Fish n' Chips
Michelle Phetlhe | Tuesday February 1, 2022 06:00
I remember the portions being really generous and it was a hearty meal. I kick myself every time I think back to my varsity years in Cape Town (a coastal region) when I had an opportunity to explore sea food and just didn't. It took me being back in my own landlocked backyard at home to realise I let an amazing chance slip though my fingers. I could have tried crab, lobster, even snoek, but instead I always played it safe and only had seafood at one of the very franchises (name withheld) we too have here at home, ordering a seafood platter with calamari, prawns, hake and rice ALL THE TIME, mo eleng gore motho ne a ka nna a nthaya a re HEY!! O Motswana tota, o ja tsone tse o di itseng fela. Landlocked as we are, there is quite the fishing community here at home. I know a couple of avid fishermen; Owen Rampha, Ak Segopa and Bob Hirschfeld to name but a few, that share their hook line and sinker lifestyles online for us to live vicariously through. I would love to pick their brains about the different edible types/species one can get fishing in our dams, streams and rivers. I can imagine quite a variety is available as some rivers flow from our neighbouring countries and we share quite a number of flora, fauna and marine life. Come to think of it, lona bo mme, where are you in this community? My Aunty Happy and her husband Billy are in town visiting from the UK and it reminds me of our Manchester visit to their wedding with mom and my sisters. I prepared a Fish and Chips for lunch the other day, coincidentally just before visiting them. I should have taken some for them to taste and get a rating, especially from Billy who is a Briton originally from Scotland. Generally I am not a fan of canned or frozen food stuff, but I can confidently say Natures Garden Frozen Chips and Vegetables are quite a fresh tasting product that has managed to convince me otherwise, and they pair so well with any fried fish.
INGREDIENTS
For the Fish:
7 tablespoons (55 grams) flour
7 tablespoons (55 grams) corn flour
1 teaspoon baking powder Salt, to taste
1 pinch freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/3 cup striped horse beer, cold
1/3 cup water, cold
4 fish hake fillets (thick, white fish)
Mix the remaining flour with the corn-starch and baking powder. Season lightly with a tiny pinch of salt and pepper. Using a fork to whisk continuously, add the beer and the sparkling water to the flour mixture and continue mixing until you have a thick, smooth batter. Place the batter in the fridge to rest for between 30 minutes and 1 hour.
Place the 2 tablespoons of flour reserved from the batter mix into a shallow bowl. Toss each fish fillet in the flour and shake off any excess Check the oil temperature with the back of a wooden spoon, look for fine bubbles. Carefully lower each fillet into the hot oil. Fry for approximately eight minutes, or until the batter is crisp and golden, turning the fillets from time to time with a large spoon.
For the Chips:
INGREDIENTS
1 packet Natures Garden Frozen Chips Drizzle Willow Creek Olive Oil
1 Tbs Hinds Chip Spice Salt and pepper to taste
INSTRUCTIONS Preheat oven to 200 degrees Cover baking sheet with foil (Optional step but it does make clean up easier) Spread the fries out across the baking sheet Pour oil and season all salt onto the baking sheet with the fries Using your hands, mix the oil, seasoning and salt well. Spread the chips out so that they are not touching as much as possible. Sprinkle with a small bit of additional salt and pepper according to taste. Bake at 200 degrees for about 20 minutes