Pat the fish dry on both sides (and in the belly cavity) with a sheet or two of paper towel then score in three places, roughly equidistantly spaced, down to the bone, top to bottom.
If you like your skin extra crispy and want to go the extra step: Run a hair dryer on high over each side of the fish for 2 to 3 minutes.
Season each fish with 1 to 2 teaspoons kosher salt, depending on the size of the fish and how salty you like things. Don't forget the belly cavity. Take some of the salt and rub it into the scores as well.
Sprinkle each side with 2 Tablespoons of flour, and pat it in.
Fill a pan large and deep enough to fit the whole fish with 3/4-inch of oil and preheat over medium high-ish heat. It should take 5 to 7 minutes to heat up to somewhere between 350 to 375F.
If you, like I, can't be arsed with thermometers, I throw in a pinch of flour and if it starts gently sizzling right away, I know it's ready.
Holding the whole fish tightly by where the body meets the tail, gently lower it into the oil, head side to tail side. Cover with a splatter screen and fry for 6 to 7 minutes per side.
At around the 4 minute mark, lift the tail side up carefully with tongs to see how the underside is browning. If it already looks pretty golden brown, you may wish to turn the heat down *just* a tad.
After 6 to 7 minutes, VERY carefully, with a tight grip on your tongs around where the tail meets the body, lift the fish and slowly flip the fish over, again gently lowering the uncooked side down into the oil, head first, then gently lowering toward the tail.
Cover again with splatter screen and let it fry for 6 to 7 minutes.
If you're going to fry another fish, you might wish to put another 1/8-inch or so of oil in the pan and let it come back up to frying temp before frying again.
That's it. Enjoy!
