18
19
Onion Rings
Yields: four to six servings
2
½
gallons good-quality oil
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon black pepper
2 large sweet onions, thinly sliced and separated into rings
1 cup milk
Preheat oil to 350°F.
Combine all the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Soak the onion slices in
the milk and then coat them in the flour mixture. With the fry basket
lowered into the oil, drop onion rings into the oil and fry for 2 to 3
minutes until golden brown. They will cook quickly because they are
sliced thinly. Drain on a paper towel.
Multi-Purpose Fry Batter
This is an all purpose batter that can be used to coat and fry a wide
variety of foods. Let your imagination run wild; try deep-frying your
favorite snack food.
2
½
gallons good-quality oil
1½ cups all-purpose flour*, plus more for dredging
1 teaspoon baking powder
1½ teaspoons kosher salt
1 cup of seltzer water
Preheat oil to 350°F.
Mix all dry ingredients; add the seltzer and let sit for a few minutes.
Dredge preferred food in the extra flour, then coat with batter and
deep-fry until golden brown in color.
* ½ cup of all-purpose flour can be replaced with ½ cup of cornmeal to
achieve a crunchier batter.
Vegetable Spring Rolls
Yields: 16 spring rolls
1 large garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 cup shiitake mushroom caps, thinly sliced
½ teaspoon kosher salt
½ cup mung bean sprouts
1 cup shredded carrots
2 cups napa cabbage
½ cup red pepper, thinly sliced into 1-inch-long pieces
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon corn starch
2 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon flour
16 spring roll wrappers
2
½
gallons good-quality oil
To create the filling: Heat a skillet to medium-high heat and sauté the
garlic and ginger in the sesame oil for one minute. Next add the
mushrooms and sprinkle them with the salt; this should release the
moisture from the mushrooms. Sauté for about a minute so that you
reduce some of the liquid. Now add the rest of your vegetables and
sauté for about three minutes, until the vegetables are tender but not
overcooked. While these are cooking, combine the rice wine vinegar,
soy sauce, sugar and cornstarch; add this mixture to the pan in the last
minute or less and combine. Remove from the heat and let cool. Mix the
water with the flour and set aside. To assemble, take one spring roll
wrapper at a time and place it in front of you, with a corner facing you
so that it looks like a diamond. Take two tablespoons of the filling and
place about two inches above the bottom corner of the wrapper. Fold
the bottom corner up over the filling and then both the side corners in
on top of that. It should look like an open envelope at this point. Use the
flour/water mixture and dab a line along the edge of the top corner, just
like the glue on an envelope. Starting at the bottom closest to you, roll
the spring roll, ending by sealing it with the top “glued” corner. Continue
until you’ve used all the filling. Preheat oil to 330°F; when ready, place
eight spring rolls along the bottom of the fry basket and lower into oil.
Cook for 4 to 5 minutes. Spring rolls should be light golden in color.
Repeat with the remaining eight spring rolls.
