Preparation

• To prepare the breaded fried sardines, first clean the sardines well by opening them butterfly-style and removing the central bone and the guts; you will see the head will come away with the central bone.
  If, like me, you prefer convenience, you can buy them already butterflied and cleaned from your fishmonger. Rinse them under cold running water and dry them very well with paper towels.

• Beat the eggs in a deep plate and place the flour on another plate.
  Mix the breadcrumbs and semolina and put them on a third deep plate. You can use seasoned breadcrumbs or plain breadcrumbs; if you use plain breadcrumbs you can add some chopped fresh parsley to the beaten eggs.

• At this point, quickly coat the sardines in the flour, shaking off the excess; dip them in the beaten egg and immediately after in the breadcrumb mixture, pressing lightly so the coating adheres well.

• If you want a thick, crunchy coating, you can dip the breaded sardines a second time in the beaten egg and breadcrumbs.
  Let the sardines rest on a wooden cutting board for at least 20 minutes to prevent the breadcrumbs from falling off during frying.

• Now you can fry the sardines. Heat the frying oil (peanut oil is best) to 320°F — I recommend using a kitchen thermometer, which costs only a few euros and is very helpful to avoid overheating the oil and producing smoke that can affect the food.

• Fry a few sardines at a time until they are golden on one side, then turn them and fry the other side. Drain them on absorbent paper for fried foods and salt them a few moments later.

• Our breaded fried sardines are ready. Serve them with lemon slices so those who like can squeeze a little over them and…
  ENJOY YOUR MEAL