Gin and tonic battered fish with homemade tartare sauce
Who says you can’t have fish on a Monday night? Fisherman are out seven days a week and so to prove it, James is here with his signature summer dish: delicious fish made with a gin and tonic crust - served up with homemade tartare sauce in newspaper with a slice of lemon.
Ingredients
175ml tonic water 200g plain flour 25ml gin or vodka15g fresh yeastpinch of saltpinch of sugar1 tsp cider vinegar4 x 175g cod fillets, skinned, pin boned (or fish of your choice: salmon, haddock or even prawns will all work well)Vegetable oil for frying
For the tartare sauce
3 egg yolks2 tbsp cider vinegar300ml rapeseed oil100g capers150g gherkins, chopped 1⁄2 shallot, finely chopped Small bunch dill, chopped2 tbsp chopped parsley1⁄2 lemon, juice only
Method
To make the batter, mix the yeast, salt and sugar in a bowl until well combined. Pour the tonic water into the yeast mixture and whisk in the flour, gin or vodka and vinegar. Leave the mixture to ferment – it is ready to use when the mixture starts to bubble.
Coat the cod fillets in the batter and fry in the oil for 3-4 minutes, or until golden brown and crisp. Remove the battered cod with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper.
For the tartare sauce: whisk together the egg yolks and vinegar in a bowl, or a small food processor. Still whisking, start adding the vegetable oil very very slowly to make a mayonnaise. The mixture should be thick and light once the oil is incorporated.
Stir in the capers, gherkins, shallot and herbs. Season with salt and pepper and sharpen with lemon juice. Place into a serving dish / newspaper along side the fried fish.