Corn fritters is one of my favourite item to order for brunch, it's however quite hard to find one that's not too heavy or doughy. This version of corn fritters is inspired by Japanese ingredients and uses tempura batter instead of the normal batter, which makes the corn fritter very light and crunchy so the sweetness of the corn kennels shines through. Yuzu juice is also used instead of lime and lemon to give it that citrusy and fruity freshness and acidity.
Difficulty: Medium
Time: 30min prep, 1hr cooking
Serves: 4
Ingredients
Corn Fritters
- 3 fresh sweet corn cobs*
- 1/3 cup spring onion green part only finely sliced
- 1 tbsp red chilli finely chopped
- 90g tempura batter mix**
- 135ml cold water
- pinch of cayenne pepper
- salt
- micro herbs or dill to garnish (optional)
Tomato Medley
- 1 punnet baby tomatoes halved or sliced
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- salt
Avocado Mousse
- 2 small or 1 large ripe avocado
- 2 tbsp yuzu dressing
- 1/2 tbsp yuzu juice
- salt
Yuzu Mayonnaise
- 5 heaped tbsp good quality mayonnaise
- 2 tbsp yuzu juice
- 2 tbsp yuzu dressing
* This can be replaced with canned corn kernels to save a fair bit of time and trouble. I however prefer the bursting sweetness of fresh corn.
** Available in bags in Asian groceries.
Method
1. Start by steaming the sweet corn cobs for approximately 20 minutes or until cooked.
2. Make the yuzu mayonnaise by mixing the mayonnaise, yuzu dressing and yuzu juice in a small bowl. Taste and make adjustments as required, set aside.
3. Make the tempura batter in a bowl by mixing the water and the tempura batter mix together making sure the batter is nice and smooth. Remove lumps with your fingers if necessary.
4. Prepare the tomato medley by mixing it with olive oil and salt and set aside.
4. Take the corn cobs out of the steamer, let it cool down fully. Pull off the corn kernels into a bowl. I preferred pulling the corn kernels from the cob with hands as it preserve the full kernels, the juice and the sweetness. You can also slice these off with a knife if you want quicker results.
5. Make the avocado mousse by scooping the avocado into a blender, add the yuzu dressing and yuzu juice, blend until a smooth consistency and season with salt. You can also mash it manually with a fork if you don't have a blender.
6. Add the sliced onions, chopped chillies, salt, cayenne pepper to the corn kernels, mix well before adding the tempura batter. Add the tempura batter in batches so you can control the amount, you want just the right amount so each corn kernels are nicely coated with the batter but to swimming in it.
7. Heat up oil in a shallow fry pan, and spoon the sweet corn mixtures into the oil, shallow fry until golden brown.
8. Assemble the dish with the sweet corn fritters, tomato medley, yuzu mayonnaise and avocado mousse on a plate.
Sweet Corn Fritters Version 2.0 - with Jalapeño, Poached Egg and Smoked Corn Puree
With the leftovers, I've made an improved version the next day. Most of the components are the same except I've added chopped jalapeño and pickled ginger (about 1 tbsp each) to the corn mixture to give it the nice kick that it missed and a bit of acidity for freshness. I didn't have any yuzu mayonnaise left but do have left over smoked corn puree from dinner the night prior which added that lovely smokiness and sweetness. It's then finished with a poached egg.
Extra Ingredients
Smoked Corn Puree
- 200g creamed corn
- 5 tbsp milk
- 1 heaped tbsp thick cream
- pinch of nutmeg
- salt
For Smoking
- applewood smoking chips
Method
1. Add the creamed corn, milk, cream, nutmeg and salt into a small pot, mix well and gentle cook on low heat until it's hot. Take it off the stove before it's boiling.
2. Put it in a blender and blend until a smooth puree. Pass it through a sieve into a small bowl until it's silky smooth.
3. Glad wrap the bowl leaving only a small opening. Start your smoking gun and add applewood smoking chips to it, ignite it with the fan on and insert the smoking tube into the opening of the small smoking bowl. Let the smoke infuse inside the bowl for few minutes. Keep it warm over a bowl of hot water bath until serving time.
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