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Dipping Sauce

• 3/4 cup rice vinegar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons red chili pepper flakes
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 large clove garlic, minced

Variant Thai style:

• 1 cup white vinegar
• 6 tbsps superfine sugar
• 1 -3 tsp sambal oelek
• 1 tbsp finely chopped cilantro
• 2 tbsp peeled, finely chopped cucumber

Fritters

• 1 cup flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 cups of corn kernels, (see steps for cutting corn from a cob) cut from 3 large cobs (or frozen corn, defrost and drain first)
• 4 large scallions or green onions, finely sliced (about half a cup)
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• Grapeseed, canola, or peanut oil (a high smoke point oil) for frying

Thai variation: add 1 - 1.5 tbsp red curry paste, 1 tbsp fish sauce or light soy

1. Make the dipping sauce by combining all of the sauce ingredients into a small saucepan. Cook on medium heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until sugar dissolves. Increase the heat to medium high, let boil for 5-10 minutes or so, until the mixture becomes somewhat syrupy. Remove from heat and let cool. The sauce should continue to thicken as it cools. If it becomes too thick, you can add a little water to it to thin it out a bit.
2. Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, ground coriander, and ground cumin in a medium bowl. Add egg, lemon juice and water. Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until smooth. Add the corn, onions, and cilantro. Stir until just combined.
3. Heat a large frying pan on medium high heat. Add enough oil to generously coat the bottom of the pan. When oil is hot (shimmering not smoking), spoon about 2 heaping tablespoons worth of fritter batter into the pan to form one fritter, patting it down with the back of the spoon as soon as it is in the pan. Work in batches. Leave about 1/2 inch between the fritters in the pan. Let cook about 2-3 minutes on each side, flipping the fritters when they are nicely browned on one side. When browned on the other side, remove the fritters to a plate lined with paper towels to absorb the excess fat.
4. Add oil as needed to keep the bottom of the pan well coated. Note that the fritters will likely splatter a bit as you are cooking. So, either use a screen splatter guard, or wear long sleeved clothes while you cook.

Makes approximately 16 fritters. Serve immediately with the sweet chili dipping sauce.

source Adapted by Bill Granger's corn fritters, found on The Wednesday Chef. http://www.elise.com/recipes/archives/005275spicy_corn_fritters.php

tags: vegetarian