Beer Batter Cod

George Hirsch March 26, 2025

Waterside fish fry as seen on George Hirsch Lifestyle — Waterside fish fry as seen on *George Hirsch Lifestyle* WATCH on PBS PASSPORT

The carbonation in the beer makes the batter exceptionally airy and produces a crispy coating. Malt vinegar is a British favorite on fish and chips.

With its mild flavor, low-fat content, and dense, flaky white flesh, it's no wonder cod is one of the most common fish used for fish & chips, along with haddock and plaice.

George's Beer Batter Cod

makes 4 - 6 servings

chefgeorgehirsch.com | George Hirsch Lifestyle

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

2 eggs

1 teaspoon hot sauce

1 cup beer, a strong full-flavored Stout or India Pale Ale

vegetable oil for frying

2 pounds cod fillet, cut into serving pieces

Malt vinegar for serving. FOLLOW THE RECIPE INSTRUCTIONS BELOW

Combine 1 cup of the flour, sugar, baking powder, and black pepper in a medium bowl. Stir in the eggs and hot sauce. Slowly pour in the beer, constantly stirring, until the foam subsides and the batter is smooth. Let the batter rest for 15 to 20 minutes.

Heat 2 to 3 inches of oil to 370 degrees F. in a deep saucepan or deep-fat fryer.

Dredge the cod in the remaining 1/4 cup flour, shaking off any excess, and dip it into the batter.

Carefully slip the pieces into the hot fat and cook until brown on both sides, turning the fish once with a wire skimmer. Remove the fish with a skimmer and drain on a wire cooling rack to keep it crispy. Serve with French fries, malt vinegar, and a good Classic or Garlic Aïoli.

***I invite you to Subscribe to my You Tube Channel, enjoy + Like as you view***

Sold out

13 EPISODES on 4 HD-DVD Disk Set, season one

$19.95

Gather 'Round the Grill Cookbook, Vintage (new)

$50.00

George Hirsch Living it UP! cooking & lifestyle book

$24.95

Spring Spears

George Hirsch March 22, 2025

I am reminded it's spring because the calendar says it's so. But what do you do on those days when the weather says otherwise, like all this rain lately? I suggest bringing spring into your kitchen with ingredients that say spring flavor. What first comes to mind is asparagus. It's so versatile; you can steam, sauté, roast, and, if you must, fry it—preferably tempura.

Some conversational tidbits to keep in your pocket for your next dinner party or in a packed elevator:

- Asparagus comes from the ancient Persian word asparag, meaning a sprout. The ancient Egyptians cultivated asparagus and dedicated it as an offering to numerous gods. It must have been considered significant back then. And the Romans have an expression, "Velocius quam asparagi coquantur" - meaning, faster than you can cook asparagus.

In the 1890s, it was a rare and expensive vegetable in the United States, but cultivation helped tame the price.

- It was inevitable that the asparagus should be considered an aphrodisiac given its shape, which an Elizabethan writer remarked 'manifestly provoked Venus.'’

Asparagus is a young edible shoot commonly known as a "spear." The spear rises from an underground stem called a "crown," which can produce spears for 15 to 20 years. Most asparagus is harvested in spring when it is 6 to 8 inches high and has tender, fleshy spears and tight, compact heads. Once it reaches maturity, the asparagus stalks become woody, and fernlike foliage grows from the heads, making them inedible.

Tips:

Although grown on quite a large scale and in many countries, asparagus is available in abundance from March to late June. There are over 300 varieties of asparagus, and only 20 are edible.

They are divided into three main categories:

Green asparagus. This is the most common type of asparagus. It is harvested at a height of about 8 inches.

White asparagus. Grown in the dark (covered with soil to keep it from turning green), white asparagus is harvested as soon as it emerges from the ground. Although more tender than the green variety, it tends to be less flavorful and is more expensive since more work is required to grow it.

Purple asparagus: This variety has a fruity flavor and is harvested when only 2 to 3 inches high.

How to buy asparagus:

Whether asparagus is thin or thick, choose them with firm, crisp stalks and compact, brightly colored heads with no trace of rust or softness. The bottom of the stalk should be moist when squeezed, not dry and woody. Avoid yellowish asparagus with soft stalks beginning to flower, as these are signs that it is old.

Store asparagus vertically in 1 inch of water in a container, stem-side-down, in the refrigerator.

Sold out

13 EPISODES on 4 HD-DVD Disk Set, season one

$19.95

Gather 'Round the Grill Cookbook, Vintage (new)

$50.00

George Hirsch Living it UP! cooking & lifestyle book

$24.95

Spaghetti alle Vongole

George Hirsch March 20, 2025

It is quick, easy, and one of the most delicious pasta dishes outside a good pesto. Afterward, sit back and enjoy a crisp Pinto Grigio or Rose like you're sitting seaside on the Almafi coast.

The clams are the star of this dish, but co-starring is the garlic. You may also call this dish 'Aglio con Spaghetti alle Vongole.' I've cooked this recipe for years using the sweetness of caramelized garlic, which adds a nice component to this dish. Yes, my family in Italy is shaking their heads right now as they cook with a very small amount of garlic. Go figure? But here in the US, we've become accustomed to big flavors in our dishes. So get out my old recipe for caramelized garlic and make a half dozen heads; I guarantee you won't have any left.

Spaghetti alle Vongole recipe by George Hirsch

makes 4-6 servings

chefgeorgehirsch.com |

George Hirsch Lifestyle from Know Your Fire Cookbook

1 pound dry spaghetti or linguine

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving

2 heads caramelized garlic cloves, crushed

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

2 pounds Manila or littleneck clams, scrubbed and rinsed well

1 cup dry white wine

Juice of 1 lemon

4 Tablespoons sweet butter

Freshly ground black pepper

4 Tablespoons fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped

2 Tablespoons fresh basil, roughly chopped

Optional: 1/4 cup lightly toasted bread crumbs

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the pasta, and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente.

Prepare the sauce while the pasta is cooking to toss the spaghetti directly into the sauce. RECIPE BELOW

Preheat a deep-side saute pan or Dutch oven; add olive oil, garlic, and red pepper flakes; saute for 1 minute. Add the clams, wine, half the parsley, and lemon juice. Cover and cook, shaking the pan occasionally, until all the clams are opened, about 5 - 8 minutes. Discard any clams that do not open.

Increase heat to medium temperature. Add the hot, drained linguine to the pan; add the butter and season with pepper. Toss the pasta with the clams to coat pasta with clam sauce. Top with chopped parsley, basil, and toasted bread crumbs. Drizzle with additional olive oil. Serve immediately.

Sold out

13 EPISODES on 4 HD-DVD Disk Set, season one

$19.95

Gather 'Round the Grill Cookbook, Vintage (new)

$50.00

George Hirsch Living it UP! cooking & lifestyle book

$24.95

Click for more on *Feast of the Seven Fishes*

Vision of Spring

George Hirsch March 18, 2025

With spring now upon us it's the perfect time to plan the early spring herb garden.

PLANNING YOUR OUTDOOR HERB GARDEN

Nothing compares to the flavor of fresh herbs in cooking. Now is the time to plan your fresh herb garden for an abundance of flavorful herbs at your fingertips. But before you start digging, there's a little bit of planning to take into consideration.

First, consider the amount of time you have to spend and tend to your garden. If you're a weekend gardener, then a little patch of kitchen herbs is a great start. You can always increase the size of your garden next year. But if you're an avid gardener, go crazy! Add more exotic herbs and fragrant ones such as lemon verbena, lemon grass, pineapple sage, and Thai basil.

Find a good location for your garden. Most herbs need five or six hours of sunlight and soil slightly on the dryer side. Plant close enough to your back door for when you're running from the kitchen to the garden.

Lay out your garden on paper. Think about style. Do you like a formal orderly appearance to your garden or a more natural style? Keep in mind when planning to include walking paths so you can reach to weed and harvest your herbs and keep your feet dry when the ground is wet.

What to plant? If you intend to cook with herbs, list the ones you use most often. If you like fragrant or colorful herbs, ask your local garden shop what grows well in your area. And herbs like a fairly neutral or slightly alkaline soil. If you know your soil is acid, add some lime when preparing your soil.

When planting, try to keep the annuals and perennials separate so that when the end of the season comes, you won't disturb the roots of the perennials when you pull out annuals. Keep taller plants to the back of the border or in the center of your bed and smaller ones near the edges to form borders.

Enjoy my Green Goddess, aka—Sauce Au Vert Recipe with fresh spring chive and parsley.

Sold out

13 EPISODES on 4 HD-DVD Disk Set, season one

$19.95

Gather 'Round the Grill Cookbook, Vintage (new)

$50.00

George Hirsch Living it UP! cooking & lifestyle book

$24.95

Irish Bread Pudding

George Hirsch March 13, 2025

Lá Fhéile Pádraig: Gaelic for Saint Patrick's Day or St. Paddy's. I like to use day-old French bread in my bread pudding recipe, or Cinnamon-raisin bread, sweet rolls, and even leftover Irish Soda Bread can also be used. Serve with a vanilla ice cream spiked with a wee bit of Irish. Slàinte

Irish Bread Pudding

Makes 10-12 servings

chefgeorgehirsch.com | George Hirsch Lifestyle

2 Granny Smith or baking apples, peel, cored, and chopped

3-4 cups cubed dry French Bread, Irish Soda, Brown Bread, or Cinnamon Raisin Bread

1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

1/2 cup raisins, plumped in 1 cup hot water for 5 minutes

2 Tablespoons butter, melted

4 cups milk

8 eggs

1 cup sugar

2 Tablespoons cocoa powder

2 Tablespoons vanilla

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 cup Irish Whisky

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Pre-grease an 8 x 8-inch or 10-inch round cake pan.

CLICK to Watch classic Irish segment Pubs, Pints, People from George Hirsch Living it UP! — **CLICK to Watch** classic Irish segment Pubs, Pints, People from *George Hirsch Living it UP!*

Combine the milk, eggs, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cocoa powder in a medium bowl and beat with a whisk until well blended. Add whiskey and slowly pour over the bread mixture. Add optional chopped chocolate. Poke the bread, completely covered with the milk mixture, and let sit for 10-15 minutes.

Place a pan larger than the cake pan or skillet in preheated oven and place the pan holding the bead pudding inside. Immediately fill the outer pan with enough hot water to come up one inch on the sides of the bread-pudding pan.

Bake at 375 degrees F. for 30 minutes. Remove the pan from the water bath, reduce the temperature to 325 degrees, and bake for 25 additional minutes. Remove the bread pudding and allow to set for twenty minutes before serving. Serve with ice cream and a good Irish Coffee! Sláinte!