How to Make Classic Fish and Chips at Home, According to a British Chef

In the tiny Scottish town of St. Andrews, where I went to university, there’s a chippy—a fish and chip shop—called the Tailend. Whenever friends visited from out of town, I’d bring them there for a proper fish supper of fried haddock, a pile of crisp, fluffy chips, and deliciously savory mushy peas. Though people often knock British food for its bland, beige nature, properly made fish and chips are truly delicious: The fish is well-seasoned, the batter is crisp, and there’s a nice hit of acid from the malt vinegar used to season the fish after it's fried. 

Because good fish and chips can be hard to find outside the UK, I’ve often resorted to making my own. There is, however, one restaurant in New York City that excels at making the British classic: Dame in Greenwich Village, an English seafood restaurant co-owned by Ed Szymanski and Patricia Howard. Coated in a crispy, airy batter, fried until light golden, then spritzed with malt vinegar, each bite is gloriously crunchy and tender, with just enough zing. To find out how to make the very best fish and chips at home, I recently spoke with Szymanski, whose method is inspired by the British chef Heston Blumenthal of the famous modern British restaurant Fat Duck in Bray. Though the recipe below is not Szymanski’s or Blumenthal’s, it has plenty of chef-approved tips and tricks that will help you make restaurant-worthy fish and chips at home.

Prepping the Fish

Get to know your fishmonger. “You need to source really good fish to make good fish and chips,” says Szymanski. “You cannot make great food with crappy ingredients. That’s just not to be done, especially not with seafood.” The best way to ensure you're starting with quality fish is to find a fishmonger you trust. If you live near the coast, I recommend sourcing local fresh fish, and if you can't get fresh (never-frozen) fish, you're better off buying frozen fish and thawing it yourself.

At Dame, Szymanski prepares fish and chips with hake, a white-fleshed fish with a similar flavor and texture to cod that’s available locally along the northwest Atlantic coast. In addition to hake, Szymanski recommends other white fish, including haddock and plaice. Though cod is often a popular choice for fish and chips, overfishing has led to a huge decline in the species’ population—one of the reasons Szymanski does not serve it in his restaurant. However, according to the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch, it is possible to find sustainable cod, and it will work well in this recipe if you do have access to it. (Seafood sustainability is a complicated beast, and the best things you can do are shop from a trusted fishmonger and do your research.)

Whatever you do, stick to meaty, mild, and flaky white fish—just not tilapia, which Szmanski deems "terrible." (Many chefs and home cooks agree, citing the sometimes-questionable conditions in which tilapia is farmed and its often muddy flavor.) Szymanski also advises against using fatty fish such as salmon and trout, which may make an already rich meal unpleasantly heavy.

Dry brine the fish. You don’t want to put a wet product into a batter to fry,” says Szymanski. “Moisture is sort of your enemy here.” That's because when you coat wet fish in a batter and fry it, excess moisture gets trapped between the crust and the fish, creating an unpleasantly soggy bite. The solution is to dry brine—which is as simple as salting and resting the fish for four to eight hours. This process draws out excess moisture and seasons the fish throughout.

Getting the Batter Right

At Dame, the fish have a crispy crust with plenty of craggy edges and minuscule nooks and crannies. Achieving this ideal crust starts with using both all-purpose flour and rice flour in the batter, adding a touch of baking powder, and incorporating plenty of beer and vodka, according to Szymanski. 

As is the case with tender cakes and cookies, too much gluten in the batter can result in a tough and chewy coating around the fish. Rice flour is naturally gluten-free and has a low protein content, which minimizes the risk of gluten development and produces a crisp, tender coating. Rice flour also absorbs less oil than wheat flour, helping the fried fish seem less greasy than fish fried in a batter made predominantly with wheat flour. 

Baking powder aerates the batter and helps it puff up, forming a delicate lace around the fish. The pantry staple is a combination of alkali sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) and acidic tartaric acid. When incorporated into a batter and moistened, the two produce a chemical reaction that generates carbon dioxide, which helps aerate batters and doughs.

Like the baking powder, beer helps aerate the batter—but it also flavors it. “You want it to taste a little bit like beer, but not too much,” Szymanski explains. He recommends using a light, flavorful lager such as Narrangansett, which is what they use at Dame. India pale ales and stout give the batter an unpleasant bitterness, and English cask ales don’t have enough carbonation to properly aerate the batter, Szymanski says. In my testing, I also found that pilsner gave the fish a slightly bitter flavor. Use cold beer—as former Serious Eats Kenji touched on in his fried fish sandwich recipe, cold liquids hold their carbonation better, and also help limit gluten development.

As for the vodka, any kind you have on hand will do. There are several reasons why vodka is a secret ingredient in a batter for frying: First, it evaporates more quickly than water. (Ethanol evaporates at 175°F/79°C, while water evaporates at 212°F/100°C.) Because it takes less time for the vodka to evaporate, it’s possible for the batter to crisp and brown more quickly than batter made with water or ingredients like milk that are primarily water—and reduces the risk of the fish overcooking. According to food science writer Harold McGee, vodka also helps limit the amount of gluten that can develop in the batter by dissolving some of the all-purpose flour’s gluten proteins. 

How to Fry the Fish

“Mise en place” is French for “put in place,” and while it’s important for everyday cooking, it’s crucial when you’re working with a batter and hot oil. Before you begin, nestle a wire rack inside a 13- by 18-inch rimmed baking sheet—this will be for your fried fish—then set up your bowls of flour and batter. I’m right-handed, and I find it easiest to keep the fish and batter to the left of my oil and have the prepared baking sheet to the right of the oil so I’m working from left to right. Keep an eye on your oil at all times and use an instant-read or deep-fry thermometer to check its temperature frequently. (If you have a thermometer that clips to your pot, now is the time to use it.) When the oil reaches 350°F (175°C), you’re ready to fry—the hot oil is key, as it ensures the batter cooks and crisps up right away. To prevent the fish from becoming soggy, it’s essential to let it sit on a wire rack to cool slightly before serving instead of placing it on a plate. (This technique is key for a great grilled cheese and many other foods, too).

Malt Vinegar Is a Must

Malt vinegar is the classic fish and chip condiment. Most chippies will just drizzle it over your food or provide a bottle for you to add it yourself. At Dame, however, Szymanski uses a spray bottle to spritz his fish and chips with malt vinegar, which evenly coats the food in vinegar without turning it soggy. I asked what he’d recommend for those who don’t own a spray bottle at home. “They could go to a CVS and buy one,” he said with a chuckle.

After trying both the traditional method of drizzling vinegar over the fish and Szymanski’s spritzer method, I can confirm that the spritz bottle is indeed the best way to evenly coat your food with malt vinegar. Because the bottle aerosolizes the vinegar, the vinegar is able to cover more surface area, ensuring each bite has a hit of acid. It’s worth investing in a bottle—beyond fish and chips, it’s also handy for seasoning potato chips, French fries, and other foods. But if you don’t have a spray bottle, just use a teaspoon or a small measuring cup to drizzle the vinegar over your food. It’ll still be delicious—just a touch soggier.

Using paper towels, pat fish fillets dry and lightly season each fillet all over with salt. Place fish fillets on a wire rack set in a 13- by 18-inch rimmed baking sheet and refrigerate uncovered to dry out exterior, at least 4 hours and up to 8 hours.

When ready to cook, set a wire rack inside a 13- by 18-inch rimmed baking sheet. Fill a large Dutch oven with oil and heat over medium until it registers 350ºF (177ºC) on an instant-read or deep-fry thermometer. Place 1 cup (4 1/2 ounces) all-purpose flour in a large bowl; add fish and toss to evenly coat; set aside.

For the Batter: In a medium bowl, whisk 1/2 cup (2 1/4 ounces) all-purpose flour, rice flour, baking powder, and 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt to combine. Add lager and vodka, whisking until just combined. Transfer fish to batter and turn to coat.

Working with one piece at a time, pick up fillet and allow excess batter to drip back into bowl. Carefully lower fish into the oil and cook until bottom is golden brown, about 2 minutes. Use tongs or a spider skimmer to turn the fish and cook until other side is golden brown and crisp, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to prepared wire rack. Season immediately with salt and spritz generously with malt vinegar. Repeat with remaining fish. Serve with British chips and tartar sauce, if desired.

Special Equipment

13- by 18-inch rimmed baking sheet, wire rack, instant-read or deep-fry thermometer, whisk, spider skimmer or tongs

Make-Ahead and Storage

Fish and chips are best enjoyed immediately.