Crispy Fried Smelts Recipe

Fried Smelt is an easy appetizer or dinner for any night of the week. They take five minutes to cook and have six ingredients. So they are done in less than 15 minutes!

Pin

What are Smelts?

The yearly smelt run occurs around the Great Lakes in the United States and southern Canada every springtime. Smelts are anadromous fish, meaning they spawn in fresh water and live in the ocean’s salt water as adults, although they have also been known to live in freshwater.

The breeding season lasts about a week. Several males accompany the females up the stream and fertilize the eggs after she lays them. Spawns can vary in their timing, depending on how warm the spring temperatures are.

During the spawn, fishermen can be seen, at night, with lanterns and nets, in the streams and river tributaries of the Great Lakes as the smelts go upstream to breed, smelt dipping, as it’s called.

Smelts are also caught with tiny hooks under the ice. Ice fishermen set up many hooks together, and you can pull up 5-10 smelts on one pole, depending on how many hooks you put on the pole. This is usually done in shallower lakes or Atlantic and Pacific coastal areas. Some lakes have laws that forbid smelt dipping, so you fish for them on poles in those lakes.

Smelt are also sold commercially if you live close enough to one of the Great Lakes or some of the coastal lands of the northern Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Different species of smelts are found in Europe and north Asia, especially in the Japanese culture, and there are even smelts in Australia! Our local smelts range from about 7″ to 9″. Learn more about smelts at Wikipedia

Smelt are low in mercury and other heavy metals compared to larger fish. They are nutrient-rich and have many of the same health benefits as anchovies and sardines. They are high in calcium, potassium, phosphorus, and vitamins B and D. Smelts are also low in calories and fat.

We used to stay up until the sun came up and drive an hour south of us to streams where, if you stayed up most of the night, you were guaranteed to get the best haul of smelts. Then, we would spend the next day cleaning and freezing the smelts.

How to Clean Fresh Smelts

• Cut off their heads, just past the gills. (very small smelts can be cooked with their heads attached.)
• Slit the belly to the anal fin.
• Remove entrails.
• Wash the cavity thoroughly. Washing the fish under running water is essential to remove all of the entrails.

Freezing Smelts

• Once smelts are cleaned, place in cold, salted water for approximately one hour.
• Drain
• Freeze in plastic freezer bags or vacuum-sealed bags.
• Adding ½ cup of water to the bag will prolong the freezing time.
• They can be frozen for up to 6 months.

Pin

What ingredients do you need?

• Flour: (can substitute gluten-free flour)
• Cornstarch: Cornstarch makes the fish extra crispy.
• Fine bread crumbs or cornflake crumbs
• Lemon pepper: dried spice in the spice aisle
• Celery salt: you can substitute celery seed and then add salt separately
• Oil: use a high-temperature oil like canola or peanut oil
• Butter:
• Cleaned and dressed smelts: fresh or frozen-thawed. Thaw them in the refrigerator overnight.

How to Cook Smelt

We find the best way to cook smelt is shallow pan-fried. They could be battered and deep-fried, but they lose a lot of their health benefits. Technically, they could be baked, too, but we don’t recommend it because they don’t get as crispy.

Measure about 1 cup of flour, two tablespoons of cornstarch, and bread crumbs into a covered bowl or plastic food storage bag. Add lemon pepper and celery salt. Mix well.

How to Air Fry Smelt

Smelt can also be air fried. Make the flour mixture according to the directions. Coat the fish with the flour mixture. Then, spray the fish with nonstick spray. Place them in the air fryer basket in a single layer and air fry at 375°F for 4-6 minutes on the first side.

Flip the fish and air fry for another 4-6 minutes until they are crispy.

Variations of this recipe

Depending on the flavor profile you are going for, you can use other spices to change it up a bit.

• Add chili powder for an added kick.
• Add paprika or smoked paprika for a different flavor profile
• Dill goes well with these smelts, especially if you sprinkle with lemon before serving (grate some lemon zest over them, too, after cooking)
• Add Italian seasoning and garlic powder for the Feast of the Seven Fishes on Christmas Eve, and make them Italian smelts
• Add Mexican seasonings like garlic, cumin, coriander, chili powder, paprika and Mexican oregano. Make fish tacos with this variation.

Pro tips for your success

• Add plenty of salt to the flour and cornstarch. (or celery salt)
• Be sure to shake excess flour off of the fish before cooking. You don’t want excess flour in the body cavity because it will not cook properly.
• Cook smelts until crispy for the best texture. You want them to be very crispy.
• Make sure the oil is very hot, and add smelts slowly so that the oil does not cool down too much.
• Eat smaller smelts with the bones. They are soft enough to chew. Larger smelt should have the rib cage removed after frying. To remove the rib cage, grab on the spine with your fingers on the end from where you cut the head off. The entire rib cage will pull out very easily.
• Fun fact: Smelts can be kippered like herring. Kippered smelts are butterflied, salted, and cold smoked, generally using oak.

Storing and Reheating Leftovers

We don’t recommend either storing or reheating these little fish. The fish will get overdone if they are reheated.

They really aren’t good when eaten cold the next day, either. The breading becomes soggy. It is best to cook just what you need for a serving.

If you have more than you can eat in a sitting, cook what you can eat and cook the rest the next day fresh.

What sauces to use for smelt

Smelts are actually delicious on their own, but lots of sauces go well for dipping them if you love dips. We also like to serve them with a lemon wedge.

• tartar sauce
• comeback sauce
• homemade cocktail sauce
• ketchup
• Thousand Island Dressing
• Fermented Hot Sauce (or Tabasco, Sriracha)
• chili flakes for a bit of kick.
• Fresh, chopped herbs like parsley and dill work very well too.
• Chipotle aioli
• Malt vinegar as the British do for fish and chips

What to serve with smelt

Serve them as an appetizer with a dipping sauce or with one of these side dishes.

• Sweet potato fries
• Fries or chips
• coleslaw
• side salad
• cottage cheese
• mashed potatoes
• lemon wedges

Pin

Other Delicious Fish Recipes

• Pan Fried Bullhead
• Northern Pike
• Stuffed Rainbow Trout
• Grilled Salmon
• Lobster Stuffed Grouper
• Fried Perch

Connect with us through our social media pages! Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter.

Please ask any questions or share your comments in the comments section below. We’d love to hear from you.

I hope you enjoyed the recipe today.

Enjoy. And have fun cooking!

Pin

Originally published May 1, 2019. Updated December 24, 2024.