It's been a tough year for retailers, and that includes our favourite chippies, so show your support on this year's national Fish and Chip Day this week by heading round to your local.

Rescheduled from June to ‘Fryday’ September 4, the event, which was first held in 2015 to celebrate the nation's favourite dish, this year also aims to celebrate and thank fish and chip shops at the centre of our communities who have kept us fed while staying safe.

Did you know..?

* Fish and chips appear in Charles Dickens’ A Tale Of Two Cities.

* British consumers eat some 382 million portions of fish and chips every year - that’s six servings for every man, woman and child.

* The Guinness World Record for wrapping chips is held by Steph Celik of Blue Whale Fish & Chip Shop in Maltby, South Yorkshire. In June 2018 Steph wrapped up five 350g portions of chips, with added salt and vinegar, in just 44.43 seconds.

* Fish and chips played a part in the D-Day Landings - British soldiers identified each other by calling ‘fish’ and waiting for the response ‘chips’.

Find out more at nationalfishandchipday.org.uk

Or try making the Hairy Bikers' recipe for National Fish and Chip Day for Beer Battered Scampi with Tartare Sauce...

They said: "Proper North Sea scampi, AKA Dublin Bay prawns or langoustine tails, are the best in the world and we love ’em. We cooked this fantastic scampi dish with a super-light, crispy batter on our Best of British series and it disappeared faster than Ronnie Biggs. The crew loved it and that’s always a good sign."

Ingredients: Serves 4

Vegetable oil; 4 tbsp plain flour; 1⁄2 tsp fine sea salt; 16–20 scampi tails, peel and thawed (if frozen); lemon wedges, to serve

For the batter: 30g cornflour; 100g plain flour; 1⁄2 tsp fine sea salt; 160ml real ale; 1 tbsp white wine vinegar

For the tartare sauce: 1 egg yolk; 1⁄2 tbsp white wine vinegar; 1 tsp Dijon mustard; pinch of caster sugar; pinch of fine sea salt; 75ml vegetable oil; 25ml extra virgin olive oil; 25g capers, drained and roughly chopped; 25g cornichons, drained and thinly sliced; 1 tbsp chopped parsley; 1 tbsp chopped tarragon; black pepper

Method

1. For the the tartare sauce, whisk the egg yolk, vinegar, mustard, sugar and salt in a bowl. Gradually add the oils and keep whisking until the sauce is smooth and thick. Stir in the capers, cornichons, parsley, tarragon and pepper. Cover with cling film and set aside for 20 minutes.

2. Mix the cornflour, plain flour and salt in a large bowl for the batter. Make a well in the centre and stir in two-thirds of the ale, then whisk to make a smooth batter. Gently whisk in the remaining ale and vinegar and set aside. Fill a large pan or a deep-fat fryer two-thirds full with vegetable oil. Heat to 190°C.

3. Put the 4 tablespoons of flour in a plastic or paper bag and season with salt. Add the scampi tails, one at a time, and shake to coat them in the seasoned flour. Stir the batter and, using tongs, dip a piece of floured scampi into the batter until coated. Place the scampi in the hot oil and repeat with 3 or 4 more pieces, and cook them for 3–4 minutes until golden-brown and crisp. Remove the scampi, drain on kitchen paper and keep warm. Bring the oil back to 190°C, and cook the remaining scampi in 2 or 3 more batches. Serve with tartare sauce and lemon wedges.

For more food and drink news across Kent click here.

Read our Secret Drinker's pub reviews across Kent here.