Syrian fish & chips

• fillets haddock4

  4 (500g), each cut into 3 pieces

• olive oil↗50ml ml
• ground cumin↗2 tsp tsp
• ground white pepper↗1 tsp tsp

  plus a pinch

• garlic cloves↗5

  bashed

• plain flour↗200g g
• cornflour↗1 tbsp tbsp
• medium potatoes↗1kg g

  sliced into 2cm-wide chips

• vegetable oil↗

  for deep-frying

• paprika↗1 tsp tsp
• tahini↗50g g
• lemon↗1

  juiced, plus extra wedges to serve

• garlic cloves↗2

  crushed or finely grated

• small handful of chopped parsley

Step-by-step instructions

1. 1

   Toss the haddock with the olive oil, cumin, white pepper, garlic and 1 tsp salt. Chill for 4 hrs or overnight.

2. 2

   About 45 mins before cooking the fish, make the chips and tahini sauce. For the sauce, mix the tahini, lemon juice and garlic until well combined. Stir in 3-4 tbsp cold water until smooth and creamy. Mix in the parsley and keep chilled until needed.

3. 3

   For the chips, rinse the potatoes, then soak in ice-cold water for 15 mins. Drain well, then dry the potatoes thoroughly. Fill a saucepan half-full with vegetable oil and heat to 140C, or use a deep-fat fryer. If you don’t have a temperature probe, test the oil by dropping in a cube of bread – it’s hot enough when it turns brown in around 45 seconds. Fry the chips until cooked through, 6-8 mins.

4. 4

   Remove the chips to a wire rack lined with kitchen paper and leave to drain. Heat the oil to 180C – it’s hot enough when a cube of bread turns brown within 15 seconds – then cook the chips for 4-5 mins more until crisp and golden. Remove to a wire rack lined with fresh kitchen paper, then tip into a bowl and season with 1½ tsp salt and the paprika.

5. 5

   Put the flour and cornflour in a bowl and season well with salt and a pinch of white pepper. Turn the fish pieces in the mixture, one by one, until completely coated.

6. 6

   Fry for 4-6 mins, with the oil still at 180C, until golden and crisp. You may need to do this in batches, keeping the cooked fish warm in a low oven as you go. Serve with lemon wedges for squeezing over.