Beer Batter
I'm having trouble with my fish and chips beer batter. I just can't seem to get the same result each time I fry the fish. The batter either just comes off the fish when put in the fryer or it crisps on the outside and soggy in the inside, and other times it comes out fine. I was thinking of just switching over to breaded fish. Anyone have any suggestions, I got time now to play with different ideas now that my restaurant is in it's off season.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Tyrone Sadorsky on -
What is your current recipe? Do you follow it to a tee everytime? The thing about beer batter is the ratio to baking powder and salt has to be right or it will either go dark faster or not go golen at all. I usually use this simple recipe-
1 Cup of Flour
1 Cup of Beer
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 egg.
Try that see if that helps.
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Permalink Reply by William on -
Hey Cody, Maybe this might help.
Beer Batter
56 fl oz flour or your own blend of flour mixture
1.5 fl oz corn starch
3 fl oz baking powder
1.5 tbsp salt
1 tbsp black pepper
1.75 lt cold fresh light beer (coors light)
4 med egg
Mix all dry ingredient together then cold light beer (do not use leftover or flat beer) and mix in egg last one at a time (mix-well). Let stand 2-5min before frying. Make sure the fish is 100% thaw and drain (semi dry) before coating with flour and batter. Fry fish @ 375 F and make sure oil/grease is clean before frying for the best result. This recipe is yeilds 4.5lt of beer batter.
Good Luck !!!
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Permalink Reply by Dave on -
I used to pay attention to the temp of the food product (within reason) and giving the deep fryer time to recover especially whenever you do items that can really bring down the temp of the fat.Batch after batch after batch can ultimately lower the average temp of your fryer and give a slightly to very noticeable difference in quality control of the product Fish-n-Chips to me is one of those.... when trying to do it to order it can be tricky, during the rush or for short busy periods. Solutions I've seen used in the past included 1. Dusting/dredging the product prior to dipping in batter will help the batter to adhere to the food product. 2. Prep for the rush, meaning we would blanch the fish under controlled conditions we knew worked all the time then carefully drain and set aside. After taking menu item counts for a couple months we knew in advance within reason how many battered fish orders we needed and prepped just enough. Maybe we might have to do some to order late in the rush or at the end of the night but we never carried the stuff over. It was always served within a few hours. Once when I was a supervising chef @ a hospital we used the "Ready-Foods System" to make beer battered fishwe were using col-flo (highly refined corn starch) and rice flour and came out with exceptional results! As good as any frozen product you could find anywhere today, and we did this 24 years ago.If your demand for battered fish is going so well you may want to consider replacing your current fryer with a larger model or adding another smaller model to deal with the busy crunch times. Buy a good used fryer too instead a new one. There are so few moving parts that the good ones were built to last making the new ones not quite so practical imo
The problems you describe( to me) are directly related to variable oil temps and inconsistencies in batter preparation. Be a monster with your methods, follow them religiously and you'll get heavenly results. Good luck!
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Permalink Reply by Chef Mick on -
I use beer batter for fish and chips as well as onion rings and this recipe works very well for me. It is simple and has a good shelf life (5-6 hours). The soda water keeps the batter light.
4 c. flour-ap
1.5 t salt
.5 t white pepper
2 c beer, i use coors light or miller lite
1.5 c soda water
1 T season salt( we have a homemade spicy seasoned salt that we use but I guess Lawry's would work)
depending on the flour, you may have to add a little more beer and soda water.
mix the dry and combine the 2 liquids then add to the dry mix. Stir to combine but don't over work.
dust the fish in seasoned flour then dredge in the batter.
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Permalink Reply by Tami Ivey on
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Try using a dark beer that seems to help for me and it tastes better. When I go iunto the kitchen I will get you the exact recipe.
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Permalink Reply by mary hink on -
fish and chips is the main item on my menu we use egg wash make sure if fish is frozen you rub it a lttle in the wash to get ice crystals off then use a flour based breading and refreeze fish make your batter and keep fish frozen til you cook it just batter and throw in fryer for approx 7 to 8 mins for 2-3 oz fish usually works the best if you let fish refreeze with breading on it for at least 12 hrs to one day chicken fry mix works really well as a breading and gives slight but good flavor to fish and batter
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Permalink Reply by Carla Dougherty on
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Have you tried Mrs. Friday's Beer Battered Fillets? They are made with Sam Adams Boston lager. Because they are pre-battered, you fry them from frozen and they come out perfect everytime. Not mushy or doughy at all. Best of all, it won't mess up your fryer oil!
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Permalink Reply by mark waldron on -
totally agree... buy the fish .. with time saved make a yummy cole slaw and tweak a pasta or potato salad from scratch....
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Permalink Reply by John on -
I agree. Most restaurant cole slaws are crap! Do you have any recipes you are willing to share?
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Permalink Reply by Lynda Pasher on
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Check out www.recipezarr.ca They have a good seletion of recipes that you would find interesting.
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Permalink Reply by Ron on -
Here is a recipe from Tyler Florence that uses Rice Flour. It also includes a recipe for homemade tarter sauce.
You can find the recipe here and watch a video with Tyler Florcence.
Fish and Chips
vegetable oil, for deep frying
rice flour for dredging
2 8 oz haddock filets (or cod fish fillets) cut in 1/2 on an angle
4 large russet potatoes
1 3/4 cup rice flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 bottle (12 oz) beer, pale ale or lager works well
Tarter Sauce
1 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon capers, chopped
1 tablespoon cornichons, chopped
2 tablespoons flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
1 tablespoon tarragon, finely chopped
1/2 lemon, juiced
Lemon wedges, for serving
Cooking Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 F.
Bake potatoes on a tray in hot oven for 30-45 minutes -- until knife-tender. This can be done the night before or ahead of time. Cut each potato into 6 or 8 wedges depending on the size.
Heat 3 inches of oil in a deep fryer or a deep pot to 375 F. Begin by frying half the wedges at a time for 4 to 5 minutes until crispy and brown. Take out and drain.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the rice flour, baking powder and salt. Make a well in the center and gradually pour in the beer whilst whisking to combine the dry ingredients and forming a smooth batter. Spread the rice flour for dredging on a plate. Dredge the fish pieces in the rice flour and then dip them into the batter, letting the excess drip off.
Submerge the battered fish into the bubbling oil for 4 to 5 minutes until crispy and brown. Remove and drain the fish with the chips on paper towels; season lightly with salt.
Serve wrapped in a newspaper cone with lemon wedges and/or tartar sauce.
To prepare the tartar sauce, combine all tartar sauce ingredients in a small mixing bowl. Makes about 1-1/4 cups. Chill before serving to let the flavors combine. Serve with fish and chips and some fresh lemon wedges.
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