Healthy fish and chips. Quinoa crusted white fish baked, not fried and matched with a classic olive oil roast potato. Heart healthy and waist friendly fish and chips are perfect for everyday indulgence.
We’re changing the game on indulgence and lightening up the classic fish and chips. Because this is the new Healthy Fish and Chips. And it needs you! And you need it!
Boy oh boy we are finishing this week on a high! I’d like to introduce you all to the New Fish and Chips. These fish and chips are the new healthy fish and chips. You know… because this is a phenomenon as rare as unicorn tears and as delicious as… well… fish and chips.
My weight watchers mission is to healthy up the classics that I love so much. Weight watchers is a beautiful thing. You truly can eat anything you want. You truly can have EN-E-THING! But… but… but… wait just a hot minute here! Yes, while you can have anything you want, the question is… do you really want what you think you want?
That's a confusing statment. I know. And by that I mean, do you want to indulge in that order of deep fried fish and chips and a half of lager? … k… I’m kidding… it’s a full pint. But you know what I mean. Those calories can count for a lot. And they really add up quickly.
But is that what you really want to do? And count your points and then realise that you can’t eat for the rest of the day/week/month. This is the problem I ran into time and again at the beginning of my WW journey. The idea that I could have anything is what got me interested in WW. Of course it would.
But as I started to count how much those fries were worth, and how much those 3 dries apricots were (3 points, btw!) I realised that, although there was no limitation on what I could eat, however, there was a limitation on what came after. So, a large glass of wine was… 5 points thank you very much! Wow. That's steep.
This fact in and of itself made me stand up straighter and pay attention to what I ate… and how much of it! So, instead of either indulging and then sacrificing for the next week, or missing out entirely, I’m lightening up the classics. Clearly, it's the most logical thing to do.
But, these new fish and chips are still all about flaky white fish in a crunchy coating and potatoes that are crispy on the outside and fluffy in the middle. And, don’t worry, everyone’s favourite condiment, tartar sauce is there too! We didn't leave any element behind… er… except mushy peas. Because no-one should eat any food described as “mushy”. Therefore, we skip out on the peas. But, if you really love them then you should go ahead, but you might just prefer some fresh garden peas, really.
That amazing crispy coating you make for the fish is blended quinoa… hi superfoods… and those crispy “chips” are smashed roasted potatoes. We made the tartar sauce with fat free Greek yogurt and “lighter than light” mayo. Aaaaand as if that’s not enough, we baked it all on one pan! Okay, you do have to boil the potatoes first and you need to do the job of coating the fish, but once that's done, they all get baked on one pan… good to go.
What are the 3 healthy benefits of healthy fish and chips?
- The fish is quinoa crusted and baked because we want to calories and add protein.
- Tartar sauce is made with Greek yogurt therefore we cut down on saturated fats
- The potatoes are roasted because we can avoid the deep fryer.
Now you can go on and enjoy the new healthy fish and chips and you will still be able to eat tomorrow, too!
If you're looking for other one pan light dinner solutions you can try making this One pan lemon roast chicken and asparagus.
The new Fish and Chips
Ingredients
- 10 baby potatoes
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 Tsbp chopped chives
- sea salt & pepper
- 2 cod fillets cut into chunks
- ⅓ cup flour
- ½ cup fat free buttermilk
- ½ cup quinoa toasted and blended
Tartar Sauce
- ½ cup non fat Greek yogurt
- ½ cup low fat mayo
- 4 gherkins
- 1 Tbps capers
- 1 tablespoon chopped dill
- 1 teaspoon mustard powder
Instructions
- Firstly toast the quinoa in a dry pan over a medium heat. Toast until the kernels are starting to brown. The kernels may start to pop a little. That’s totally fine.
- Preheat the oven to 180c or 375f.
- Boil the potatoes in well salted water until they are tender and cooked. Be careful to not over cook them.
- Drain the potatoes off and place them on a large baking tray.
- Using a drinking glass, flatten the potatoes so that they break open and have lots of fluffy edges that will go golden and crunchy.
- Drizzle 2 tablespoon of olive oil over the potatoes and sprinkle with sea salt and pepper.
- Roast in the oven for about 30 minutes until the edges are golden and crunchy.
- While the potatoes are roasting, set out three bowls.
- Working from left to right fill the bowls with ½ cup plain flour, the buttermilk and in the last bowl place the toasted blended quinoa.
- Cut the cod or whatever white fish you will be cooking, into 4 chunks each. Total of 8 chunks.
- Dip the fish in the flour, toss to coat, then dip in the buttermilk and coat with the quinoa.
- Place the fish pieces in the oven on the same tray as the potatoes for the last 10 minutes of roasting.
- To make the tartar sauce, just place all the sauce ingredients in a bowl and mix.
Baxter says
It seems to be very tasty and healthy. thanks for sharing.