As a nutritionist, I put a lot of effort into finding healthy versions of old favourites that are less than ideal choices. It's a balancing act, and I encourage my clients to engage in a bit of experimentation.

I completely understand that some healthy versions of old favourites can often turn out disappointing. But trust me, you have to try my healthier fish and chips!

They say the secret is in the sauce. But in this case the secret is in the coating we use for the fish! I use Besan (chickpea) flour, which is an ingredient you might not be familiar with, but which is well worth trying out in your kitchen! I consider it my secret weapon for getting a crispy golden crust on foods I want to shallow fry with only tiny amounts of oil, or oven bake.

I have shared a healthy fish & chips recipe before using sweet potato chips. This recipe uses my absolute FAVOURITE potato recipes instead of deep fried chips, Roasted Potatoes with Lemon, Garlic & Coriander (it's DIVINE and you HAVE TO TRY IT!!!). I also have a special way of preparing the potatoes to lower their glycemic impact and calories!! You can read about it HERE (and the extra benefits to your health HERE!). If you cook "carby" foods like potatoes and then refrigerate them overnight, a portion of the starches in them becomes Resistant Starch which won't be digested in your small intestine. So they will be lower in calories and won't spike your blood sugar and insulin like normally prepared potatoes. And reheating the potatoes lowers the glycemic impact even further!

Ingredients

4 pieces white fish (we have used flathead for this recipe but I also like to use whiting too!)

Fish coating

2 heaped tablespoons Besan (chickpea) flour
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper

Roasted Potatoes with Lemon, Garlic & Coriander

Potatoes, peeled and cubed. How many you use is completely up to you!
Juice of one lemon
2-3 cloves of garlic, crushed (or more if love garlic as much as I do!)
I bunch of coriander (cilantro) leaves, finely chopped (or parsley if you are a coriander-averse-scaredy-cat!)
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Method

* See below for my step-by-step pics! *

Potatoes

If you are going to try my "potato hack" to create resistant starch and lower the glycemic impact of your potatoes, you need to start the night before. Simply peel and cube your potatoes, roast, steam or boil, place in a bowl, cover and refrigerate overnight! Then the next day, simply cook as normal:

Toss cubed potato in olive oil and a little salt and pepper, spread evenly across a baking tray and bake for 20 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius, or until golden and crispy.
When cooked, place in a large bowl whilst still warm with all ingredients and toss to combine.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Fish

Place all Fish Coating ingredients on a plate and mix with a fork until well combined
Press both sides of each fish fillet into Fish Coating mixture and shake off excess.

Now you have two choices of how to cook the fish:

Shallow Fry Method:

Heat olive oil in frying pan and fry fish pieces until golden brown and cooked through - it should only take a few minutes, depending on what type of fish you are using and how thick the fillet is.
When cooked, place on a plate lined with kitchen paper to drain.

Oven Bake Method:

Place fish fillets on a baking tray lined with baking paper.
Spray with a fine mist of olive oil (optional - but it's well worth investing in an oil spray bottle. I love mine!).
Cook in a pre-heated oven (180 degrees) for 10-20 minutes. The cooking time will vary depending on which fish you use and how thick the fillet is. Check regularly and remove from oven when the fish flakes with a fork.

Serve and enjoy!