Cooking in Theory and Practice
Observations on the Arcana of the Culinary World
Life's too short to eat bad food
I Swear to Cod
Lovely big golden chips with a nice piece of fried fish.
It is the time of the year when the Fish Fry reigns supreme. I am not a fan.
It’s not that I hate the fry — I just don’t worship it as a true child of Buffalo should. But then, I am not a child of Buffalo. It may be as simple as having had so many that were just bad. You have probably had the same. If so, this quote from The Rings of Saturn might match with your recollections1.
I do, however, love a proper Fish & Chips. Introduced to it by my Grandfather, who emigrated to the US via England. Nurtured through Arthur Treacher’s — which was decent in the days before the cod wars.
General Kenobi. Years ago you served my father in the Cod Wars…
Sorry. Couldn’t resist.
I’ve had some great ones in and around Southern Ontario, and a terrific fry at a little joint in Danbury, Connecticut. I
hadn’t had one anywhere near Buffalo until Parkers came along. Parkers began life as the English Pork Pie Company — Vicky and Damien Parker selling British pies, sausage rolls, and other British delights by mail. They had a small retail outlet at their factory on South Park Ave. that my family always enjoyed stopping at (and the pies were good). I still have my commemorative t-shirt.
For a while they expanded to having a marvelous Chippy on-site, Parker’s Proper. The business environment changed (in part, I’m sure thanks to the “wildly successful” SolarCity project across the street.) In any event, the business was sold to new owners Emma Reynolds and Michelle Potter, and relocated to Aero Dr. (just east of the Runway 05/23 underpass).
And now, the Fish and Chips is back and I was a volunteer Beta tester. But first let me extol the wisdom expressed on the back of the box:
Please understand the instructions we provide are purely guidelines. All ovens are different, and you know your oven best. – Parkers GBI
There are few kitchen tips with more value. If you haven’t checked the temp with a good thermometer, do so. The result may surprise you.
On to the product. Open the box and you will find a lovely, large portion of battered seafood and a healthy layer of lovely thick chips. You will also occasionally find two pieces of fish – it is still the same amount of fish by weight. This will easily serve two (three in my family).
There are plenty of lovely choices for fried fish but when it comes to fish and chips, cod is supreme. Parkers does not disappoint. Firm tender and sweet. The batter cooked up nice and crunchy (though I do have a tip for you later), the chips crispy on the outside and moist and creamy on the inside. All that’s needed to enjoy some salt and malt vinegar.
In my first test I cooked according to the package directions, but as much as I liked it I still felt it could be better. These days many people have a convection oven a.k.a. an “air fryer”. So I went and bought a couple more portions. I cooked one in my oven set to convection mode, and the second in our countertop convection oven. Both came out wonderfully, even better than the first run (though it did tell me that my oven was further off temp than I thought).
I then ran another test and cooked it in a standard oven elevated on a baking rack. Except for cooking time, the
result was indistinguishable from the convection oven. I cannot say it is because I mentioned this to the good folks at Parkers, but their website now contains such a suggestion.
Still, there remained one test that I knew I had to try. Deep frying. Two batches, first the chips to be held in a warm oven, then the fish itself. All I can say is if you have a deep fryer, or are not afraid of deep frying on the stove top, this is truly the way to go. Were I in the mood for fish and chips, I would not hesitate to pick up a box whether I had a deep fryer or not. But man, that was good!
Through a change in ownership and the change in location Parkers has managed to continuously put out a quality product. Whether it be meat pies, English style sausages, or fish and chips it’s the perfect accompaniment to a binge watch of Doctor Who, Rumpole, or Broadchurch. Stop by, they’re very friendly. And maybe, just maybe, if we support this local business they will once again have an actual Chippy at Parkers once more.
495 Aero Drive
Cheektowaga
NY 14225
That evening I was the sole guest in the huge dining room, and it was the same startled person who took my order and shortly afterwards brought me a fish that had doubtless lain entombed in the deep-freeze for years. The breadcrumb armour-plating of the fish had been partly singed by the grill, and the prongs of my fork bent on it. Indeed it was so difficult to penetrate what eventually proved to be nothing but an empty shell that my plate was a hideous mess once the operation was over. The tartare sauce that I had had to squeeze out of a plastic sachet was turned grey by the sooty breadcrumbs, and the fish itself, or what feigned to be fish, lay a sorry wreck among the grass-green peas and the remains of soggy chips that gleamed with fat.
― W. G. Sebold
