mix the flour, beer and baking powder. Adjust the amount of flour and beer to get a thick batter, about the consistency of thick double cream.  Salt and pepper the fish fillets. We got better results by cutting the fillets up in a few pieces instead of cooking them whole, if you have a proper big deep fryer you might get away with cooking the fish fillets whole. 

Heat oil in a deep fryer or a large saucepan to 190 degrees C. If you don't have a thermometer, you know the oil is hot enough if you put in a small piece of bread and it bubbles away very briskly and the bread turns a golden. If the bubbling is slow, the oil is not hot enough to cook in. Also remember to always keep a lid close when you are deep fry any food, so that you can cover your saucepan in case of an emergency as oil can over heat and catch fire. Cover fish fillets in batter and carefully place them in the oil. Cook for about 4 minutes, making sure to turn them when one side has gone golden brown. This will leave the fish perfectly cooked and the batter lovely golden and crunchy. 

Serve the fish immediately after cooking with chips, peas, vinegar and tomato sauce.

The Verdict:
I've never been a huge fan of fish and chips, but the Culinary Consultant loves getting those huge fish fillets from the local chippy. I have to say I honestly thought our efforts were much better than the chippy we usually go to. Also, I definitely prefer the oven baked chips to the chips from the chippy. With a splash of vinegar and tomato sauce, they are so delicious. The fish also turned out surprisingly good. The batter was actually pretty perfect, it cooked to be golden and very crisp and crunchy. The fish was perfectly cooked, moist and succulent. I wasn't sure how well we would do, cooking fish and chips without a proper deep frier, but it did turn out really delicious, and even the Culinary Consultant said we should definitely do this again.  

On the difference between Scandinavian and non-Scandinavian anchovies

Yes, of course it was a stylistic choice to photograph the dish
 after part of it was removed. It's not like I was eating a serving
 of it and suddenly realised I had forgotten to take a photo...
Not at all, I assure you.

The other day I got a big parcel from the homeland. My Mum sent me some beautiful Finnish design glasses and some Finnish delicacies, like cloudberry jam and Dominos (Finnish Oreos, and they are much better than Oreos by the way). Along with all of the other goodies, she also sent over a few Pirkka magazines. It's the monthly magazine for one of the big grocery store chains, and it always has great recipes for easy, everyday meals. Think along the lines of the free magazines you can pick up in Tesco. So I was browsing through the magazine (ok, to be honest I pretty much read every single word of it, including the advertisements) and was reminded of this great and simple dish I haven't made in ages. 

The name Janssonin kiusaus (Finnish) means Jansson's temptation. Apparently Jansson might have been a Swedish opera singer who lived in the late 19th century, or alternatively the name might have come from a movie called Janssons frestelse (which is the Swedish name for the dish) from 1928. I also learned, when I looked up this dish on Wikipedia, that it is originally made from sprats (I had no idea what sprats were, I had to Wikipedia that too, and it's a small fish). Apparently, the Swedish word for sprats pickled in sugar and spices is anjovis, which has lead to confusion when the recipe has been translated. The thing called anchovies in English is called sardell in Swedish. I'm amazed at all these things you learn when you have to research things you thought you knew.

Anyhow, this whole thing of sprats versus anchovies explained why the things I bought over here called anchovies tasted different from what I thought were anchovies back home. Apparently I have been eating sprats all the time and thinking they are anchovies. And Mum, since you are going to ask anyway, sprats are kilohaili in Finnish and skarpsill in Swedish. It's picked in spices including cinnamon, black pepper, bay leaf, cloves, oregano, cardamom, allspice and sandalwood. So no wonder it just didn't taste quite right when I used UK anchovies.

One thing I do know for a fact is that Janssonin kiusaus is usually served as night food. You know, the type of thing which is served way past midnight when the party is at it's best and everyone is drunk and need something really salty and flavourful to soak up the alcohol. I have often seen it served at New Year's parties, or at weddings which have gone on into the wee hours. But it makes a great lunch or dinner, and above all, it is both super easy to make and really cheap as well. And obviously it scales really easily to serve more people.

Janssonin kiusaus (serves 4):
5-6 potatoes
1 big onion
1 tin of pickled sprats or alternatively anchovies if you don't happen to be in Finland or Sweden (mine was about 120g including the oil)
1.5 dl single cream
1.5 dl milk
black pepper

The howto:
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C. Chop the onion and cut the potatoes into thin strips (first cut into slices, and then into strips). Mix the onions and potatoes, and layer half of them in an oven proof dish. Layer the sprats (or anchovies) next, and cover with the rest of the potato and onion mixture. Mix the brine/oil from the sprats/anchovies with the cream, milk and pepper and pour over the potatoes. Cook in the oven for about 50-60 minutes, until the potatoes have softened. 

The verdict:
One thing I have learned today is that not all anchovies are created equal. The Finnish/Swedish variety, which isn't even anchovies in the first place, is much tastier than regular anchovies. However, you shouldn't let that keep you from trying out this dish. It has a bit of the right flavour, it's not just as intensive as it would be if it was made from the right stuff. It's still a nice hearty meal. And most of us should include more fish in our diet, and this is a great way to include a fish you don't usually eat (at least I assume most people don't regularly eat anchovies, but please correct me if I'm wrong). And last but not least, Mum could you send over a few tins of Finnish anchovies the next time you are sending over a parcel so I can make the dish properly. Thanks!

Orange and harissa glazed mackerel

I know it's been ages since my last blog post. I have to admit, I am still all wrapped up in other things, and feel like I'm too busy to cook. Which obviously is an illusion, as I eat something every day, so I do cook something. But it's mostly my usual carrots-tomatoes-sweet peppers-salmon/chicken salad. And then I come home at night and eat the most incredible crap. I have been using my current life situation as an excuse to live such an unhealthy life, and I have put on tons of weight. But that has to change soon. I'm all out of excuses now. I have spent the last few months first worrying about finding a new job, then applying for jobs, then doing assessment exercises, and then going to interviews. And finally, this week I have signed a new contract and resigned from my current job. I still have a move possibly coming up, but other than that, it's back to routines for me. 

I don't have any new exciting recipes yet, although hopefully I will get around to cooking something really soon. To be honest, I do have a funny little concoction going in the slow cooker, but that is no culinary wonder, it's just a mix of stuff I have had hanging around in my kitchen and really needed to use up. Back in the good old days, when I was still motivated to cook and try new things, I made this orange glazed mackerel. I am in such a fish rut, all I eat is salmon. I really need to make this agan, it was rather good. The recipe is from BBC Good Food and I have modified it slightly. It's really quick and easy, and the orange and harissa gives it a great flavour of sweet and spicy.

Orange and harissa glazed mackerel (serves 2):
1 mackerel 
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp virgin coconut oil
1 small orange, juice and zest
1-2 tsp harissa paste
50 g pine nuts, toasted (if you can be bothered, I couldn't)
chopped corianer

Fillet the mackerel, and sprinkle with the paprika. Mix orange juice, zest and harissa paste in a small bowl. Heat a frying pan with the coconut oil, and add fish. Cook the fish for a few minutes on both sides. Add the glaze and let bubble until sticky. Sprinkle with pine nuts and coriander right before serving. 

The verdict:
I really liked this recipe, it was very different from what I would usually make. The flavours go really well together and the sweetness from the orange juice and zest compliment the harissa really well. I really like mackerel, but if you buy smoked mackerel it has so much added salt. Preparing your fish from scratch yourself will help you keep it much healthier, and although it seems like a lot of work to fillet the fish, it really isn't. Yes, it's a bit yucky, but it's totally worth it!

Card of the day:

Today the card of the day is a colourful birthday card for a friend. I used Tim Holtz distress embossing ink to randomly stamp two Hobbycraft Mini Clear Stamps (Daisy and Thistle) onto Hobbycraft ivory cardstock. I then heat embossed using Ranger Super Fine Detail clear embossing powder and cut the figure into five strips. I applied Tim Holtz distress inks wild honey, worn lipstick, dusty concord, broken china and peeled paint using a foam applicator for the background to bring out the stamped images. I attached it all onto black card stock and used two ribbons, a wider clear and a smaller white with silver borders for the detail and the bow. I attached it all onto Craft UK kraft cardstock and sprayed with a perfect pearl mist. Super easy and colourful card which was very easy to make. I will certainly use this technique in the future as well.