Fish finger

The term "fish finger" is first referenced in a recipe given in a popular British magazine in 1900,^[1] and the dish is often considered symbolic of the United Kingdom.^[2]

The food restrictions during and after WWII expanded the consumption of fish fingers, but companies struggled to maintain decent quality.^[3][4] The commercialization of fish fingers may be traced to 1953 when the American company Gorton-Pew Fisheries, now known as Gorton's, was the first company to introduce a frozen ready-to-cook fish finger; the product, named Gorton's Fish Sticks, won the Parents magazine Seal of Approval in 1956.^[5][6] The developer of those fish sticks was Aaron L. Brody.

There was an abundance of herring in the United Kingdom after World War II. Clarence Birdseye test-marketed herring fish fingers, a product he had discovered in the United States,^[7][8] under the name "herring savouries". These were tested in Southampton and South Wales against "cod fingers", a comparatively bland product used as a control. Shoppers, however, confounded expectations by showing an overwhelming preference for the cod.^[9] The snack was nearly called Battered Cod Pieces, until a poll of Birds Eye workers opted for the snappier Fish Fingers.^[10][11]

Minced fish comes in industry standard 7.5 kg frozen blocks for further slicing and battering.^[12] These are more commonly used in store brand economy products. They may have either batterorbreadcrumbs around the outside as casing, although the coating is normally breadcrumbs.^[13]

In addition to white fish, fish fingers are sometimes made with salmon.^[14]

•   Food portal
• Crab stick
• Chicken fingers
• Chicken nugget
• Fishcake
• Fish finger sandwich

• "How in the World? A Fascinating Journey Through the World of Human Ingenuity", Reader's Digest, 1990, ISBN 978-0-89577-353-1

•   Media related to Fish fingers at Wikimedia Commons