Recipe by Georgia East 

"A summery snack, fried whitebait is speedily prepared and is great to serve as an aperitif with a glass of 2023 La Motte Sauvignon Blanc. Roasting the lemon caramelizes the inside, giving a delicious fullness of flavour to the mayonnaise."

Crispy Whitebait with Caper & Roasted Lemon Mayonnaise

Prep time: 15 mins /Cook time: 10 mins /Serves: 4

You will need:

• 900g frozen whitebait, defrosted
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 100g plain flour
• Fine salt and pepper
• Sunflower oil, for deep-frying

For the mayonnaise:

• 50ml good quality mayonnaise
• 1 small seedless lemon
• 1 tablespoon of capers, roughly chopped
• Sea salt flakes

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Place the lemon in a small ovenproof dish and roast for 20 minutes. Leave to cool before halving. Scoop out the flesh of the lemon (discarding any seeds) and use an immersion blender to purée it. Combine the lemon pulp with the chopped capers and mayonnaise and season with salt to taste. Refrigerate until needed.

Fill a pot with about 4cm of oil and heat to 200°C. Rinse off the whitebait and pat dry with kitchen towel. Season the flour with salt and pepper. Dip the whitebait first in the beaten egg and then in the flour, shaking the dish to evenly coat each fish. Deep-fry the whitebait in batches, draining the fried fish on kitchen towel. Season with salt and serve the whitebait immediately with the mayonnaise, extra lemon wedges for squeezing over and chilled glasses of La Motte’s Sauvignon Blanc.