Recipe of the week: Old-fashioned corn fritters, updated

A corn fritter is the “perfect summer surprise,” says Betty Baboujon in the Los Angeles Times. With the season’s best corn now available, it’s easy to create a savory fritter that plays off a sweet and tangy chili sauce. This recipe is adapted from bills food by Bill Granger (Morrow Cookbooks). For a milder chili sauce, leave out the jalapeño seeds. Or as a quick alternative, serve with a bottled version such as Mae Ploy; thin it with a little rice vinegar for a nice pucker.

Recipe of the week

Corn Fritters With Sweet Chili Sauce

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Sweet chili sauce

1 red jalapeño, finely chopped

1/2 cup rice vinegar

1 tsp salt

1/3 cup sugar

1 small clove garlic, minced

In a small saucepan, combine the jalapeño, vinegar, salt, sugar, and garlic. Stir over low heat until the sugar dissolves, about 2 minutes.

Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook for 5 minutes, or until the mixture thickens to a slightly syrupy consistency. Remove from heat and set aside to cool while making the fritters. (The sauce continues to thicken as it cools; it can be made a day ahead.)

Fritters

1/2 cup rice flour

1/2 cup flour

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 tsp lemon juice

1/2 cup water

2 cups corn kernels, cut from 3 large cobs

4 spring onions, finely sliced

3 tbsp chopped cilantro

Oil

In a bowl, sift together the rice flour, flour, baking powder, salt, coriander,

and cumin. Add the egg, lemon juice, and water. Beat until smooth. Add the corn, spring onions, and cilantro, stirring until just combined.

In a large frying pan, pour in enough oil to generously cover the bottom. When the oil is hot but not smoking, spoon 2 tbsp of batter for each fritter into the pan, about 1/2-inch apart, immediately flattening each fritter slightly. Cook over medium-high heat for 2 to 3 minutes, until golden brown

underneath, then turn and cook the other side for about 2 minutes. Use a splatter screen to cover the pan. Transfer to a platter lined with paper towels. Repeat with the remaining batter, adding more oil if necessary. Serve immediately with the sweet chili sauce. Serves 12.