There must be something about mid-August that puts me in the mood for corn fritters.
Last year on Aug. 16 this column featured a recipe for corn fritters from Deborah Madison's Local Flavors cookbook, and today I'm sharing a different recipe for corn fritters.
If you saw a photograph of the two recipes, you might argue there's nothing different between them beyond the garnish. And you'd be half right. I even served them on the same platter! But one key difference between the recipes is -- thanks to taking the extra time to cook the corn -- today's fritters have a much stronger sweet corn flavor.
I served the fritters as part of a vegetarian supper with sliced tomatoes and lima beans.
Corn Fritters
4 medium to large ears corn, shucked
1 teaspoon vegetable oil, plus more for frying
Salt and ground black pepper
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup minced fresh chives, divided use
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Generous pinch ground red pepper (cayenne)
Generous pinch smoked paprika
1 egg
Sour cream or ranch dressing, for serving
Using a chef's knife, cut the kernels from each ear of corn by standing the ear upright in a bowl and cutting the kernels away from the cob. You should have about 3 cups of kernels. Place half of the kernels in a food processor and pulse to coarsely chop; set aside.
In a large nonstick skillet, heat the 1 teaspoon vegetable oil over medium heat until shimmering. Add the remaining corn kernels along with about 1/8 teaspoon each salt and pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until lightly golden, about 5 minutes. Transfer kernels to a medium bowl; set aside.
Return the skillet to medium heat and add the pureed corn and cook, stirring almost constantly, until mixture thickens and becomes clingy like oatmeal, about 5 minutes. Add to bowl with the kernels and mix well.
Rinse skillet and wipe dry.
To the bowl of corn, stir in the flour, cornstarch, 3 tablespoons of the chives, the cheese, cayenne pepper, paprika and about 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper until thoroughly mixed. Add the egg and mix well.
Line a baking sheet with a wire rack.
Heat enough oil to generously coat the bottom of the skillet over medium heat. Add corn mixture in 2-tablespoon dollops -- depending on the size of your skillet, you should be able to fry 5 or 6 fitters at a time -- and fry until golden brown on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer fritters to rack to drain. Repeat with remaining batter.
Serve hot, sprinkled with remaining chives and sour cream or ranch dressing, if desired.
Makes about 12 fritters.
Recipe adapted from Cook's Illustrated All-Time Best Brunch by the editors at America's Test Kitchen
Food on 08/15/2018