What’s the secret to crisp-skinned fish? | Kitchen aide
When I fry fish, the skin never goes crisp, and instead either sticks, rips or goes limp,What am I doing wrong?Emily, by email “The secret to perfectly crisp fish skin is heat,” says Mitch Tonks, founder of Rockfish in south-west England,Well, heat plus a little bit of prep,Fish are, of course, moist things, and moisture is the enemy in the quest for that golden-brown crust, so the first thing Emily is going to need to do is dry that skin out,“If the fish has any moisture on it, it will create steam while it’s being cooked, which, in turn, will make the skin go soggy and inedible, rather than crisp and delicious,” says British fish guru Nathan Outlaw, whose latest book, On Fish: A Seafood Handbook, is published next month.
And the best way to do that, Outlaw says, is to wipe and dab the skin with some kitchen paper or a clean tea towel.Rick Toogood, head chef and co-founder of Prawn on the Lawn in London and Padstow, Cornwall, and Jack Stein, chef director of Rick Stein Restaurants, are simpatico, but Outlaw then goes that one step farther: “Take a second piece of kitchen paper [or another clean tea towel], wrap up the fish in it and leave for a couple of minutes,” he says.“This allows any remaining moisture to be absorbed.”Tonks then gives his fillet(s) a good sprinkling of salt and grabs a pan.“A decent nonstick one is best,” Outlaw advises, though Stein also pops a square of “quality” greaseproof paper in the bottom, which is also Toogood’s preferred tactic: “It guarantees that the fish will not stick,” he says.
Crank up the heat and, once the pan is hot, Tonks adds a couple of tablespoons of oil – “if you’re using a ribbed grill pan, rub the skin with oil and salt first instead”,Stein punts for sunflower oil, while Toogood suggests adding a little butter, too,Whatever you use, you want that fat to get nice and hot, Outlaw says, “otherwise the fish will stick, and you will end up with a horrible mess in the bottom and a very scrappy piece of fish”,Once the oil is shimmering, carefully lay the fish skin-side down in the centre of the pan – it should crackle and hiss – then press down gently with a fish slice (or carefully with your fingers),“Do this for the first few seconds, to stop it curling,” Tonks says.
“Super-fresh fish especially likes to curl!” Both Tonks and Stein then cook the fish like that until it’s about 80% done – that is, until it turns opaque around the edges – so don’t be tempted to prod, move or mess about with it in any way.Once the skin is crisp, the fish should easily release from the pan, and is now ready to be flipped over on to the flesh side just to finish off (if at that stage there’s any resistance, you’ve gone too early).“This should get you that glass-cracking texture on the skin,” Tonks says – and hopefully avoid any further sticky situations for Emily.Got a culinary dilemma? Email feast@theguardian.com
Cheltenham festival 2026: Il Etait Temps blows field away in Champion Chase – as it happened
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The Hundred 2026: Devine and Mooney top bidding in the inaugural women’s auction – as it happened
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Jim Ratcliffe gives up Ineos Grenadiers naming rights in €100m rebrand deal
Jim Ratcliffe’s Ineos Grenadiers cycling team will be renamed and rebranded with a new lead sponsor and kit before the start of this year’s Tour de France in Barcelona on 4 July.The Guardian understands that while Ratcliffe and the Ineos head of sport, Dave Brailsford, will retain ownership and management of the British team, the new title sponsor will be the Danish IT supplier Netcompany.It is believed that the Copenhagen-based company will, over five years, invest about €100m (£86m) in the team, who are enjoying renewed success this spring under the stewardship of Brailsford and Geraint Thomas, the 2018 Tour de France winner who retired last year.However, Ineos and fellow sponsor TotalEnergies will also continue to support the team. The additional investment will mean Ineos relinquishes naming rights, but it will allow Ratcliffe’s team to compete more effectively at the highest level in Europe’s grand tours
Cheltenham festival day three: Shantou can star in the Stayers’
The Stayers’ Hurdle has lost its “feature race” slot as the fifth event on the third day at Cheltenham to the Ryanair Chase, but it is likely to be the bigger hit of the two with punters as the 11-runner field is rich with possibilities.Teahupoo and Bob Olinger, the past two winners of the race, represent the old guard in three-mile hurdling, while Kabral Du Mathan, Honesty Policy and Ma Shantou are all young, progressive stayers with their best years ahead of them.Teahupoo has been a solid favourite for Thursday’s race since December, when he beat Bob Olinger by seven lengths in the Grade One Christmas Hurdle at Leopardstown, but neither horse has much in hand of their younger rivals on ratings and this could be the year for a handing-over of the baton.Kabral Du Mathan was a ready winner of the two-and-a-half-mile Relkeel Hurdle on New Year’s Day but his stamina is unproven over three and Ma Shantou (3.20), a dual winner over track and trip, makes more appeal
Ukraine accuses IPC of ‘systemic pressure’ and pro-Russian bias at Winter Paralympics
Team Ukraine have launched a stinging attack on the International Paralympic Committee and Winter Paralympics organisers, claiming they have been under “systemic pressure” to reduce their presence at the Milano Cortina Games.The Ukraine National Paralympic Committee has made four specific allegations against the IPC and the Milano Cortina organisers, alleging mistreatment of its athletes and a “systematic” attempt to remove flags from the team base and spectators.It alleges that representatives of the Games organising committee, the OCOG, forced the removal of the Ukrainian national flag from inside the Paralympic village. It claims that the gold medallist in the para biathlon, Oleksandra Kononova, was told to remove earrings bearing the flag and the message “Stop War” as she prepared to stand on the medal podium. It also claims that the family of the cross-country skier Taras Rad had Ukrainian flags taken from them as they watched him compete
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