Things You Didn’t Know You Could Deep-Fry
Golden brown, crispy and just a touch greasy. Deep-frying may not be the best thing for your cholesterol, but it sure is delicious. Chicken, croquettes, shrimp, sure. But did you know you can deep-fry these things too?
1. Pasta
Got leftover tortellini, ravioli, lasagne or mac ‘n cheese? Don’t throw it away, because the next day you can still easily dip it in beaten egg and breadcrumbs and deep-fry it. Fresh works too, by the way. Sprinkle some Parmesan over it, serve with tomato sauce on the side and dig in.
2. Pickles
In the mood for a combo of fresh, sour and maybe even a little spicy? Then try deep-fried pickles. Yes, really! Delicious in a beer batter with garlic powder, black pepper, paprika (or chilli powder if you want it a little hotter), then coated in some panko for a crispy crust.
3. Olives
A nice change from the standard bowl of olives. Dip the olives in beaten egg, then roll them in breadcrumbs mixed with Italian herbs and salt. Deep-fry them until golden brown. Tip: try it with garlic-stuffed olives.
4. Beer
We already knew about beer batter, but in Texas they take it a step further and came up with ‘deep-fried beer’. But how does that work, we hear you asking. It’s actually a kind of deep-fried ravioli made from a salty, pretzel-like dough filled with beer. Because it’s only deep-fried for twenty seconds, it still contains alcohol.
5. Pizza
You might expect deep-frying pizza to be an American idea, but no: the Italians came up with it themselves. There are two ways to do it: the dough is deep-fried and the toppings are added afterwards (pizza fritta), or it’s filled like a kind of calzone and then deep-fried (panzerotto).
6. Ice cream
Although it’s pretty much the most contradictory combo, deep-fried ice cream may be the best-known item on the list. The key to success? Patience. You first need to freeze the scoops of ice cream individually so they become very firm, then roll them in the batter, put them back in the freezer and repeat this a few more times so the scoops are completely covered. Naturally, the ice cream mustn’t leak out during deep-frying.
7. Cookies (or cookie dough)
Cookie dough is already incredibly delicious on its own, but deep-frying it may make it even better. Chocolate chip dough in particular becomes wonderfully gooey. The same goes for cookies such as Oreos and Twinkies. It’s no coincidence you find them everywhere at American fairs. Want to make them yourself? It’s as simple as rolling the cookies (or dough) in a flour batter and deep-frying them.
8. Deep-fried Mars bar
Invented by the Scots in the mid-nineties and now even found in many Scottish fish-and-chips shops: the deep-fried Mars bar. Just like the cookies, the whole thing is covered in batter and deep-fried. Not a fan of Mars? You can of course use other types of chocolate bars too.
9. Strawberries
We know deep-fried bananas and apples, but did you know you can deep-fry strawberries too? Make a batter with flour and a little cinnamon or vanilla, then dip the strawberries in it. Deep-fry briefly, let them drain for a moment, sprinkle with icing sugar and dig in.
10. Everything
If there’s one place where they’ve turned deep-frying everything into a sport, it’s America. So why not the lemonade drink Kool-Aid too? Or jelly beans, chewing gum or – no joke – butter! Yes, really, it exists!
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