Baked Carp in Sour Cream (Ukrainian)

Method

1. 1Clean the carp: scale it, gut it, remove the gills, rinse, and pat dry. Make several diagonal slashes about 1 cm deep on each side — they let the marinade and heat in and help the thick sides cook evenly. They do not soften the fine bones: a whole carp still has to be eaten with care, picking out the bones.
2. 2Rub the fish inside and out with salt, pepper, and the juice of half the lemon. Let it sit for 15–20 minutes (or up to an hour in the fridge) — the acid firms the flesh and clears the muddy note carp can have.
3. 3Slice the onion into rings and the lemon into half-moons. Tuck some of the onion, lemon, and a few sprigs of dill into the cavity.
4. 4Mix the sour cream with the crushed garlic and a pinch of salt and pepper.
5. 5Line a tray with oiled foil, spread the rest of the onion as a bed, and lay the carp on top. The onion bed lifts the fish off the foil and flavors it from below.
6. 6Coat the carp all over with the sour cream, working it into the slashes. Pull the foil up around the sides into a boat, leaving the top open for browning.
7. 7Bake at 190°C for 30–40 minutes until golden and the flesh flakes. Rest 5 minutes, scatter with dill, and serve with lemon.