You don’t always have to head to the takeaway to get a delicious portion of fish and chips. This bistro-style dish uses paprika-flavoured plaice, goose fat-roasted chips and a cumin salt for extra flavour
Ingredients
- 8 plaice fillets
- 1 tablespoon plain flour
- 2 tsp ground paprika
- ¼ tsp ground cumin
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 3 tbsp rapeseed or olive oil
- For the chips:
- 2 tbsp goose fat or rapeseed oil
- About 1kg (2¼lb) Maris Piper potatoes, unpeeled, cut into thinnish wedges, rinsed and dried in a tea towel
- Cumin salt
- 1tbsp sea-salt flakes
- 1 tsp finely grated lemon rind
- 1-2 tsp cumin or fennel seeds
Method
To make the chips: Set the oven to Gas Mark 7 or 220°C. Put a baking tray in the oven to heat up, with the goose fat or rapeseed oil in it. When the fat is hot, add the potato wedges and cook for 40-45 mins, turning them after 25 mins.
Trim the fish fillets all round, then cut each one in half lengthways and then into 4 pieces crossways (into diamond shapes), so that you have 16 pieces. Mix the flour, paprika and cumin with a pinch of salt and a little pepper on a baking tray. Lightly coat the pieces of fish in the mixture.
Heat the oil in a frying pan, add the fish pieces and cook them for just over a min each side, in 2 batches. Serve with the chips and cumin salt.
To make the cumin-flavoured salt: Put sea-salt flakes, lemon rind and cumin or fennel seeds in a food processor, or pestle and mortar, and grind together to combine, but not to a fine powder.
Top tip for making Bistro-style fish and chips
It’s best to leave the skin on the fish; then the pieces stay intact while cooking.
