- Alright,
what do you think of when you think of classic English food?
Well, I think of fish and chips,
and so right now we're here in Notting Hill
at just a little bit west of Hyde Park,
and we're gonna go to The Fish House
where they serve some really excellent fish and chips.
Cod, haddock,
french fries as we know them in the United States,
but they are known in the U.K. and elsewhere as chips,
along with mushy peas, malt vinegar, tartar sauce,
it's gonna be fantastic, and I can't wait to try it.
(bright pop rock music)
I'm interested in learning a little bit more
about this traditional English fish and chips.
What can you tell me
about the different kinds of fish you have,
and I know that cod and haddock are very popular.
Is there a real difference
between those two different kinds of fish?
- A little bit. - [Lucas] Yeah?
Is it something you can taste, - Yes.
- [Lucas] Or is it in the texture? Or is it-
- Yes.
Haddock is more salty taste on the haddock.
The cod is more white fish and the normal one.
- Normal one?
Okay, so what do you think is the secret
to doing a really good fish and chip?
- Good quality fish.
That's the most important thing, and the clean oil.
- [Interviewer] Clean oil.
- That's the most important thing.
Good quality oil, clean oil, good fresh fish, quality fish.
- Why do you think people love it so much in this country?
- Over 150 years there's been fish and chips in England.
And with a good fish and chips, people come back to it.
That's what we're doing. - Alright,
well I wanna try some of this, - Yes.
- 'cause it looks really good, and it smells really good.
So can I?
Do you think I could have a large cod,
could I have a large haddock, - Yeah.
- [Lucas] And a large chips, and a mushy peas.
- Yes.
- And then you also said you had gherkins or pickles?
- Yes, gherkin.
- [Lucas] I'll- great. - Let me give you.
- We will engage Mr. Chip
in the consumption of these chips.
Mr. Chip is saying,
"Stab me. Stab me with my own product".
(laughing)
(bright pop rock music)
- [Ash] Here you go!
- [Lucas] That was so fast!
- Gherkins come, with a pickle. Goes like that.
- Amazing. - Ready to go.
Traditional. - [Lucas] Thank you.
- And this time I'm gonna put pickled onion.
- [Lucas] This is the onion, okay.
Beautiful.
(bright pop rock music)
This segment has been brought to you by Mr. Chip.
(laughing)
"Stab me with my own product".
(laughing)
"Oh, hello".
(laughing)
"Oh no!"
(groaning)
"Oh but it feels good but I'm dying!"
These are the classics, cod and haddock,
and so I thought we'd get one of both.
And of course we have the mushy peas,
a big pickled onion on the haddock,
a big slice of lemon, which of course is very necessary,
and then the tartar sauce.
I'm just gonna dive right in.
This place thinks it's cod's gift to fish and chips.
You know what I'm sayin'?
(laughing)
This beautiful flaky cod.
So what I'm gonna do now
is I'm gonna dip this guy in the tartar sauce,
and I do love tartar sauce.
Adding things like gherkins, pickles, onions to the sauce
gives it a depth of flavor,
gives it a tanginess
that again offsets of the greasiness of the fish.
Not that this fish is particularly greasy,
it's actually pretty light.
The coating is nice and light.
The key to having a good fish and chip is having fresh fish.
That looks good, doesn't it?
That's great.
It's all about the combination of textures and flavors.
You've got a creamy tartar sauce.
You've got a crunchy outside of the fish.
You've got the
flaky, tender, juicy, moist insides of the fish,
and the malt vinegar.
It gives it a much sharper tang.
It's like, you know,
it's like eating it with a bite of pickle.
Round two. Haddock.
Will I be able to tell the difference?
As you can see, appearance-wise very similar.
Flaky white fish.
That's different.
The haddock is firmer,
and the cod
has a more tender, flaky fall-apart in your mouth.
The haddock is meatier.
Yeah, these don't even taste remotely the same.
Noticeably firmer.
It's also like a little butterier.
And then of course
the chips and mushy peas.
I gotta say I do like the mushy peas,
and I appreciate the mushy peas.
At the end of the day, though,
I'm kind of a ketchup guy.
Sorry. Sorry Europe.
To recap cod, flaky, tender, fall-apart
and melt in the mouth.
Haddock, slightly firmer, slightly saltier.
Both excellent options.
Tastes good both with tartar sauce and with the malt.
You've heard of salt bae, but have you heard of malt bae?
Well that was a bad idea.
I really hope you enjoyed this episode of Dining on a Dime
from The Fish House in Notting Hill.
If you'd like to watch more, please click here.
(guitar strumming)