We shouldn’t eat fried things too often, but at the end of summer when the eggplant and zucchini are at their best, it is an indulgent treat to enjoy them dipped in a good batter and fried until golden and tantalisingly crisp. It also helps to slather these crisp bites with some smooth, punchy skordalia.
While it is expensive, I use extra-virgin olive oil to fry the zucchini and eggplant. We love the flavour of the olive oil and if kept below the smoking point (around 207C), the oil does not undergo structural change and keeping its nutritional value far better. Somehow, I always think that cooking in olive oil also makes things less greasy. I don’t have any scientific theory to back this up, but it always seems to be the case.
When frying these little summery discs, I also always leave the door and windows of the kitchen open, to let the warm air carry the frying air out of the house. As while these little bites are delicious, you don’t want the smell of them hanging in your house and your hair!
Fried eggplant and zucchini
Μελιτζάνες και κολοκυθάκια τηγανιτά
Ingredients
- 1 Eggplant medium, cut into 5mm strips
- 1-2 Zucchini medium, cut into 5mm strips
- 150g Plain flour
- 2 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil
- 200ml Sparkling water
- 1/2 tsp Sea salt
- 2 Egg whites
Instructions
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Sift the flour into a large bowl. Make a well in the flour and pour in the olive oil and stir to combine with the flour. Add the sparkling water and whisk. The batter should be like double cream. if your batter is not this consistency, add a little more water. Place the bowl in the fridge and let the batter rest for around an hour or so. When you are ready to cook, whisk the egg whites until stiff and then fold into the batter mixture.
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While the batter is resting, place the eggplant and zucchini slices in a bowl, cover with a little salt and let them sit for an hour in a colander, with bowl underneath it to collect the water that comes off the vegetables. When you are ready to cook. Rinse of the salt and dry the vegetables very well.
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Heat the oil in a deep pan to 190C. Prepare a plate lined with kitchen paper towel. Working a few at a time, dip the vegetables into the batter, allowing excess batter to drain back into the bowl. Fry until light brown, then drain on the kitchen paper. Move to a serving plate, sprinkle with salt, if you wish, and serve immediately while hot with skordalia.
