Fish On A Stick

► by Brad Fenson

White, flaky, steaming hot fish coated in a batter fried to a crunchy crescendo is hard to beat. Successful Alberta anglers pursuing walleye, northern pike, yellow perch, burbot, and even whitefish can plan a Wild Rose Country fish and chips dinner.

Deep-fried fish stays incredibly moist. The cooking process creates a war between the oil in the pot and the moisture in the fish, because the oil will not let the moisture out of the flesh and vice versa.

There are two rules when making fish batter. Firstly, milk makes soft batter, and transparent liquid (like beer or even water) makes a crisp batter. Secondly, the frying oil temperature should stay between 350°F and 375°F to prevent the batter from absorbing the fats. The high temperature allows the fish to cook quickly and prevents it from tasting or feeling greasy.

Quizzing professional chefs has provided insight into the perfect fish batter: thin and

crisp, with a hint of spice. A great trick comes from west coast fishing guide Jason Frank, who taught me to put a bamboo skewer through each serving of fish. The sticks make an excellent handle when lowering the fish into the oil, and later when eating it. Slowly lowering the fish into the oil allows the batter to form a shell quickly, so the pieces don’t stick together or to the cooking vessel.

TIP: The easiest way to add a crunch to the batter is by adding rice flour. Wheat flour has gluten proteins, which create long strands within the batter or dough. Reducing the gluten and shortening the connective strands creates a crispy crunch that is audible around the dinner table. People with gluten intolerance could make a batter entirely out of rice flour. For this recipe, I used equal parts of regular wheat and rice flour in the batter.

Ingredients

•2 lbs fish fillets, boneless and skinned

• canola or peanut oil for deep frying

Dredge

• ¼ cup all-purpose flour

• ¼ cup rice flour

Fish Batter

• ½ cup all-purpose flour

• ½ cup rice flour

• 1 tsp salt

• ½ tsp ground black pepper

• ½ tsp smoked paprika

• ¼ tsp cumin

• ¼ tsp oregano

• ¼ tsp ground nutmeg

• ¼ tsp cayenne (optional)

• 1 large egg, lightly beaten

• 1 ¼ cups beer (lager or pilsner)

Directions

1. Prepare the fish by cutting into servingsize pieces six to eight centimetres long and half as wide. Dredge fish pieces in the flours, and run a bamboo skewer through the length of each fillet.

2. Next, prepare the batter. Combine the flours, salt, pepper, smoked paprika, cumin, oregano, nutmeg, and cayenne in a medium bowl. I enjoy using spices from High Caliber Products—their spices are fresh and they’re an Alberta-based company.

3. Whisk the egg and beer together in a small bowl. Slowly add it to the dry ingredients, whisking vigorously until all lumps dissolve.

4. Prepare a deep fryer and bring oil to 375°F. (A Camp Chef cast-iron Dutch oven works well to fry fish—it holds even heat and doesn’t require as much oil.)

5. Set the skewered fish into the batter and spoon the batter over until covered. Let excess batter drip off. Insert the fish into the oil by holding one end of the skewer. Submerge the fish slowly and prevent it from sticking to the bottom by allowing a crust to form first.

6. Fry for three to four minutes, depending on the thickness of the fillets. The batter should be golden brown on all sides. Remove fish from oil and let each piece drain on a wire rack for 15 seconds. Serve immediately with a wedge of lemon or tartar sauce.