Deep Fat Fryer Help Needed

Aarons_mummy

Spring rolls, chicken balls, chips, onion rings, prawn toast!

I'm swithering over getting one and whether I would use it enough to justify it!! I have so many appliances and so little space as it is haha.

Any

Cauliflower/brocolli in breadcrumbs. Lovely, especialy with new potatoes and garlic mayo.
Of course shnitzels (meat in breadcrumbs).

Cauliflower/brocoli:
Break it into florets and blanch it first in boiling water - cauliflower circa for 5 mins, brocoli for 3 mins.
Tip it into colander and let it dry and cool down.
In the meantime prepare 3 bowls - one with flour, second with egg mixed with little milk and third with breadcrumbs.
Take the florets and cover them first in flour (that will make sure egg sticks onto it), then dip it in egg mixture until the whole thing is covered in egg (but not driping, the flour should ensure that the egg sticks without the need for driping with it) and then cover in breadcrumbs (I usualy make like a hole in the bowl, drop it in, cover it with breadcrumbs and press slightly).
I season the water for boiling and then the egg mixture as well, to make sure it is seasoned little.

Then drop into deep fat fryer until golden.

Do the same with meat - I use either chicken breast or pork-my OH loves pork loin most. Cut into medailons and tenderize it, so it is about 1 cm thick. Salt and pepper and follow the three bowls (we call it triple cover).

The beauty about doing these things in deep fat fryer is that the items don't have time to soak much oil, the oil is at high but permanent temperature (on a hob you will either burn the oil-so you can only use it once or be below the needed temperature, which results in two things-meat drying out inside, loosing lots of juices and also the meat soaking up too much oil).

If you do cheese, make sure it is covered in breadcrumbs very well. If the cover bursts and the cheese get out you can throw the oil away. I love deep fried cheese, but my dad hates doing it because sometimes it does do that (my dad is a chef) and I don't have the guts to even try!!:-))

Any

BTW, I always place finished items on kitchen paper towel which drains the excess oil as well. Then it is not as unhealthy. TBH when I look how much oil goes missing during the cooking in deep fat fryer and compare it to amount of oil needed to fry onion as a base for stew I don't see that big difference in the amount...

anguk

Any wrote: »

BTW, I always place finished items on kitchen paper towel which drains the excess oil as well. Then it is not as unhealthy. TBH when I look how much oil goes missing during the cooking in deep fat fryer and compare it to amount of oil needed to fry onion as a base for stew I don't see that big difference in the amount...

I agree, I think the biggest thing to remember is to have the oil hot enough so the food instantly seals, if the oil isn't hot enough the food tends to soak more of it up.

Best thing ever for a deep fryer is home-made chips!

I've got a biggish rectangular shaped deep fryer and if I had the room I'd like a smaller one to do things like pakoras etc that can taint the oil.

Any

anguk wrote: »

I agree, I think the biggest thing to remember is to have the oil hot enough so the food instantly seals, if the oil isn't hot enough the food tends to soak more of it up.

Best thing ever for a deep fryer is home-made chips!

I've got a biggish rectangular shaped deep fryer and if I had the room I'd like a smaller one to do things like pakoras etc that can taint the oil.

Absolutely. Having deep fat fryer that can keep the temperature constantly high without burning it is in my opinion much healthier then occasionaly sticking a pan on a hob. You will never achieve the same results.

I know what you mean.. I usually change the menu accordingly to what stage is the oil at... When it's like one more use and it needs changing anyway, I am not affraid to stick fish in:D

mrsb83_2

Chips, chicken and seafood are pretty much the only things I fry in mine.

Any

That reminds me one more thing I have done in mine but haven't done since - time to put it on the menu again!

KFC style chicken. I only sealed it in the deep fat frier (and got the colour) and finished in the oven. yumy

Any

Also thinking about MrsB post... Anyone has good recipe for calamari? I love calamari.
(In batter I mean)
Thanks

rachbc

onion rings/ strings
chips
fried chicken
bhajis/ pakoras etc
churros
battered bounty bar!

mollythewestie

We have just discovered our local chinese supermarket and we now make our own prawn crackers!
We bought a box of prawn cracker "discs" that you deep fry,
It takes just a couple of seconds to make your own. They are incredibly cheap to make -a box of around 100 discs cost 65p! pic here