Gluten-free fish and chips

Fish and chips, the nation’s favourite take away and still popular even in these days of pizza, Chinese and Indian food; even during WW2, fish and chips were never rationed, as it was thought it might affect morale too much! It’s still my favourite take away meal and fish and chips were always a treat on Friday night when I was growing up, served with sliced bread and butter, as well as the ubiquitous salt and malt vinegar.

However, if you are gluten intolerant, it’s hard to find a chippy that offers a gluten free alternative, as most fish is either fried in a batter made with flour, or coated in breadcrumbs. But, fear not, for very little effort and with bags of that special “chippy flavour”, you can make your own fish and chips at home, and they will be gluten free. Just serve them with some mushy or marrowfat peas and you have a fish supper treat to enjoy at home.

My recipe for Gluten Free Fish and Chips is easy and fairly fuss free – whilst you pan fry your fish in a frying pan on top of the stove, your chunky chips are cooking in the oven, with the minimum of mess. I find this a less stressful way of preparing fish and chips at home, and you also save on a few calories too! Make sure you use sustainable British fish, British potatoes and a good home-grown rapeseed oil and you’ll be rewarded with a meal of the highest quality.

The gluten free coating I have used this time are the very handy rice crumbs, which are very easy to find in most supermarkets, independent shops and I have even seen them in some farm shops too. You can also use cornflake crumbs too – just crush them in a plastic bag and they are ready for coating your fish. Other gluten free crumbs that are suitable are cornmeal, cornflour and also gluten-free bread crumbs of course.