Non Alcoholic Beer Batter For Fish Food

CRUNCHY BATTER FRIED FISH (NO BEER)

Steps:

• Mix together 1 cup flour, 1/4 cup cornstarch, baking powder and salt in a bowl.
• Stir in enough club soda to make a batter about the consistency of thin pancake batter. You don't want it too thick, just thick enough to nicely coat a spoon.
• Season the batter to taste if desired with seasoning of your choice. I suggest Old Bay, Lemon Pepper seasoning, or seasoned salt. set aside.
• In another bowl, mix together remaining 1/4 cup flour and 1/4 cup cornstarch.
• Heat oil in a deep pan to 375°F Use a candy thermometer if you need to. Oil in pan should be about 3" to 4" deep.
• Cut fish into portion sizes and remove any pin bones, and pat dry.
• Dredge the fish in the dry flour/cornstarch mixture. Shake off any excess.This allows the batter to stick to the fish.
• Dip dredged fish into batter allowing any excess to drip off before carefully adding the fish to the hot oil.
• Cook the fish one or two pieces at a time until golden brown.
• Drain on paper towels or better yet, on a cake cooling rack set up over paper towels.
• Serve while hot.

CRISPY BEER BATTERED FISH

Steps:

• Dry & cut fish: Pat fish dry using paper towels or a tea towel. Cut into 7 x 3cm / 3 x 1¼" batons, or larger fillets if you prefer. If you have very thick fillets, cut in half horizontally (Note 1)
• Dusting bowl: Place ¼ cup rice flour in a shallow bowl.
• Heat oil: Heat 6cm / 2" - 3" oil in a large heavy based pot over medium high heat to 190°C/375°F.
• Salt & dust: While oil is heating, sprinkle 3 or 4 pieces of fish with a pinch of salt, then coat in rice flour and shake off excess. You can leave them like this for up to 10 minutes.
• Cold batter: Just before cooking, whisk together the flour, rice flour, baking powder and salt. Add very cold beer into the batter and whisk just until incorporated evenly into the flour. Do not over-mix, do not worry about flour lumps (Note 4). It should be a fairly thin batter but fully coat the back of a spoon. If too thick, add beer 1 tsp at a time.
• Dredge fish: Dunk a piece of fish in the batter, the let the excess drip off very briefly.
• Fry 3 minutes: Carefully lower into oil, dropping it in away from you, one piece at a time. Don't crowd the pot; fry in batches. Fry for 3 minutes, flipping after about 2 minutes, until deep golden.
• Drain: Drain on paper towels. Repeat with remaining fish. Serve hot! However it will stay crisp for 15 - 20 minutes. (Note 5 for larger batch cooking).
• Serve with Tartare Sauce, lemon wedges and a leafy green salad on the side dressed with a classic vinaigrette. Easy single-fry-ultra-crunchy chips coming soon! In the meantime, use oven baked wedges!

NON-ALCOHOLIC BEER BATTER FOR FISH

Steps:

• Mix flour, baking powder, salt, cumin, cayenne pepper, black pepper and garlic powder in a bowl.
• In a separate bowl mix non-alcoholic beer, egg and oil until well blended.
• Stir non-alcoholic mixture into flour mixture.
• It will be a bit thick, but should be smooth. If too lumpy, add just a splash more of non-alcoholic beer, that's what i did.
• Dip fish into batter, it will coat thick, its good that way, but if you want less batter just shake some off. Its a bit tricky, but just use your fingers and maybe a spoon to help coat.
• Put into hot oil and fry until golden brown.
• Drain on paper towels and serve hot.

BEER-BATTERED FISH AND CHIPS

Steps:

• Set a colander in a large bowl of ice water. Slice the potatoes lengthwise 1/4 inch thick, then stack the slices and cut into 1/4-inch-thick sticks, adding them to the ice water as you work. Refrigerate 30 minutes or up to 1 hour. Lift the colander out of the ice water, rinse the potatoes well and pat very dry.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Heat 4 inches vegetable oil in a large Dutch oven until a deep-fry thermometer registers 280 degrees F. Add half of the potatoes; fry until tender but still colorless, about 5 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel-lined plate. Repeat with the remaining potatoes. Increase the oil temperature to 365 degrees F.
• Whisk 3/4 cup all-purpose flour, the rice flour, baking powder, 1 teaspoon salt and the cayenne in a large bowl. Whisk in the beer until mostly smooth. Let sit 5 minutes to thicken.
• Set a wire rack on a rimmed baking sheet. Season the fish with salt. Working in two batches, dredge the fish in the remaining 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, then dip in the beer batter, letting the excess drip off. Fry until crisp and golden brown, about 4 minutes. Transfer to the rack; sprinkle with salt. Keep warm in the oven.
• Increase the oil temperature to 380 degrees F. Working in two batches, fry the potatoes again until crisp and golden brown, about 2 minutes. Drain on a paper towel-lined plate and season with salt. Serve the fish and chips with malt vinegar and lemon wedges.

GOLDEN BEER-BATTERED FISH WITH CHIPS

Steps:

• Combine the flour, cornflour, baking powder and turmeric in a large bowl, season, then spoon 1 tbsp onto a plate and set aside. Gradually pour the beer and water into the bowl, stirring with a wooden spoon until you have a smooth, lump-free batter. Leave to rest for 30 mins while you prepare the chips.
• Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Boil a large pan of water, then add the chipped potatoes and boil for 2-3 mins until the outsides are just tender but not soft. drain well, then tip onto a large baking tray with the flour, oil and some salt. Gently toss together until all the potatoes are evenly coated and the flour is no longer dusty. Roast for 30 mins, turning occasionally, until the chips are golden and crisp.
• To cook the fish, heat the 1 litre oil in a deep saucepan until a drop of batter sizzles and crisps up straight away. Pat the fish dry with kitchen paper, then toss it in the reserved turmeric flour mix. Shake off any excess, then dip into the batter. Carefully lower each fillet into the hot oil and fry for 6-8 mins - depending on the thickness of the fish - until golden and crisp. Using a large slotted spoon, lift out the fish, drain on kitchen paper, then sprinkle with salt. Serve with the hot chips and Homemade tomato sauce (see 'goes well with').
• Combine the flour, cornflour, baking powder and turmeric in a large bowl, season, then spoon 1 tbsp onto a plate and set aside. Gradually pour the beer and water into the bowl, stirring with a wooden spoon until you have a smooth, lump-free batter. Leave to rest for 30 mins while you prepare the chips.
• Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Boil a large pan of water, then add the chipped potatoes and boil for 2-3 mins until the outsides are just tender but not soft. drain well, then tip onto a large baking tray with the flour, oil and some salt. Gently toss together until all the potatoes are evenly coated and the flour is no longer dusty. Roast for 30 mins, turning occasionally, until the chips are golden and crisp.
• To cook the fish, heat the 1 litre oil in a deep saucepan until a drop of batter sizzles and crisps up straight away. Pat the fish dry with kitchen paper, then toss it in the reserved turmeric flour mix. Shake off any excess, then dip into the batter. Carefully lower each fillet into the hot oil and fry for 6-8 mins - depending on the thickness of the fish - until golden and crisp. Using a large slotted spoon, lift out the fish, drain on kitchen paper, then sprinkle with salt. Serve with the hot chips and Homemade tomato sauce (see 'goes well with').