I’ve been blessed with the ability to cook most, if not all the dishes I enjoy (most) and the few that I can’t make, I usually get my mom to cook when she visits. That reminds me that I need her to come for a visit soon, to restock my freezer. Maybe I can get her to share her curry fish recipe with us… it’s to die for. Lately I’ve been having cravings for some of the dishes I grew up on and while in the market last Friday I got a flash back when I strolled pass the fish section. When was the last time I ate “fry dry sardines”? I recall my mom making that for dinner and served up with dhal and brown rice just in time for when my dad would come home from work. That man always had some sort of treat for us in his lunch bag, so it was always an eager anticipation when he opened it. Evening newspaper and a treat was always in that lunch bag of his.
I searched though the few fish stalls that were open and did manage to find one vendor with sardines, but they were a bit to big for what I had in mind (plus they were a bit mushy to the touch). The next option I had, was to use sea smelts as they were very close in size, shape and taste to the sardines we would get in the Caribbean. BTW, if you are getting smelts, note that there is a difference in taste from the fresh water variety, when compared to the sea (salt water) ones. I much prefer the sea smelts.
You’ll Need…
2 lbs smelts (see note below) (cleaned – with tail trimmed and head removed)
1/2 lime or lemon to wash the fish
1/4 teaspoon curry powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
dash of black pepper
1/4 hot pepper sliced thin (feel free to use your favourite hotsauce instead)
3 tablespoons cilantro (or 2-3 leaves of shado beni if you have- chopped fine)
3 cloves of garlic – crushed and then sliced thin
1 scallion sliced thin
3 sprigs of thyme
For pan frying…
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 tablespoon butter (not margarine)
1/4 cup olive oil or whatever type of oil you have in stock.
Couple points. As mentioned above smelts are a great substitute if you can’t get fresh sardines. Also note that the traditional way of making this, includes using the heads of the fish (still attached). Since the smelts at the fish counter comes already trimmed, you may have to check in the frozen fish section of your grocery store to get some that’s complete. But that will mean you’ll have to clean them when they thaw out.
Start by washing the fish. In a bowl place the fish, squeeze the juice of 1/2 a lime or lemon and rinse with water. Then drain as best as you can and set aside. The next step is to prepare the seasonings we’ll be marinating the fish with. Go ahead and slice thin the – scallion, pepper, garlic, cilantro or shado beni and the thyme.
Now it’s time to combine everything we just sliced up with the fish and add the salt, black pepper, curry powder (gives it a wonderful flavour) and stir. For best results, place in the fridge to marinate for a few hours. What I usually do is put it into a sealed container as not to overpower the fridge with the strong seasoning scent. I try to leave it marinating for at least 2 hrs, but after 30 minutes you can go ahead and cook. (stays well overnight as well in the fridge)
After its been marinating it’s time to fry-dry those little morsels of fishy goodness. I try to take it out of the fridge at least 10 minutes before I start fryng so it comes back up to room temperature a bit.
In a wide pan put the oil and butter to heat on medium to high heat. In the meantime, put the flour on a paper towel and onto a plate to start dusting the seasoned fish. The reason why I use a paper towel first, is that when the flour gets soggy it will stick to the bare plate and making washing up after a bit sticky. Take the fish individually out of the bowl you had it marinating in and gently roll it in the flour to get an even coat. Don’t pay attention to any bits of seasoning that may still be attached to the fish. Once fried, that will add some nice flavours when you bite into it.
Once you think the oil is hot (not smoking) …butter should have melted and you’ll start seeing little bubbles around the edges. Start adding the seasoned and dusted fish. Try not to crowd the pan with too many. Allow to cook for about 5-7 minutes on each sde and then flip to cook evenly and get a well rounded golden brown colour. If you like a bit of a crunch (crispy) texture, allow to cook a little longer. You’ll also notice that the fish will firm up if cooked all the way though and not be limp as when you fist put them into the oil/butter.
Remove that batch and repeat that process once more (dust with flour, place in the hot oil, flip and remove when cooked.
Be sure to drain on paper towels to absorb some of the grease and try to serve hot. If you can’t prepare in time for all your guests, you can stick then in a toaster oven to reheat for a few minutes. This way it will retain it’s crispiness.
As mentioned above, I love this with rise and dhal, but after the first batch was out of the pan, I found myself eating away dipping into a mustard/ketchup/hotsauce combo sauce I made. This is also great as an appetizer (see dip recipe below), in sandwiches, as hors d’oeuvres or as a side to any normal dinner you make.
Here’s a quick and wonderful garlic mayo dip for this..
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
Combine everything in a blender or food processor.
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