Hush Puppies

Fried cornmeal nuggets make a tasty snack or side dish.

Yield: about 25 hush puppies

Time: 30 minutes

Tools

  • large bowl
  • rubber spatula
  • blender
  • heavy, high-sided frying pan
  • tongs
  • large plate
  • paper towels

Ingredients

  • 2 c white flour
  • 2 c cornmeal
  • 1¼ t salt
  • 1 T + 1 t baking powder
  • ½ pound soft (not silken) tofu
  • 1½ c water
  • ½ c onion, minced
  • ¼ c olive oil
  • about ½ c coconut, grapeseed, peanut, or soy oil, for frying

Directions

Combine flour, cornmeal, salt, and baking powder in the bowl, then make a hollow in the center.

Crumble the tofu into the blender; add water, onion, and olive oil; and purée.

Pour about an inch of oil into the pan and heat over medium high heat. Line the plate with paper towels and set next to the stove.

Add the wet mixture to the dry and stir until just combined.

When the oil is very hot but not smoking, roll about 2 T of the batter into a ball or short log and carefully drop into the pan. Repeat several times to fill the pan, leaving a bit of space between each hush puppy.

Fry until golden brown, 2-4 minutes, then turn and fry the other side. Transfer the cooked hush puppies to the paper towels to drain.

Repeat until you’ve used up all the batter.*

Serve hot, with lemon wedges, mustard, or your favorite dipping sauce.

Notes

* If, like me, you get tired of making all the little balls, you can spread the rest of the batter in a well-oiled baking dish, drizzle a bit of oil over the top, and bake for 25-30 minutes at 400 F. This will result in a sort of flatbread that is less tender but just as tasty.

Also try Sweet hush puppies.

Tofu CookeryAdapted from the recipe in Tofu Cookeryread my review.

Buy it:

Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk

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Hush puppies