What type of local fish would you recommend for making traditional style 'fish and chips'?

[csaba81]

Personally I like haddock and cod. Don't know which fish would substitute best for these. I live in Chiang Mai so river fish might be a better choice but I'm not too fussed.

[EricTh]

The most common and cheapest local fish in Thailand is catfish. Yucks...

 

Cod and haddock must be imported and are costly.

[CharlieH]

Try the Pengasius, cheap and widely available in Big C Makro etc. Can be bought in Fillets of varying size.

 

https://www.makroclick.com/en/products/197719

[bobandyson]

Around Bangkok I've seen a few places serving Red Snapper in place of cod. Wasn't too bad actually, it tasted of fish.

[connda]

Grouper

[recom273]

I’m with @CharlieH Pangasius fillets from big C are great in a beer batter.

 

I try to forget that they are a catfish (which I don’t eat) and that they are intensively reared, pumped full of chemicals, destroying the environment as I dip them into a bowl of home made Tatar sauce.

 

[Eindhoven]

On 6/16/2021 at 5:57 PM, CharlieH said:

Try the Pengasius, cheap and widely available in Big C Makro etc. Can be bought in Fillets of varying size.

 

https://www.makroclick.com/en/products/197719

 

Hmmm...

 

Take note that most, if not all, of the cheaper frozen Pangasius contains preservatives.  Yes, preservatives and frozen. You might need to rifle through the supermarket freezers to find the slightly more expensive product that is preservative free. Perhaps at Big C Extra; don't remember exactly.

[kynikoi]

Don't ruin grouper with batter! Doubt you'd even find filet big enough. Red Snapper gone in thailand, maybe white.

 

Tilapia seems the easy choice.

[worgeordie]

I have been using Alaska King, Pollock, Sole, Haddock, RimPing has/had it,

but don't know if they have sold out, (never to return ) as with many good

foods here, I bought quite a lot , as the price was reasonable, 60 - 120 THB

a packet,  enough for 1 lot of fish & Chips.

They also have it on Shopee , but you would have to buy a decent amount

as delivery costs would be high, they use frozen truck.

RimPing also have large fillets of Cod, they say Atlantic, but it's Pacific Cod

processed in China

regards worgeordie

 

[lockyv7]

I see on the news they been catching a lot of Black Tipped Reef Sharks, in Australia i like Battered Flake as my fish from the fish and chip shop and thats just another name for Shark.

[arick]

On 6/16/2021 at 11:57 PM, CharlieH said:

Try the Pengasius, cheap and widely available in Big C Makro etc. Can be bought in Fillets of varying size.

 

https://www.makroclick.com/en/products/197719

Yes Tilapia also though they look very frosty. 

[farangkinok]

My wife uses ปลานิล (tilapia). Very delicious and it's inexpensive at Makro.

[digbeth]

Frozen 'butter fish' is close enough to cod and is readily avaiable next to the pangasius,

[DPKANKAN]

On 6/17/2021 at 12:21 AM, recom273 said:

I’m with @CharlieH Pangasius fillets from big C are great in a beer batter.

 

I try to forget that they are a catfish (which I don’t eat) and that they are intensively reared, pumped full of chemicals, destroying the environment as I dip them into a bowl of home made Tatar sauce.

 

I am sure Pangasuis is the one we used to get in Tesco's in the UK and they called it 'Vietnamese River Cobbler' !!!!????????????????..

 

P.S. Just googled it. Yes it was!!

Edited June 26, 2021 by DPKANKAN
Added info and pic

[zyphodb]

On 6/17/2021 at 12:21 AM, recom273 said:

I’m with @CharlieH Pangasius fillets from big C are great in a beer batter.

 

I try to forget that they are a catfish (which I don’t eat) and that they are intensively reared, pumped full of chemicals, destroying the environment as I dip them into a bowl of home made Tatar sauce.

 

That is exactly the problem, tastes ok, but knowing what s**t goes into them I can't bring myself to eat it. Grouper I'd say...

[zaZa9]

We use South East Asian Sea bass.

Its readily available cheap  off local fishermen here in Phuket.

It is an ugly fish and looks like Barramundi .

It holds together well and has  white flesh.

[Eindhoven]

32 minutes ago, lockyv7 said:

I see on the news they been catching a lot of Black Tipped Reef Sharks, in Australia i like Battered Flake as my fish from the fish and chip shop and thats just another name for Shark.

 

What is it with Australians ruining fish & chips by overcooking the fish? I remember going in to these great looking fish and chips shops with cuts of fresh fish ready to be battered and deep fried. You choose your fish portion and off they go....dry and a bone. What?

After a couple of episodes of this I asked the manager of my hotel.

He replied that the want to make sure the fish is fully cooked, as no one wants to get food poisoning. ????

Had similar conversations in New Zealand. What's with so many of the chip shops selling McCain oven chips?? I had to travel far and wide to find one that used real hand cut potato. No fish & chip shop in the U.K would survive using frozen chips. 

[condobrit001]

Although a British fish and chips lover, I must admit tht the best fish and chips ever can be found in Australia, where they use shark meat or "flake" Not sure if you can get it here. Has anyone looked for it here?

[sandyf]

30 minutes ago, zaZa9 said:

We use South East Asian Sea bass.

Its readily available cheap  off local fishermen here in Phuket.

It is an ugly fish and looks like Barramundi .

It holds together well and has  white flesh.

I would have said Sea Bass.

Don't bother with the batter, just deep fry the whole fish, superb.

[Bangkok Barry]

 

I don't like the texture of pangasuis, but that is what 80% of the frozen fish my nearest Makro in Kalasin sells. It seems to be a Thai thing with fish - sell 10-15 'different' versions of the same thing, like 20 brands of tinned sardines in tomato sauce but almost impossible to find any in oil. Makro did used to have Chinese 'cod' which was quite good and cheap too with about six fillets for 150, but I haven't seen that for months. I might try tilapia.

[PeeraponW]

Don't bother...go to Buster's for the best F & C in town....

[scubascuba3]

I steam Grouper which reduces to about one third of it's size...so not sure how battering would go. Pangasius tastes earthy but half the price of Grouper

Edited June 26, 2021 by scubascuba3

[Eindhoven]

38 minutes ago, condobrit001 said:

Although a British fish and chips lover, I must admit tht the best fish and chips ever can be found in Australia, where they use shark meat or "flake" Not sure if you can get it here. Has anyone looked for it here?

 

 

Hahahaha....no. Definitely not the best. 

[Fat is a type of crazy]

I think flake is a lovely fish to be battered. Blue Grenadier or Hoki  is good too - much better in batter than not and cheap in Australia and freshly caught off the coast of New Zealand.  Basa is really cheap in Australia but you just worry about those Vietnamese fish farms. You are what you eat. 

You have to be careful with names. Australian Barramundi - sensational. Taiwanese Barramundi - shocker. 

Edited June 26, 2021 by Fat is a type of crazy

[delgarcon]

I use frozen tilapia from Macro,

28 minutes ago, Bangkok Barry said:

 

I don't like the texture of pangasuis, but that is what 80% of the frozen fish my nearest Makro in Kalasin sells. It seems to be a Thai thing with fish - sell 10-15 'different' versions of the same thing, like 20 brands of tinned sardines in tomato sauce but almost impossible to find any in oil. Makro did used to have Chinese 'cod' which was quite good and cheap too with about six fillets for 150, but I haven't seen that for months. I might try tilapia.

I agree with you 100% Barry, pangasius is <deleted>. I've been very happy using the frozen tilapia, much better quality.

[Pedrogaz]

Atlantic cod or silver hake.

[IvorBiggun2]

On 6/16/2021 at 11:57 PM, CharlieH said:

Try the Pangasius, cheap and widely available in Big C Makro etc. Can be bought in Fillets of varying size.

And the winner of the thread is CharlieH. By far the best tasting fish on the market and no bones. It is also sold as John Dory in posh restaurants.

 

Quote

Its formal scientific name is Pangasius bocourti, though it's often called basa fish or bocourti in the United States. You may also have heard basa fish referred to as river cobbler, Vietnamese cobbler, pangasius, or swai. Its flesh has a light, firm texture and a mild fish flavor — similar to cod or haddock.

 

Edited June 26, 2021 by IvorBiggun2

[KarenBravo]

On 6/17/2021 at 12:09 AM, connda said:

Grouper

 

Nah.....grouper tastes good, but it is best in soups because the flesh is soft.

Red Snapper, or bass (the type that are silver with a small red tab behind the gills).

 

Tilapia is a fresh water fish. You need a sea fish for a good, tasty fish 'n' chips, close to what you get in the UK.

[tinca tinca]

27 minutes ago, PeeraponW said:

Don't bother...go to Buster's for the best F & C in town....

last time i was in C M......I always ate at RED LION (FARANG OWNED).it is down a road near Royal Llanna hotel.

The fish and chips were superb, as was most of the food served......liver bacon and onions good too......

I have no idea what the fish was but batter was nice and crunchy

 

[IvorBiggun2]

2 minutes ago, KarenBravo said:

Tilapia is a fresh water fish. You need a sea fish for a good, tasty fish 'n' chips, close to what you get in the UK.

Never had Pangasius then? By the way it's a fresh water fish.