Why Guinness Is An Ideal Brew For Your Beer-Battered Fish And Chips - Tasting Table

"Bold and rich, with a dark color that's a total contrast to the golden brown color you'd imagine fish and chips to have, Guinness is probably not the first beer that comes to your mind when you think of a beer-batter. Surprisingly, though, it works: The complex balance between the sweetness of the malt and the bitterness of the roasted barley lends great flavor depth, while the stout's carbonation is conducive to a light and crispy batter."

"While no, Guinness won't turn your entire dish inky black, there is one catch: it doesn't play well with every fish. Cod is a fish and chips classic, but as noted in our round-up of the 15 best types of beers to use in batter, the delicate flavor of the fish can get drowned out by the Guiness's bold maltiness. Knowing that, you'll want to be flexible."

Chefs often prefer pouring beer into batter rather than serving it only alongside fish and chips because beer can improve texture and flavor. Traditional Irish Guinness provides bold, rich malt sweetness balanced by roasted-barley bitterness, and its carbonation promotes a light, crispy coating. Guinness's dark color does not make the dish inky black, but the stout's strong maltiness can overwhelm delicate fish such as cod. Fish with more pronounced, slightly sweet or meaty flavors—halibut, monkfish, mahi-mahi, catfish, and swordfish—pair better with Guinness because their textures and taste profiles hold up to the stout.

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