A Very British Dinner: Fish, Chips & Mushy Peas
Oh mah gah. My best friend from college, Ms. Pickle Oblath, is British. She’s introduced me to things I never thought I’d try, and when my sister and I went to visit her back in the Summer of 2006, she introduced me to one of my most favorite foods in the whole world - mushy peas. I can’t tell you how disappointed I get with “authentic” British pubs and chippys in the US, simply because they don’t have mushy peas. A good friend of ours in Portland told me recently there’s a place in Lake Oswego that has them, but my pledge to not leave Portland until I go somewhere cool (besides the Beave, because that’s where Target is… and also a few friends…) has prevented me from venturing out there. I had the day off today and just decided that I wanted to make this, and the adventure began.
Ingredients and Method:
For the Fish -
- 2 lbs white fish (I used cod because it was on sale, but usually prefer haddock)
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 2 T milk
- 12 oz lager (according to every British recipe I read, Kronenbourg 1664 is best)
- 1/2 C flour
- 1/2 C cornmeal
- 1 C breadcrumbs (I made my own with 4 pieces of bread, salt, pepper, and paprika)
Preheat the oven to 400°. Grease the pan you’ll be using to make cleanup easier.
Combine eggs, milk, and beer in a medium bowl. Combine flour, breadcrumbs, and a bit of salt and pepper in another.
Make an “assembly line”: flour mixture, egg mixture, breadcrumbs, and follow the order to batter the fish.
Place the fish in the pan and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the fish flakes easily.
For the Chips -
- 2 Russet potatoes, peeled
- salt and pepper to taste
- olive oil
Preheat the oven to 400° (makes it easier when you’re making fish AND chips).
Cut the potatoes into chip-like pieces. Boil until tender, about 4 minutes. Immediately throw them in ice cold water to stop the cooking process.
Spread the chips out on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Bake for about 20 minutes, then transfer to the broiler for 5 to get a nice crispness to them. Obviously, since you’re not frying them, they won’t be super crispy crunchy, but the broiler will give them a nice texture.
For the Mushy Peas -
- 1 bag frozen green peas
- 2 T butter
- 1/2 onion, chopped
- 2 T whole milk or heavy cream
- salt and pepper to taste
Boil the peas in salted water for 3-5 minutes, or until tender. Strain, and set aside approx 1/4 C.
Combine butter, peas, milk, and S&P in a blender or large food processor. Blend until texture is to your liking. Add the unprocessed peas for texture.
(my apologies for the lack of photos on this one, my photographer was getting drunk slash helping me with a bit of a hot mess I made with the blender and peas.)
We used the Sunday Business Section of the NYT as a tablecloth, and served this tasty meal up with lemon wedges, malt vinegar, branston pickle and some Boddington’s Pub Ale - a perfect UK Sipper.
(meg)
