September 1st
2006
Food comes in different shapes, forms and - of course - flavors. Some of them are true crowd pleasers (strawberries or chocolate are no-brainers), some of them are polarizing (thinking of olives or capers) and comparatively few of them come with a bad rep (second helping on the offal anyone?). I have been a very picky eater for the first two decades of my life and sort of still am, but do admire adventurous people like Eddie or our dear friend Hande, who recently shared with us stories about traditional food in Turkey, involving tripe and buffalo sheep testicles ... yumm.
It has become pretty en vogue -not only in high-class restaurants- to eat off the beaten track, picking a dish that could easily provoke a hysterical and disgusted reaction by other guests. “Yuck, I'd never....!”. Try everything once is a keen and open minded motto for every foodie and I have a lot of respect for everyone willing to broaden their culinary horizon outside of their comfort zone.
Now what's in and what's out of your personal comfort zone is likely to be dependent on your cultural and culinary background. Yet I'm guilty of all talk and no action: escargots and even oysters are still on my need - to - try - someday - not - quite - yet list! (side-note on oysters: my last attempt in Vienna was sabotaged by the restaurant owner who disclosed to me that they had run out of them! I'm trying though, I am trying. Things happen for a reason, maybe I should have my first oyster at a place where I can actually see and smell the sea...) But at least two items I was able to tick off my list over the last months: Eating pan-roasted blood sausage - which didn’t actually taste that bad - and gut fish/sardines.
The side benefit of shopping for sardines was to discover something new: Aquadelle, a tiny little fish. What goes by the name "aquadelle" in fact belongs to the family of sardines (baby sardines essentially) and are sold as is. The upside is, you don't have to gut them. The down-side, you'll be eating them with their innards, eyes etc. Well, not raw but fried - I bet this makes you feel much better already!
Bottom line: The scent of the fried aquadelle was so scrumptious, I couldn’t resist and threw all sissy worries over board. Drizzled with some lime juice it makes perfect finger food to start a party - as long as your guests play along.
The recipe/steps couldn’t be any simpler.
Put the little fish in a sieve and wash under running cold water. Let drip off and pad them dry on a paper towel.
Mix together flour, cayenne pepper, freshly ground black pepper, nutmeg and salt or experiment with other spices. All amounts are by guess and gosh.
Heat up enough sunflower oil in a pot (to fully cover the fish later) until small bubbles form on a wooden stick.
Take a small handful of the aquadelle at a time, toss them in the flour mixture until they are evenly covered and fry until golden brown (about 3-4 minutes). Remove them from the pot with a skimmer and place on a fresh paper towel to drain off any excessive fat.
Serve hot with quarters of fresh lime or lemon.
Aquadelle Fritte
Recipe source: inspired by "Die Fischkochschule", Rick Stein, p.56
Prep time & frying: 20min.
.
Ingredients:
aquadelle
flour
cayenne pepper
freshly ground black pepper
salt
nutmeg
sunflower oil
lime or lemon quarters
That looks so yummy! Where did you buy those fish in Munich?
Oh Oh Oh that looks aboslutely delicious. I love sardines so I bet I'd go nuts for these! I'll see if I can find any for a reasonable prize here in Sweden!
éperlans ?
jolie photo n°2!
It was sheep' testicles, not buffalo :-) but I guess that is weird enough anyways (and we did have a lot of wine on that evening)... But I still can't eat half of what Eddie writes about, he and the other guys at deep end dining are a league of their own!
One of my favorite snacks of all time! And you did it justice, as usual.
Bravo!
Those look perfect, just like we had in Spain!
I bet they do taste great, good for you for being brave. I don’t know that I could do it, it reminds me a little too much of when as a child and one of our “pet” Danio fish would jump out of the aquarium. I always felt bad for the stupid little things. Lovely photos as always!
Petingas, as we call them here in Portugal, are absolutely divine, hot or cold. I could eat a bucket full of them!!! When you'll get back to Portugal, maybe you could try caracóis (escargots). They are yummy!!!!
I lurrrrvvve Sardines. They are my favourite fish ever. Next only to french anchovies. Both have to be deep fried. But, marinate them in curry powder(dissolved in water). Sometimes you could add tiny amount of tamarind(dissoved) too. Yummmmyyy.. This is the Srilankan/South Indian way of cooking these beauties.
These are so tiny! I've never seen something similar, even sardines are hard to get around here (Switzerland).
We've had these in on our recent trip through Southern Italy and they were amazing. Also I have to admit, I had a hard time to eat something still looking at me...
Those tiny fish look yummy and really seem to make an excellent starter or party food in general!! I wonder if there is a dip one could serve with the aquarelle?
PS: I love sardines in any form or shape but haven't come across those tiny ones yet :(
PPS: loved your entry on Boquerones, too!
They are known as Whitebait in Britain, and you'll also find them on the menu of every self-respecting Italian restaurant.
Delicious and photogenic.
You're right about the oysters - where I grew up in the States, my father could walk down the the river and come back with oysters. open them up, and we could have them right on the spot. Anything you eat darn near alive should be as close to where it came from as possible! But you're brave with the little fish - I have a hard time eating eyes.
well, I as well think you're very brave (!)
This post was, once again, lovely and inspirational.
You made the aquadelle Fritte sound very nice and although the picture is perfect, sorry to say i'm not completely ready to give them a shot...
but they are definitely on my to try list! =)
oh, those look fantastic!
They look very similar to a Chinese dish I'm fond of - unfortunately I don't know the fish offhand but the preparation is almost the same. Delicious! And the second picture is a perfect piece of art!
That's a very good recipe! It's so tasty!
Just discovered your blog and think is is absolutely beautiful. The recipes look delicious and I'm tempted to try every single one!
Sounds very similar to what we in England call "Whitebait" - fried little fishes, just like these.
They taste fine, but since they absorb a little oil in the batter, tend to taste somewhat like chips.
Hi Julia, Keep me in the loop and let me know when you did try them!
Hi Megan, I'm sure there'll be a another opportunity soon for me to try. Concerning the eyes, "ignorance" can be bliss so to speak ;)
Hi w7, Scott
Now that I know, I have actually found more German resources talking about Whitebait than Aquarelle per se and how it makes great food for other fish, too!
Hi Mathy, Thanks for the tips, I'll keep them ready to hand for next time!
Sehr schön und wieder anregend. Schön, ich freue mich immer wieder auf neue Artikel von Euch. Bis zum nächsten! Grüße Thomas
Lovely recipe and wonderful photos! I've eaten plenty of these tiny little fish (never knowing their name) in Indonesia where they fried them (along with shelled peanuts) to a lovely crisp along with shelled peanuts; they were delicious! Thank you for your recipe which I'll be trying soon!
Really brave, indeed! I wouldn't eat anything that still stares at me, no way!!! Also the dish looks damn tasty, I'll have to give you that ;)
I stumbled across your site and was impressed by the lovely photographs you have taken of your art. I'm curious, do you take the pictures yourself? Either way, the pictures are very impressive - the colour and the composition always render the food much more delicious.
kind of sad looking. i love to try new foods, but the little fish-eyes are pulling on my vegetarian heartstrings
Wow, what amazing photos! So creative, I love it.
My mum were used to make these at home, mostly on Fridays! You made me feel sweet (and tasty) memories! ^_^
i follow the rule of try everything twice (might have been bad the first time around)
Where in Munich did you buy the fish? I would love to try the recipe, but havent a clue what poissonierie in Munich would stock these....
Perhaps 'Poseidon' at Viktualienmarkt?but what are these fish called in german? thanks!
EDIT: Hi Molly, you're right, I got them at Poseidon. They do sell them under the name "Aquadelle". I'm not sure, if they have them in stock everyday, maybe you should call in first ;) Link to their website
Gustad, I guess your rule really makes sense. Well, as far as I'm concerned, if the first time was a really bad surprise, I usually chicken out and take it as a good enough excuse to NOT try again ;)
oh, this looks fabulous! I'm really intrigued with the idea of the nutmeg!
-Elizabeth
Wow, these have to be the tiniest fish I have ever seen.
Hi from Cologne! We had them on a recent trip to Naples, fantastic fingerfood qualities indeed!
Lovely post! I know what you're talking about! My husband eats all kinds of weird food like e.g. duck feet, but I would never ever give it a try!