Use either homemade mayonnaise or a good, thick ready-made alternative.
ingredients
serves 4
1 1/2 pound whitebait
4 tbsp All purpose flour
salt and pepper
oil, to deep-fry
lime and basil mayonnaise
1/4 pint mayonnaise
grated zest of 1 lime
1 tbsp chopped basil
to serve
lime or lemon wedges
method
1. Rinse the whitebait and pat thoroughly dry with kitchen paper.
2. For the flavoured mayonnaise, mix the ingredients together in a bowl and season with salt and pepper.
3. Put the flour into a large plastic bag and season with salt and pepper to taste. Add the whitebait and toss to coat in the seasoned flour.
4. Heat the oil in a deep-fryer to 190°C. Deep-fry the whitebait in the hot oil in batches for about 3 minutes or until golden brown. Drain on crumpled kitchen paper and keep hot in a low oven while cooking the rest of the fish.
5. Serve the hot whitebait with lime or lemon wedges and the flavoured mayonnaise.
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