Fried Roach with Lemon and Capers
Roach fillets dusted in flour and fried until the skin turns crisp and golden, and finished with lemon juice and capers. Light, flaky, and delicately flavoured. The French river fish of every guinguette, done at home in about twenty minutes!
Ingredients
- 20 roach about 15–20cm each, scaled and gutted
- 4 tbsp plain flour
- 4 tbsp vegetable oil
- ½ lemon juiced
- 1 tbsp capers drained
- salt and black pepper
Instructions
1. Fillet the fish
- Take the fillets off each roach, keeping the skin on.
2. Flour
- Pat the fillets dry with kitchen paper. Season with salt and pepper, then dust lightly in flour and shake off the excess.
3. Fry
- Heat the oil in a large frying pan until hot. Lay the fillets in without crowding and fry until golden and crisp on both sides, a few minutes in total. Work in batches if needed.
4. Finish
- Add the capers to the pan and squeeze over the lemon juice. Toss briefly and serve straight away on a few lettuce leaves.
Notes
- Choose small roach, 15 to 20cm, from rivers rather than ponds.
- Dry the fillets well before flouring, or they won't crisp.
- Don't crowd the pan. Fry in batches and keep the first lot warm.
- Lemon and capers go in last, right at the end.