Thai Corn Fritters (Tod Man Khao Pod)

This is my take on a Thai street dish. I pan fry them to avoid saturating them with oil, which can result from deep frying. While I try to make everything healthy, this is too tasty to ignore. Go ahead...have a few.

• Ready In: 30 mins
• Yields: 12 fritters

Ingredients

• 1⁄2 cup  masa harina cornflour
• 1⁄2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1  tablespoon kosher salt
• 1  tablespoon  garlic and red chile paste
• 1  tablespoon  lemongrass paste
• 1  teaspoon  freshly grated ginger
• 1  large egg
• 1  teaspoon lime juice
• 1  ear of corn
• 2  tablespoons  sweet and sour sauce
• 1⁄2 teaspoon  hot sauce (sriracha)
• 2  tablespoons olive oil (for frying)

Directions

1. Start boiling 1 ear of corn while preparing other ingredients.
2. Mix cornflour, baking powder, and 1/2 tablespoon kosher salt in a bowl.
3. Whisk egg until fully beaten, then add to bowl.
4. Combine egg, chili paste, lemongrass paste, and lime juice with dry ingredients. Fold ingredients together until fully blended.
5. Cut kernels off cooked ear of corn and break into individual pieces. Combine with batter from previous step until fully blended.
6. Add olive oil to a small cooking pot and turn heat to medium. NOTE: using a large pan will cause the oil to spread out too far, making it difficult to fully cook the fritters.
7. Allow corn batter to settle at least 15 minutes to allow ingredients to blend.
8. Prepare dipping sauce by mixing sweet and sour sauce with sriracha hot sauce (adding more or less as desired to increase or decrease the heat).
9. Assuming oil is hot, CAREFULLY add dough to oil using a teaspoon. NOTE: don't drop the dough in; try to release it as close as possible to the surface to prevent oil spatter.
10. Watch fritters carefully to prevent burning, as they cook VERY fast.
11. Flip each fritter over to cook the other side.
12. Fish out each fritter with a slotted spoon and place on paper towel to absorb grease.