Crispy fresh anchovies fritters

A delicious recipe out of the numerous similar dishes the Greek cuisine has to offer! A great meze dish to enjoy along with a chilled glass of ouzo! If served with seasonal wild greens it becomes a more full meal. Try the same recipe with smelt or whitebait, both are delicious and they are the type of fish that don't need any preparation because they can be eaten whole

Cooked by Kostas Tsigas,

"Cook Book" magazine of "ETHNOS" newspaper

Ingredients (for 4 people):
500 gr of fresh anchovies, cleaned

4 cups of all-purpose flour
½ tsp of cornflour, dissolved into the water used (cornstarch) - optional

1 cup of water
2 cups of fresh milk

½ cup of condensed milk

2 eggs, beaten

½ tsp of baking soda

1 tbsp of olive oil

1 tsp of dried oregano

salt
black pepper
cooking oil for frying

Method:
Ask your fishmonger to clean the anchovies of their heads and innards. Rinse the cleaned fish well and transfer into a bowl. Season with salt.

In another large bowl put the flour, the water, the fresh and the condensed milk, the eggs, the baking soda, the cornflour (if used) and the olive oil. Beat the ingredients thoroughly until you end up with a thick batter. Lastly add the oregano and season well with salt and pepper.

Add in the bowl the anchovies making sure they are fully covered by the batter.

Heat the cooking oil in a large and deep frying pan on medium-high heat. When well heated, take large spoonfuls of the batter with the fish and empty in the pan.

Allow some little distance between them so to prevent the fritters from sticking together.

Fry the fritters for about 3 minutes on each side or until they are well coloured. Using a slotted spoon transfer the fritters on kitchen paper to discard the excess oil.

Serve the fritters immediately on a platter along with lemon wedges.

Note:
The cornflour (if used) will make the fritters even crispier and it will give a beautiful colour as well