THAI-STYLE CORN FRITTERS, SHALLOW-FRIED *OR* BAKED (Can be GF)

UPDATED April 26, 2018
It's been a long time since I last blogged. I've been taking a semi-break from internet activity for a little while, but that isn't the only reason. We've been eating pretty simply, for one thing, and I'm preparing for a cooking workshop coming up soon. Also, we've had company and the odd family emergency, and, to tell you the truth, I just haven't had much inspiration in the kitchen.

Well, today I got some inspiration-- I had a hankering for vegan Thai corn fritters. But, I wanted to develop a recipe that could be baked, for vegans who don't use much fat, or shallow-fried for those who don't mind a little oil but prefer not to deep-fry, and also for the gluten-free crowd-- or not. Seemed a tall order, but it wasn't really very difficult.

I have read many, many recipes for this crispy Thai delight and, believe me, there are many versions and variations! My version gives you some leeway about the type of flour you use and I decided to use aquafaba (the brine or cooking liquid from chickpeas or other beans that is making waves in the vegan community and even in the mainstream culinary world) as an egg replacer.

The batter is quick and easy to mix up and you have a choice of baking or shallow-frying-- I liked both versions. The baked version is not quite as crispy as the fried, but still delicious.

Printable Copy (includes my No-So-Sweet Homemade Thai Red Chili Sauce recipe.)

BRYANNA'S THAI-STYLE CORN FRITTERS, SHALLOW-FRIED *OR* BAKED

Makes about 20, or 5 servings (Can be GF)  UPDATED April 26, 2018

There's no need to deep-fry these delicious morsels. With this recipe you have a choice between shallow-frying the fritters in a little bit of oil, or baking them.

1 cup unbleached white flour or sprouted whole wheat flour
½ cup brown rice flour or oat flour (ALTERNATIVE: You can omit the rice or oat flour and simply use 1 ½ cups wheat flour, OR you can use your favorite GF flour mixture for the total.  A good GF AND low-glycemic mix would be 1/2 cup EACH of oat flour, potato starch and chickpea flour.)

2 ¼ tsp. baking powder

¾ tsp. salt OR 2 tsp. soy sauce (Note: If you use the soy sauce, add it to the liquid ingredients.)

½ cup non-dairy milk

6 tablespoons aquafaba (the broth from cooking chickpeas, or the liquid from canned chickpeas)

2 tablespoons fish-free Thai red curry paste, such as Maesri, or Taste of Thai brands

6 green onions, finely chopped

1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
3 cups fresh OR frozen and thawed corn kernels, drained

Ingredients for the fritters

Serve with:

Thai Sweet Chili Sauce, purchased or homemade (See recipe for my  Not-So-Sweet Homemade Thai-Style Sweet Red Chili Sauce below.)

Directions:

If you are going to bake the fritters, preheat the oven to 400°F.

If you are going to shallow-fry the fritters, have ready a large frying pan and oil suitable for frying. (Cast iron, carbon-steel or hard-anodized are good pans-- I no longer use any nonstick.)

Combine the two flours (or alternative), baking powder and salt in a dry medium-sized mixing bowl. ( If you use the soy sauce instead of the salt, add it to the liquid ingredients.)

In a smaller bowl, whisk together the non-dairy milk, aquafaba and red curry paste (and the soy sauce, if you are using that instead of salt), until there are no lumps of curry paste left (use an immersion blender, if you like). Pour this mixture into the flour mixture, along with the green onions and ginger, and mix briefly. Add the corn kernels to the batter (it is thick) and mix just to distribute the kernels well.

If you are baking the fritters, lightly oil a large dark baking sheet (or 2 small ones)-- a dark baking sheet browns foods better. Scoop a heaping soup spoon-full of the batter out for each fritter and plop it onto the baking sheet(s). Repeat until the sheet is full, but don't crowd the fritters too much. Smooth out the tops, but don't spread too thin. Bake for 10-15 minutes, then flip the fritters over and bake 10-15 minutes more, or until golden brown and crispy on both sides. Serve hot with the Sweet Red Chile Sauce.

Baked fritters on the left, shallow-fried fritters on the right

If you are shallow-frying the fritters, pour about 1/4 cup of oil into your skillet and set it to heat over medium-high heat for several minutes. When you drop a bit of batter into the oil, it should sizzle. Scoop a heaping soup spoon-full of the batter out for each fritter and plop it into the hot oil. Repeat until the pan is full, but don't crowd the fritters too much. Smooth out the tops, but don't spread too thin. Fry until the bottoms are golden brown and crispy, then carefully turn them over and cook until the second side is the same. Repeat until all of the batter is used, adding a bit more oil as needed. Remove the fried fritters from the pan to paper-lined plates or baking sheets, so that any excess oil is absorbed by the paper. Serve hot with the Sweet Red Chile Sauce.

Nutrition Facts (for Baked version)

Nutrition (per serving: 4 fritters): 255 calories, 14 calories from fat, 1.7g total fat, 0mg cholesterol, 305.7mg sodium, 624.1mg potassium, 55.9g carbohydrates, 4.7g fiber, 4.7g sugar, 7.9g protein, 7.4 points.

(See below for my No-So-Sweet Homemade Thai Red Chili Sauce, if you prefer less sugar.)

One of the many brands of this sauce.

BRYANNA’S NOT-SO-SWEET THAI-STYLE SWEET RED CHILI SAUCE
Servings: Fourteen 2-tablespoon servings
Yield: 1 3/4 cups

Ingredients:
Mix together in a small saucepan:
1/2 cup rice vinegar
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup organic agave syrup or maple syrup
3 Tbs Chinese or Vietnamese chili garlic sauce (Huy Fong Foods, Inc. and Lee Kum Kee are common brands)
1 1/2 Tbs soy sauce
Bring to a boil, then turn down and simmer for 5 minutes.
Add the Thickener:
1 Tbs potato starch, or tapioca starch mixed with 1 tablespoon cold water

If you use potato starch (which contains resistant starch, so is better for low-glycemic eating), DO NOT add it to the mixture while it is cooking.  Take the pot off of the heat and stir in the potato starch/water mixture. If you use tapioca starch, add while the sauce is still simmering and whisk until it thickens, then remove from heat.

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per 2 T. serving): 35 calories, less than 1 calorie from fat, less than 1g total fat, 0mg cholesterol, 146mg sodium, 92.5mg potassium, 12.3g carbohydrates, less than 1g fiber, 6.9g sugar, less than 1g protein, 1.4 points.

Enjoy!