Sweet Corn & Cayenne Cracker Coated Fried Green Tomatoes
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Thinly sliced green tomatoes dunked in beer and hot sauce, tossed in finely ground cracker, cornmeal and cayenne. Served with a garden herb horseradish sauces.
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WHAT’S GOING ON HERE
CORN MEAL
Corn meal is simply fine granules of corn. It’s yellow, slightly nut and sweet. It makes for a great crust for baked or fried dishes. The yellow crust turns golden perfectly with a little bit of heat.
SALTINES
Saltines are a white salty soda cracker. Mostly enjoyed whole, they are great to crush to up and make a fine cracker powder. In combination with a sweet cornmeal it makes for a crispy sweet and salty crust.
GREEN Tomatoes
Green tomatoes are unripened heirlooms. The tomatoes themselves are a tame green color and a larger wide tomato. They are a firm cooking tomato that are great fried!
SEASONING
Cajun seasoning, cayenne, black pepper and celery seed is all you need to have some seriously flavorful tomatoes.
POTATO STARCH
Potato starch is extracted dried starch from potatoes. The white powder is a great thickener similar to corn starch or rice flour. Just a pinch is all you need to get the job done. The potato starch not only makes for a crisp batter it help the coating stick to the smooth tomato .
HOT SAUCE, BEER & EGG DREDGE
The dredge for my green tomatoes is very simple. Its a splash of hot sauce, eggs and beer with a sprinkle of starch. The alcohol in the beer cooks off when frying resulting in a crispier crust, The eggs help the coating stick to the tomatoes while the hot sauce adds some nice heat.
TIPS & TRICKS FOR THE BEST Sweet Corn & Cayenne Cracker Coated Fried Green Tomatoes
SLICING THE TOMATOES
its important to slice the tomatoes just right before cooking. once you slice the tomatoes the structure starts to lose shape. slicing then immediately prepping them to serve is ideal for getting crunchy green tomatoes. also, do not season the tomatoes ahead of time or the salt in the seasoning will start to pull moisture from the tomatoes resulting in soggy tomatoes.
ADDING STARCH TO THE DREDGE
starch activates in heat. once heated the starch will start the thicken the liquid its added to. adding the starch to the dredge give the dredge a little more body to cling to the tomato. once cooked the starch thickens up and protect the tomato in the cook.
GETTING THE COATING TO STICK
getting the coating to stick is the main goal of green tomatoes since they have such a smooth surface. the key to that is to give every layer something to stick to. initially when you cut the tomatoes they leave a little juice for the first starch coating to stick to. the second step is the egg and beer, that slightly thickened liquid will cling to the starch coating the tomato. finally the crumb coating to seal it all in resulting in a golden brown tomato.
FRYING AND FLOATING
fried green tomatoes need hot oil to cook in. adding the tomatoes to cold oil will result in the crust immediately sliding off. take the temperature of the oil prior to adding the ingredients. once the tomatoes are cooked they should be floating and a deep golden brown.
Sweet Corn & Cayenne Cracker Coated Fried Green Tomatoes
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INGREDIENTS
3 Green Tomatoes , sliced
1/4c Potato Starch or cornstarch
4c Cooking Oil, for frying
SEASONING
1Tb Cajun Seasoning
1tsp Celery Seed
2tsp Garlic Powder
2tsp Cayenne Powder
1tsp Black Pepper
DREDGE
2 Eggs, whisked
1/4c Hot Sauce
1/4c Beer
1tsp Potato Starch
CAYENNE CRACKER CRUMB
1 Sleeve Saltines, finely ground
1/2c Corn Meal
1/4c Potato starch or corn meal
2tsp Cayenne
2tsp Cajun Seasoning
HERB HORSERADISH SAUCE
1/4c Sour Cream
1/4c Mayo
1Tb Horseradish
1/2tsp White Vinegar
1tsp Black Pepper
1/2 tsp Thyme
1 Green Onion, minced
1/2tsp Oregano
Salt, to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
FOR THE HORSERADISH SAUCE:
Combine all ingredients listed. Stir, cover and keep refrigerated till ready to serve.
FOR THE TOMATOES:
Combine all the ingredients listed under seasoning.
Sprinkle a generous amount of seasoning on both sides of tomatoes.
Get your dredging station together. In a bowl whisk together hot sauce, eggs and beer. In another bowl combine together saltines and cornmeal along with the seasoning listed.
Coat the tomatoes with a light coating of potato starch.
Followed by dunking them in the beer and egg wash.
Followed immediately with tossing in the final corn and cracker crumb.
Heat oil to 375F. Once the oil is hot add in 4-6 slices of coated green tomatoes
Cook the green tomatoes 2 -3 minutes per side. Till the crust is golden brown.
Remove from the oil and immediately sprinkle with a little sea salt. Serve while hot with the herb horseradish sauce. Enjoy!
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