What are the best fish and chip shop sides?

Fish and chips are an essential feature of any Kiwi summer. That first bite - flaky terakihi, gurnard, hoki or snapper encased in crisp batter with a huge handful of golden chips is practically a seasonal rite of passage.

But while we argue passionately about batter styles, chip colour and the tastiest species, what about those unsung heroes playing best supporting roles?

To find out, we conducted some highly unscientific (but extremely earnest) research, ringing chippys around the country to see what flies out the door alongside our fish. And according to the ‘data’, these are the six sides New Zealanders love the most.

Ahh, the humble potato fritter. When we think about unadulterated carb-based joy, potatoes rate high - add batter, hot oil and salt, and you’ve got happiness in a paper bag. And don’t even get us started on the fact that you often get a ‘bonus’ one if the potatoes are smaller than usual - the ultimate cost-of-living crisis win. Janna Sicely, who runs Calypso Takeaways in Kerikeri, says a look back at till data from last summer revealed they sold 408 scoops of chips and 731 pieces of fish, but next on the list was definitely potato fritters.

“Perfecting our potato fritters was actually a personal goal for me, involving hours and hours of work to get that perfect crispy salty goodness. I have to say, they are the fricken business now!”

The discovery that changed it all was when she found out that potatoes have varying sugar content in different seasons, so “some days, the sugar crisps up way faster than others when it hits the hot oil.”

For some Kiwis, fish'n'chip Friday is not complete without a chunky golden spring roll. And while it sports the same honey-blonde hue as many of our other takeout faves, it’s pretty unlikely this one came from British tradition.

Food historian André Taber is currently working on a project to research and document the history of Chinese restaurants and takeaways in New Zealand.

“The first evidence I can find - at this point - of Chinese immigrants running fish and chip shops was in Dunedin in the 1940s - there was a man called Norman Hym who seems to have been the first to give it a go, and once it was a success others followed,” he says.

Spring rolls are definitely part of this cross-cultural influence, but Taber says they only really appeared in the mid-80s.

“The initial Chinese dishes found in fish and chip shops seemed to be more chow mein and chop suey. Spring rolls followed a few decades later.”

There’s nothing like a cheeky deep-fried scallop to make your chippy meal a bit more boujie, and after nearly eight years behind the deep fryer as owner of the legendary Matich’s in Dargaville (which has been running since 1932) Justine Hoggard has sold a few.

“It’s definitely a treat item - and definitely an adult item as well - it would be very rare to have a child or a teen order one,” she says.

“Because they are a bit of an indulgence, they are usually only ordered in twos or threes - it always causes a bit of surprise on the odd occasion someone orders six.”

Many a visitor to New Zealand has ended up slightly confused when ordering what they thought was an American-style hot dog, only to receive a sausage on a stick, battered, deep-fried, and slathered in tomato sauce. This might seem like a culinary crime to the uninitiated, but for so many New Zealanders, one bite will take them straight back to their childhood.

Dana Williams, who runs Skips Fish and Chips at Oakura Bay with her family, says her shop sells 80 to 100 hot dogs a day at busy times in the summer season.

“It’s not just to kids - plenty of adults order them too. I think people love them because they are nostalgic - maybe it's a Kiwi thing? And people who come from overseas seem to really enjoy the novelty as well.”

Squid rings are always a good time, and all the places we called reported selling a lot of them. We also found out that the vast majority of takeaway joints bring them in pre-crumbed and frozen rather than doing it themselves.

Rita Shields, marketing manager at Markwell Foods, which imports the Shore Mariner brand used at many chippys, says the company brings in 80 metric tonnes a year.

“They are very popular - maybe because they sit in the sweet spot between ‘treat’ and ‘trusted classic’. They are also perfect for customers who want something different without leaving the fish-and-chip lane.”

Kiwis love mussels - be it marinated, steamed, smoked or deep-fried in batter. At Tipene’s Takeaways in Auckland, the battered mussels have a bit of a fan club. The kitchen sells anywhere from 30 to 40 a week, mostly to adults.

“We think it’s because we’ve worked really hard on the perfect batter that has that crispy exterior but still keeps the mussels soft inside,” says Anita Raval, Tipene’s owner.

“The key is controlling temperature and timing really strictly when you drop them in the hot oil and not leaving them even a second too long. What we are doing must be working, because as people keep coming back for more.”