Some of the best tips for making easy fritters — a piece of vegetable, fruit, or meat that is battered and fried in oil — include using a clean-tasting oil capable of withstanding high temperatures and maintaining the heat of the oil with a cooking thermometer. Frying in small batches will help to ensure that the temperature of the oil is maintained and that the fritters do not stick together. It can also be beneficial to make sure that the batter is not too thin, where it will slide off the piece of food, or too thick, where it will overpower the star ingredient.
While there are a variety of oils available on the market, many are not suitable for deep frying easy fritters, as the high temperature necessary for cooking this dish can cause the oil to burn or become acidic. In general, canola, vegetable, and peanut oil are preferred, as they are relatively neutral in flavor and can withstand high heat. Cottonseed, grapeseed, and sunflower oil are also good choices, although the flavors of these oils are slightly stronger than others. In most cases, avoid olive oil and sesame seed oil, even if they have been refined to handle higher temperatures, as the flavor of these oils is often overpowering for easy fritters.
Keeping the oil at an even temperature throughout the cooking process is one of the most important parts of making easy fritters. If a digital deep fryer is not available, a cooking thermometer can be placed in the oil to read the temperature, many having clips that will keep the thermometer in the pan during cooking. When measuring the temperature, make sure the tip of the thermometer does not touch the bottom or sides of the pan, as this can produce an inaccurate reading. Most fritters cook best at a steady temperature of 350° Fahrenheit (176° Celsius).
It is generally best to fry easy fritters in small batches of two to eight, depending on their size and the size of the pan used. Frying too many fritters at once can cause a rapid decrease in the temperature of the oil, which can result in the inside of the fritter cooking more quickly than the outside. Working in small batches is also a good way to prevent the fritters from sticking together, as they will have more room to move about the pan. It can also help to prevent an overspill of hot oil, a dangerous safety hazard.
The batter used for easy fritters needs to be a certain consistency in order for the food to cook properly. Batter that is too thin will make it difficult to properly coat the meat, vegetable, or fruit, creating bare spots on the food. As fritter batter is often meant to puff up when the food is fried, a batter that is too thick, even if it is only lightly coating the food, can often result in a fritter with more batter than filling.
