Ingredients

How to make it

  • Bring oil to between 350-370.
  • In a deep dish pie plate, combine baking mix and tonic, stirring slowly and gently, until well mixed.
  • Add cayenne, Old bay and hot sauce and mix just to combine.
  • If using Panko, add to another deep dish pie plate.
  • Using the wet to dry method, dip smelt in tempura batter then either add right to oil or drop in Panko then add to the oil.
  • These will fry in about 2 minutes, so watch them carefully.
  • Remove from oil when golden brown.
  • Repeat with remaining smelt. You can fry several of these at the same time, unlike some other fried foods, because they fry so quickly and they don't really cool the oil down.
  • Serve with lemon wedges.
  • *Smelt can be eaten whole, like sardines, or they may be sold cleaned, which means gutted and no heads. Either way, there are bones, but you won't even know they are there. :)

Reviews & Comments 12

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  • kelawrence 13 years ago
    Hooray! Great name AND great idea for the home style tempura, too! And you've gotta love the crunchiness of panko! Super post - thanks!!!!
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  • chefmal 13 years ago
    I love the name too. And seriously, next time I fall off the diet wagon I will absolutely have to try this.
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  • spicy_ty_chicken 13 years ago
    love the name....lol...so funny :)
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  • christinem 13 years ago
    My mother made fried smelts often (it was one of our regular Saturday night suppers!) and I loved them! I've been craving them lately, so I'll definietly try this soon! Thanks Keni!
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  • mrjwjohnson 13 years ago
    I love smelt! Many, many, many years ago when I was in college we would go up to Chequamegon Bay and catch them by the 5 gallon buckets full. This was done during the night with nets and the next day fried up whole and served with...not lemon but lots of beer. :) Thanks Keni
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  • jett2whit 13 years ago
    Not sure about eating this but the name sure got my attention!! Very clever Keni!!!
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    " It was excellent "
    jkirk ate it and said...
    Get out the tarter sauce, I love smelt!
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  • mommyluvs2cook 13 years ago
    I've never even heard of smelt before! Guess I could sub out for some other fish....b/c I know my grocer doesn't have it at the fish counter or I would have noticed it by now!
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  • pkusmc 13 years ago
    Haha!! Best name ever for a recipe.
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  • sitbynellie 13 years ago
    Great name for a great recipe! I love fish cooked this way. Thanks for the recipe!
    Susan
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  • elgourmand 13 years ago
    Keni you are a hoot. I reckon Tom & Huck were cookin what they caught and Becky happened by and told them it smelt. Smelt is just great. Out in SoCal the Grunion come ashore a couple times a year and we used to just grab em gut em and cook em. Very much like smelt. Out here we get Pilchard and that’s what I’ll make this dish with. Thanks for the reminder, the memories and the recipe. Almost forgot, try walnut oil sometime. RJ
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  • gourmetana 13 years ago
    I love the name too!! That made me want to see more of it. Great recipe! I don't know what smelt is... must check it... but you know? My mom made a recipe very similar to this with tiny sardines when I was young and I loved it!
    I hate that we don't have canola or peanut oil around here... all you can find at the supermarket is oil, sunflower oil and a whole section of olive oil.
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  • mrtnzangel8 13 years ago
    ahaha Love the name! I can't say I have ever had smelt, though...don't even know where I would find it.
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