Recipe: Deep-Fried Catfish and "Chips"

The most important part of this dish is the light beer batter -- also, the "chips" are onion rings instead of potato chips[1]. The texture of the fried fish comes from the beaten egg whites. When frying the fish and onion rings, do not overcook. They should be light golden -- not brown at all! Serve immediately.

Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons melted butter
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 cup beer
• 2 egg whites, stiffly beaten
• Vegetable oil, for deep-frying
• 4 catfish fillets, about 6 ounces each
• 2 large onions, thinly sliced and separated into rings
• Tartar sauce (see recipe), for serving

Preparation

1. Sift the flour and salt into a bowl. Stir in the melted butter and the eggs. Gradually add the beer and stir until the batter is smooth. Let the batter stand in a warm place for 1 hour, then fold in the beaten egg whites.
2. Fill a large, deep, heavy pot halfway with vegetable oil. Heat the oil to 350 degrees F (175 Celsius)[2]. Dip the fish fillets in the beer batter and cook 2 at a time in the hot oil for six to eight minutes, depending on thickness [3]. or until fish is golden and flakes easily when tested with a fork. Drain on paper towels.
3. Dip the onion rings in the batter and fry them in batches until golden, about 2 minutes per side. Drain on paper towels and sprinkle with salt.
4. Serve immediately with Tartar Sauce.

Serves 4.
Nutrition information per serving:

Calories: 545	Fat: 32 g (288 kcal.)
% calories from fat: 53%	Cholesterol: 184 mg
Carbohydrates: 35 g (140 kcal.)	Protein: 29 g (116 kcal.)

Notes:

Note 1

Actually, what the British call "chips", Americans call "French fries", not potato chips.

Note 2

When frying, temperature of the oil is critical. If it's too high, you get burned outside and undercooked inside; too low, and the oil soaks in making a soggy mess. It's probably best to experiment with a "sacrificial" piece or two before committing yourself.

Note 3

The original said, "3 to 4 minutes per side". This would make sense in pan-frying, where you cook one side, turn, and cook the other side. In deep frying, there are no "sides", so I guessed what was actually meant. In any case, cooking time will vary considerably depending on exact temperature of the oil, temperature of the fish, and thickness of the pieces. There are several ways to tell whether catfish is properly cooked, though they all depend on pulling it out of the oil and cutting into it. Raw catfish has a semi-transparent, skim-milk look; when cooked, it turns to an opaque whole-milk white. The texture also changes: raw, it's rubbery and harder to cut with a knife; when cooked, it's more tender (which is, of course, one of the benefits of cooking food rather than eating it raw).