This is the central tension behind animal welfare: While the public want animal welfare reforms, it is simply not possible to meet anything even approaching current demand for animal products while maintaining a good standard of welfare.

Hey!(GIFs) - Will Ospreay

MADE: 26 MAR 2023

The reason behind this pairing is that I was craving fish and chips—but:

Fish and chips in local restaurants here is insanely overpriced

Chips are not exactly the healthiest choice

The fish was what I was craving anyway

The solution, therefore, was making the damned fish myself... so I did. Plus, I saw an article saying that battered fish went well with spicy rice. It was an epiphany—I did love Nando's rice when I tried it on my latest trip to Canada. So I armed myself with this recipe and this recipe for the rice, as well as the door stopper that is the Complete America's Test Kitchen Cookbook for the fish (a book recommended by my American friends, and ngl the recipes I tried so far are pretty good).

Changes I introduced:

(rice) 1 TEASPOON turmeric instead of 1 tablespoon good lord, I wanna taste some rice among all the yellow (btw rice I used is basmati)

(rice) more paprika because I don't have chili powder, only flakes

(rice) one chopped tomato on top of all the other veggies, because why the hell not

(fish) using sparkling water instead of beer, because there's no place for beer in this house 😾 (more seriously, I know beer batter is traditional, but alcohol is one of my strongest food aversions, and beer is easily the worst offender I can think of)

Eating a bit of fish that fell off while I cut it, I wasn't totally convinced. And then, I actually started eating. It was so good. Extremely messy to cook (mmmm oil flying everywhere), but just. So. Damn. Good. And the rice too, rice is pretty addictive 🙃

10/10 would recommend.

Oh, and don't be cheap with the fish. Fresh, quality fish is really what makes it imo.

Pic 1: fat bastard no. 1, reporting for duty

Pic 2: fat bastard no. 2, frying

Patrick’s 17th birthday was additionally exciting this year because all his big brothers were in London and free to celebrate. 

Being Paddy’s night, he gets to choose where to eat – and Nando’s it is. An upmarket fast-food chicken joint so not his parents’ preference and possibly not great for his very recognisable older brother. But credit to the other diners on this evening because Tom is not troubled even once for a photo – and not because the food is just so delicious.

And then on to a bar called Putt Shack – a fiendishly clever place combining crazy golf with alcohol.