Selection of Deep-Fried Fish and Shellfish Cooking Recipe – Fritto Misto di Mare Recipe
Deep-fried fish is the most commonly found fried food in Italy, appearing on almost every restaurant menu. This dish can consist of just shellfish and mollusks (calamari and shrimp), or fish, known as “paranza,” or a mixture of the two.
Serves 6
- Preparation time: 30 minutes
- Frying time: 12 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 ½ lb. (800 g) fish for frying (mullet, dabs, small mackerel, anchovy, etc.)
- 6 oz. (200 g) shrimp
- 6 oz. (200 g) calamari rings
- 2 tablespoons, approximately, flour or durum-wheat flour
- Sufficient quantity of olive oil or peanut oil for deep frying
- 1 lemon
- Salt
Cooking Method
- Wash the fish and shellfish and drain carefully. Dip them in a very small quantity of flour (1, 2).
- Shake them to eliminate the surplus and fry them in the oil at 350°F/180°C until they are well browned (2 minutes for shrimp, 4 minutes for the calamari and other small fish) (3). Drain on paper towel and sprinkle with salt (4).
- Serve immediately with lemon wedges.
Chefs notes
- For a lighter result, use a minimal amount of flour. Put the ingredients in a bag with 1 tablespoon of flour, close the bag and shake. You can also shake the ingredients in a tamis or drum sieve, once they are floured, to remove any excess flour. The flour is only used to eliminate any trace of moisture on the surface of the ingredients.
- You can sprinkle the fried foods with chopped parsley before serving.
- You can also add scampi, small squid or cuttlefish, whole octopus (moscardini), and soft-shell crab.
Fried Mozzarella Sandwich Cooking Recipe – Mozzarella in Carrozza Recipe
“Mozzarella in a carriage” is a Neapolitan dish created to use up mozzarella that is no longer completely fresh or moist.
Serves 4
- Preparation time: 30 minutes
- Resting time: 1 hour
- Frying time: 5 minutes
Ingredients
- 8 oz. (250 g) mozzarella
- 8 slices soft white bread
- 2 eggs
- 2/3 cup (150 ml) milk
- 3 tablespoons flour
- Sufficient quantity of olive oil or peanut oil for deep frying
- Salt
Cooking Method
- Drain the mozzarella and leave it exposed to air, uncovered, for 1 hour.
- Cut it into four slices approximately V2 in. (1 cm) thick. Remove the crusts from the bread. Place the slices of cheese on half of the bread.
- Cover with the remaining slices of bread and press down well before moistening the edges with water and flouring them to form a seal. This will prevent the mozzarella escaping during the frying process.
- Beat the eggs with the milk. Dip each sandwich into the beaten egg, allowing them to soak up as much egg as possible (1). Let rest for a few minutes then fry in the oil at 350°F/180°C until they are well browned (2) (approximately 5 minutes).
- Drain on paper towel and sprinkle with salt (3). Serve immediately.
Chef’s notes
- You can replace the soft white bread by one- or two-day-old slices from a rustic loaf. Add a fillet of anchovy in oil to the cheese.
- Fried, breaded mozzarella is prepared by frying the slices of cheese dipped in egg and bread crumbs. They are then sprinkled with salt and oregano.
