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It was another cold day and I was home alone in need of Trini comfort food, so I made myself fried smelt, a substitute for sardines, which are hard to come by. I enjoyed it thoroughly with dhal and freshly steamed jasmine rice. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

If you don’t have access to sardine, you can use any small fish including sprat, small herring, fry dry (as it is named in Trinidad), and smelt, like I used in this recipe.

You can enjoy this delicious fried fish with dhal and rice or with sada roti or hops bread. You can also drizzle with some fiery home made pepper sauce or lime pepper sauce.

Fried Sardines | Fried Smelt | Fry Dry

It was another cold day and I was home alone in need of Trini comfort food, so I made myself fried smelt, a substitute for sardines which are hard to come by. I enjoyed it thoroughly with dhal and freshly steamed jasmine rice. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do! If you don't have access to sardine, you can use any small fish including sprat, small herring, fry dry (as it is named in Trinidad, and smelt, like I used in this recipe.

5 from 2 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Breakfast, dinner, lunch

Cuisine: American, Caribbean, Trinidadian

Keyword: fried fish, fried sardine, fried smelt, fried sprat, fry dry

Prep Time: 5

Cook Time: 15

Servings:

Calories: 294kcal

Equipment

Frying Pan https://amzn.to/3ADLa9a
Thongs https://amzn.to/3g0DPHg

Ingredients

2 lbs sardines cleaned, or other small fish
Lemon or lime
4 tbs green seasoning
2 tsp salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 cups vegetable oil for frying
1 cup all-purpose flour for dusting

Instructions

Remove any scales, fins or insides from fish. Fill a bowl with cold water and squeeze in the juice of a lemon or lime. Place fish in the water and rinse quickly. Repeat rinsing again and drain well in a colander.
Place fish in a bowl and season with the green seasoning, salt and black pepper. Marinate several hours or overnight in a sealed container in the refrigerator.
When ready to fry, bring fish to room temp if it was in the refrigerator.
Heat oil in a deep, wide frying pan over medium heat.
Dip fish in flour, shake off excess and place carefully in the hot oil.
Fry until full cooked and golden brown, about 8 minutes total each batch. Recommend using a splatter screen to prevent oil pitching from the pot.
Once brown and crisp, remove fish using a thong to a paper towel lined tray. It is important to get a good grasp of the fish or else it can fall back into the oil causing the oil to splash which can burn you. Repeat with the remaining fish. If your pot is large enough, you may only have one batch.
Enjoy with dhal and freshly steamed jasmine rice.