I don’t consider chana masala, fagioli all’uccelletto, shepherd’s pie, tourtière du Lac-Saint-Jean or crepes to be merely groupings of ingredients which we give a name. They all have a varying set of ingredients with a set of steps, and it gives a final result that’s better (or at least different) than putting each of those ingredients next to each other.
That’s my main issue with considering “fish and chips” as a dish. Unless I’m missing something, it sounds like you’re just putting battered fish next to chips, and they’re not interacting or integrated in any way.
They go together really well, and a piece of fried fried cod or pollock feels lonely without some chips to sop up the excess fishy flavor. The oily flavor of the fish is spread further by the crispy absorbent starch of the chips. They are almost always paired together in the UK and elsewhere because they are very complementary. Beans and toast are similarly popular in the UK as a dish, but haven’t been adopted more broadly. You’re entitled to your somewhat esoteric and clearly strong opinion. Please contribute to the respective wiki entries for “fish” and “chips” with these points and see how they are received.
A dish is merely an emblematic grouping of ingredients which we give a name
I don’t consider chana masala, fagioli all’uccelletto, shepherd’s pie, tourtière du Lac-Saint-Jean or crepes to be merely groupings of ingredients which we give a name. They all have a varying set of ingredients with a set of steps, and it gives a final result that’s better (or at least different) than putting each of those ingredients next to each other.
That’s my main issue with considering “fish and chips” as a dish. Unless I’m missing something, it sounds like you’re just putting battered fish next to chips, and they’re not interacting or integrated in any way.
They go together really well, and a piece of fried fried cod or pollock feels lonely without some chips to sop up the excess fishy flavor. The oily flavor of the fish is spread further by the crispy absorbent starch of the chips. They are almost always paired together in the UK and elsewhere because they are very complementary. Beans and toast are similarly popular in the UK as a dish, but haven’t been adopted more broadly. You’re entitled to your somewhat esoteric and clearly strong opinion. Please contribute to the respective wiki entries for “fish” and “chips” with these points and see how they are received.
Thanks, I appreciate the first part of your comment and I find it helpful. It’s the first real and to the point answer I’ve gotten.