Manageability – Hard because of Math
When I was growing up I spent my summers with Grammy and Pop-Pop in Tennessee, catching lightening bugs, playing badminton, and eating a ton of hush puppies – usually served up with fried crappies. Wait, that can’t be how that’s spelled. Croppies? Crappies? Well I’ll be damned.
Anyway, hush puppies are a comfort food for a reason, and these hush puppies from Cooking Channel TV knocked it out of the park. They are crispy and fresh on the inside, full of flaky sweet goodness. I love it when there’s whole kernels, and even though they’re fried they aren’t too overpowering. This recipe makes like 20 hush puppies, but with only two people I had to do fractions, and I guess I don’t know how to do fractions because it was really runny before frying. I kept having to add flour to make sure it was thick enough not to fall apart in the grease. Also, you can’t find self-rising flour anywhere right now, so I had to make my own.
But, like I said, these were freaking delicious. Reminded me of my summers in Tennessee, crappie and all.
I cannot believe that’s how that is spelled.
Ingredients
- Canola or peanut oil, for frying
- 1 cup self-rising cornmeal mix (if you can find it during a pandemic)
- 1/2 cup self-rising flour
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3/4 cup low-sodium creamed corn
- 1/2 cup sweet yellow corn
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 1/4 cup packed, coarsely grated onion
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 cup unopened pilsner-style beer (I used Pilsner Urquell)
Directions
- Fill a Dutch oven or cast-iron pot with a few inches of peanut or canola oil and heat on medium-high until it reaches 375 degrees F. To test the heat, use your finger. Just kidding.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the cornmeal mix, flour, sugar and salt. Add the creamed corn, yellow corn, sour cream, onion and egg; gently stir until just combined. Pour in just-opened beer and mix until completely incorporated.
- Using a metal spring form ice cream scoop to form rounded balls, carefully lower 5 to 6 dollops of batter into the hot oil one at a time (I gently slipped the scoop into the oil, then release the batter by squeezing the clamp a few times). Cook, flipping occasionally, until the hush puppies are a deep golden brown, approximately 3 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon or spider, dripping excess oil back into the pot, and place on a paper towel-lined sheet pan to cool.
- Continue with the remaining batter, returning the oil to 375 degrees F in between batches. Serve the hush puppies immediately. Keep warm in a low oven, if necessary.
- Drink the rest of the beer (optional).