Pan Fried Smelt
One of my favorite memories is smelting with my family on Camano Island, and my mother in-law fryin 'em up for breakfast!
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. whole fresh smelt cleaned and heads removed
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
- 1/2 c. Italian bread crumbs
- 1/2 c. fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 c. butter divided
- 2 lemons cut into 8 wedges
Instructions
- Rinse cleaned smelt under cold running water and pat dry with paper towels. Sprinkle fish cavities with salt and pepper.
- Combine flour and Italian bread crumbs in a shallow dish.
- In another shallow dish, pour the lemon juice, dip both sides of the smelt in lemon juice and then coat both sides in the flour mixture.
- In a large frying pan over medium-high heat, melt 1/3 of the butter. Working in 3 batches, add the smelt and fry for 2 to 3 minutes, turning once, or until fish is lightly browned and flakes readily when prodded with a fork.
- Remove from pan and drain on paper towels. Place smelt on a platter, garnish with lemon wedges, and serve immediately with tarter sauce if desired.
- Cook's Note: Dredge fish in Shake 'n Bake instead of flour mixture...Yum!!
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