Pan-Fried Crucian Carp in Sour Cream

Cooking method

1. Step 1:

   

   How do you pan-fry crucian carp in sour cream? First, prep the fish. You can use freshly caught or frozen carp; if it's frozen, thaw it at room temperature ahead of time.

2. Step 2:

   

   Scale the fish and remove the guts. Rinse the carp in clean cold water.

3. Step 3:

   

   Gather the rest of the ingredients. Sour cream of any fat content works here.

4. Step 4:

   

   Cut off the heads and tails. Small fish can be fried whole — just be sure to remove the gills. If your carp is on the large side, cut it into portions. Mine were about palm-sized, so I removed the heads and tails to fit them in the pan.

5. Step 5:

   

   Peel the onion, rinse it, and slice it into half-moons or a little finer, as you prefer. Stir salt to taste and ground allspice or black pepper into the sour cream and mix well.

6. Step 6:

   

   Heat refined vegetable oil in a heavy-bottomed skillet with high sides. Add the carp and fry on one side until golden, then flip and fry the other side until golden as well. If the fish won't all fit at once, fry it in batches.

7. Step 7:

   

   Remove the carp from the pan. Work gently — small fish are delicate and can fall apart.

8. Step 8:

   

   Add the onion to the same oil the fish was cooked in and fry, stirring, until it reaches the color you like.

9. Step 9:

   

   Lay the fish back on top of the onion.

10. Step 10:

    

    Pour the sour cream over the fish and spread it into an even layer with a spoon. Cover the pan, lower the heat to medium, and simmer the carp for another 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the size of the fish.

11. Step 11:

    

    Pat the washed herbs dry with paper towels and chop finely. Dill or young green onion are ideal with carp in sour cream.

12. Step 12:

    

    Serve on its own or alongside mashed potatoes or fresh vegetables.