Rainbow smelt is a small, slender fish found in the cold freshwater lakes and coastal waters of North America. It rarely grows longer than about 20 centimetres and has translucent, silvery skin with an iridescent sheen along its flanks.
The flesh is mild, slightly sweet, and very tender. Because of their small size, smelt are traditionally cooked and eaten whole — head, bones, and all — with the fine bones softening during cooking. The classic preparation is to dredge them in seasoned flour and deep-fry until crisp, served with lemon. They’re also excellent pan-fried in butter.
Rainbow smelt is not commonly available in Australia, where local species like whitebait fill a similar culinary role. It may occasionally appear as a frozen import in specialty seafood shops.
How it's made
Nutrition (per 100g)
3 oz is about 85 g — roughly 80 kcal of this.
What it costs the planet (per kilo)
≈ Estimated — worked out from a category-typical value further up its supply chain. Where this comes from →
Where it comes from
In the kitchen
whole fried small fish
- Deep-fried Smelt
- Pan-fried Smelt with Lemon
- Beer-battered Smelt
Keeping one at home? Track yours in your cubud →
Where this data comes from
USDA
SR Legacy
Full credits, licences, and methods: the sources page →
Where to next
Your household's take
One thumb per person, shared with your household — it steers what the wider-web shelf and the swap chips offer you. Tap again to take it back.
✎ Spotted something wrong? Suggest a correction
Checking who you are...