Fried Whitebait

I have a major weakness for that very English of fish, whitebait.

Whitebait is best enjoyed dredged in seasoned flour and fried whole. Don't bother trying to gut or behead these tiny, delicate fish or they will simply disintegrate. I do mine in a wok in sunflower oil, with the aid of a very useful hemispherical frying basket.

They are traditionally served with parsley, brown bread and lemon wedges. I strongly recommend that you do the same, with a nice crispy salad as the only concession to modernity.

This is just one of those dishes which needs no 'improvement' at all. Occasional squabbles over who gets the last few savoury twists of fish are not unheard of in this house, but then, no less a chef than Auguste Escoffier himself described fried whitebait as 'a dish the delicacy of which is incomparable.'

I had a surprisingly hard time tracking down any whitebait in Winchester, so well done to JJ's fishmongers in Oliver's Battery (01962 866103) for having them in stock.

Ingredients

500g whitebait, thawed

50g flour tsp

cayenne pepper (optional)

salt and pepper

Vegetable oil for deep frying

1 lemon, cut into wedges

Coarse salt and a pinch of cayenne (optional)

Good wholemeal brown bread, thinly sliced and buttered,

Small bunch of curly parsley to garnish (optional)

Method

1 Rinse and thoroughly drain the whitebait. Pat dry.

2 Season the flour moderately with salt and pepper (and optionally cayenne).

3 In a high-sided dish, dredge the whitebait well in the flour, then shake gently in the frying basket to remove any excess.

4 Heat the oil to about 180C/350F and fry the fish in batches until crisp (about 3 minutes), shaking occasionally to prevent fish sticking together. Don't crowd the pan.

5 Drain on kitchen paper and serve at once, sprinkled with salt and optionally a light dusting of cayenne, with lemon wedges to squeeze over. The brown bread and a simple salad are ideal accompaniments.