In the Kitchen With Chef Conetta: Guinness Beer Battered Fish & Chips

We’re cooking Beer Battered Fish and Chips with Executive Chef Michael Conetta.

Ingredients: Yield: 4 servings

Guinness 1can
Egg White, lightly whipped 1each
Milk, whole 2/3 cup
Canola Oil 1tsp
Baking Powder 1tsp
Cayenne Pepper, ground ¼ tsp
Salt, kosher ¼ tsp
All Purpose Flour 1-1/2 cup
All Purpose Flour for Dipping ½ cup
Canola oil for Frying 4 cup
Russet Potatoes cut into wedges
2lbs Fish (Cod, Pollock, Halibut, ect…)

DIRECTIONS
1. Pat potato wedges with paper towels to remove extra moisture and reduce splattering when frying. Add wedges to deep fryer when the canola oil has reached the appropriate frying temperature of 375 degrees F.
2. Remove potato wedges from the canola oil with slotted spoon when they reach a golden brown color, drain them on paper towels, and season to taste.
3. To prepare batter, mix together beer, egg, milk, and canola oil. Add baking powder, cayenne pepper, salt and flour all at once, mixing only enough to dampen the dry ingredients.
4. Coat fish pieces in flour before dipping fish in batter and place in 375 degrees F canola oil to deep fry. Cook until golden, about 6 minutes. Remove from canola oil with slotted spoon, drain on paper towels. Serve immediately

Information about the Newport Irish Festival:

Come join the shenanigans at the Newport Yachting Center’s 12th Annual Newport Waterfront Irish Festival starting this Saturday and running throughout Labor Day Weekend.

More than 100 performers and exhibitors will perform on five stages and contribute to the celebration of Irish music, food, culture and history.

Now one of the largest festivals of its kind in the country, the three-day community event will feature five stages of continuous live music, song and step dancing, including a new covered Main Stage concert venue complete with 400 seats.

As always, there will be a star-studded line up of musicians, many of whom are from across the pond, including:
– Eileen Ivers, The Killdares, Black 47 and Town Pants on Saturday, September 5th and Sunday, September 6th and
– The Screaming Orphans, The Makem and Spain Brothers and The Glengarry Bhoys on “Must See Monday”, September 7th.

Attendees will also find a Culture and Theater Tent featuring Irish step dancers and North America’s premiere Celtic comedy act, the Tartan Terrors.

To celebrate Guinness’ 250th Anniversary its brewers from Dublin’s beer center of excellence have handcrafted a remarkable limited-edition stout for the occasion.

Attendees can Pour Your Own Pint and receive pointers from the Guinness ambassadors on how to ensure the perfect two-part pour while settling the pint and shaping a good luck shamrock.

If a quick draft is desired, the Guinness Gig Rig draught system will be parked in the middle of the action, pouring your favorite black & tan with Harp Lager and Guinness Stout from up to 200 kegs and 24 taps.

Enjoy a pint with assorted offerings of traditional Irish pub fare, including bangers & mash, fish & chips, corned beef dinner, shepherd’s pie, spiral potatoes and fried oysters.

For the shoppers in the crowd, imported and domestic crafts and goods ranging from apparel and customized pub art to family histories and kilts will be found at the Irish Marketplace.

The wee ones will enjoy Rainbow’s End KidSTOP which will offer families time to explore and take away Irish-themed arts and crafts including a top hat or step-dancer’s headdress, a magic Shamrock or a Celtic maze rubbing.

And no, the festival isn’t going to the dogs but the dogs are going to the festival! Several Irish Wolfhounds, known as the “King of the Dogs”, will be on the grounds courtesy of the Irish Wolfhound Association of New England.

Every adult who buys a ticket to the festival has the opportunity to enter to win a trip for two to Ireland courtesy of Tenon Tours Trip. The immersion tour includes round-trip airfare, 5 nights of premier hotel accommodations, five full Irish breakfasts and a complete offering of optional tours and events.

Sponsors of this year’s festival include Guinness, Tenon Tours, Cardi’s Furniture, Dunkin’ Donuts, Life is good, Pepsi and Sprint.

The gates will open at 11:00 each day and close at 9:00 p.m. on Saturday, 8:00 p.m. on Sunday and 6:00 p.m. on Monday.

The ticket prices for Saturday is $18 for adults and $15 for both Sunday and Monday. However, on Monday college students who present a valid college student ID at the box office will still receive a discounted ticket of $12. The Festival is FREE for children under the age of 12 as long as an adult accompanies them.

Tickets are still available through the Newport Yachting Center Box Office at (401) 846-1600 or you can order on-line by going to www.newportwaterfrontevents.com