Sprats and Malt Vinegar Mayo

Forget whitebait, mere vehicles for vinegar and mayo. Sprats bring much more flavour and texture to the party. If you don’t have a deep fryer, a saucepan full of oil (and some courage) will work equally well. It is definitely worth investing in a temperature probe to accurately measure the temperature of the oil though. Any hotter than 180°C and the sprats will cook too fast; any lower and they’ll end up limp and soggy.