Easy Peas Recipes

Deep frying is scary the first time you do it. However, the rewards of properly fried food are great; especially that crispy exterior with a satisfying crunch! From fritters to French fries, cutlets to corn dogs, we love our fried food (Hmm, can I deep fry peas?). The easiest way to get that deep-fry effect without using (much) oil is to air fry, of course. But, there is something extra appetizing about food fried in oil. So today’s blog is dedicated to that very topic.

The term “deep frying” means that food is cooked by mostly or entirely submerging it in hot oil. By contrast, “shallow frying” is cooking food that is sitting in a shallow (1/4 to 1/2-way) pool of hot oil. Different recipes call for different methods to achieve different results.

When I used a deep fryer for the first time, I was nervous. I wasn’t thinking clearly and made some mistakes – more than once. Luckily, there were some common sense tips I learned along the way (my husband was my deep-fry guru) that gave me confidence. What are the most common mistakes we make when deep frying? How do we deep fry without fear? Consider the following to boost your kitchen confidence:

What is your vessel of choice?

Any heavy, metal pot or deep pan can be used to deep fry food. The size of the pot you need depends on how large the pieces of food are that you are cooking. Oil is a liquid and will rise in the pot both as it bubbles and as you add food to it. You don’t want boiling hot oil spilling over and especially not onto you. So, take into account how high the oil will rise in the pot once you’ve added the food.

When using a stove top pot to deep fry, you’ll also need a bamboo or wire strainer or spider. These tools will help collect food and drain it in one fell swoop. Be careful not to let the fried food fall back into the hot oil. One splash of hot oil could burn you, possibly seriously so.  If you’re frying a meat like chicken, you could also collect it with a long handled fork. Again, just be careful.

Another note about using a stovetop vessel to deep fry in; to start with, the pot or pan should be clean and dry. No spot of water should be left in the pan when you fill it with oil. Oil and water don’t mix. When water is left in the pan, and the oil is heated, the drop of water that is stuck within the oil will heat up too – and explode or pop. Popping oil not only will make your stovetop a mess, but it’s dangerous.
Another caveat: if you’re deep frying with a pot, don’t choose one that is too deep. Not only will it be awkward to fish out your food when it’s done, but condensation can collect on the tall sides of the pot – again, causing popping as the water droplets fall into the oil.

Also, don’t put a lid over your food while it’s deep frying (unless you’re using an electric fryer, see below) for the same reason. The heat from the pan will create condensation on the underside of the lid which will drop (water) into the hot oil and cause popping. You can get a large, flat, mesh splatter guard to cover the pan if you’re concerned about oil sputtering on your stove.

For many home cooks, electric, counter-top deep fryers are a sensible choice. They have a “max line” marked so you don’t overfill it with oil. They also come with an inner basket for gently lowering the food into the oil and a special filtered lid for minimizing splashes and splatters. The outside of these fryers can still get very hot, so use caution to avoid getting burned.

You can store the oil in electric deep fryers for a couple of rounds of cooking, but eventually they need to be emptied and cleaned. Cooking oil is tough to clean if you let it sit on surfaces too long.  So, persist and keep your fryer clean. A clean fryer and clean oil makes for the tastiest fried food.
When it’s time to dispose of used cooking oil, cool it down to room temperature. Then, you can pour it into an empty plastic milk jug or the empty oil container it came from and throw it in the trash. There are also oil hardener powders you can buy. Stir the powder into the oil and it will harden as it sits. This makes it easier and less messy to toss it in the garbage.

How hot should my oil be?

The temperature the oil should be depends on a few things:

• The size/quantity of the food
• Whether the food (especially meats and fish) is pre-cooked or not
• Whether the food is frozen

I deep fry anywhere from 325° F to 375° F (162° C to 190° C). Any higher a temperature than that and the oil can burn your food quickly. That may sound like a great idea if you’re pressed for time. But, oil that’s too hot will burn the exterior of food and leave the inside undercooked. You can tell if your oil is too hot if it starts to smoke or starts to turn a darker color. If this happens, turn off the heat and wait a few minutes for the oil to cool down. Don’t move the pan or fryer hastily or you could have a terrible accident. Wait until the oil has stopped smoking, and check the temperature. Once it’s back in the “safe zone,” you can fry. If the oil has discolored, you’ll need to decide if you’re fine with it before continuing. Burnt oil usually tastes burnt which means the food you fry in it may have an off taste. You may need to switch to clean oil. Or, you can use a small wire mesh strainer and scoop out any burnt bits.

It’s always better to take your time when deep frying. The oil needs time to fully cook the interior of the food and put the golden brown crunch on the outside. Preheat the oil up to the temperature you need before adding the food. But be aware, if the temperature is too low – below 325° F for example – the oil will sink into the breading and the food, making a greasy, unappetizing mess.
This is precisely why you should use a candy/deep fry thermometer to check your oil temp. They cost anywhere from about $5 to $20. Counter top deep fryers have a built-in thermometer and a dial to choose the frying temperature.

When you lower your food into the oil, it should actively bubble with small bubbles all around the food. These little bubbles will stay active as you cook. It should not be at a furious rolling boil or popping large bubbles – that is too hot, and you need to lower the heat.

How long do I deep fry for?

Always check the recipe or food packaging for cooking times. For example, I fry pieces of bone-in chicken for about 8-12 minutes, depending on the size of the pieces. If your oil is clean and the proper temperature, you can also go by the color of the food. Look for a medium golden brown to the breading. If you’re unsure if something is cooked through, it’s okay to take a piece out of the oil, put it on a plate and cut into it to check for doneness. If your oil was too hot and the food is getting too dark too quickly, you can always finish cooking it on a sheet pan in the oven. This will finish cooking the interior. You could also put the piece you checked back into the oil to finish cooking. But, this may not be a good idea for stuffed dishes like croquettes or Chicken Cordon Bleu because the cheese or other stuffing will just leak out into the oil. It’s better to put that piece into the oven to finish.

Timing any type of cooking actually depends on many other things: the age of your oven/stove, the size of your oven or fryer, how hot your burners get… sometimes you will get slightly different results for the same recipe and not know why. The important thing is to check in on your food as it’s cooking, especially when you’re deep-frying.

After frying, how should I drain the grease and how should I keep it warm?

The answer to this question can make or break the crispy tastiness of your hard fought deep fry battle. Let’s start with draining off the excess oil, or grease. Greasy food may look juicy and delicious, but honestly, grease can overpower the taste of your food. After frying, you have a couple of options.
Option #1: Line a baking tray or cake pan with paper towels and simply place your freshly fried food on it. The paper towels will soak up the extra grease. The downside to this method is that the longer the food sits on the pan, the longer it is sitting on top of grease soaked towels. The bottom of the food will get soggy and may even stick to the paper towels. But, it is an option I use often for things like French fries, hush puppies and other hors d’oeuvres that are small.
Option #2: Line a baking tray or cake pan with paper towels or newspaper and place a wire mesh basket, wire rack or large wire mesh sieve on the pan. Place your freshly fried food in the basket. This works well for food that has been battered or coated with crumbs. The advantage to this method is that the grease drains off but the food isn’t sitting directly in the grease. Also, being in the basket allows air to flow all around the food, keeping it crisp.

Now, about keeping the food warm – that can be tricky. I used to cover my fried food, hot from the fryer, with aluminum foil. But, the steam from the hot food created condensation under the foil and and left ugly, wet spots on my once-delectable, crunchy breading. I found that even if I placed paper towels on the food, then foil, I got similar results. This was the same whether I left it covered on the stovetop or in a warm oven. An actual lid, like a casserole lid, was even worse. The food may as well have taken a trip to the sauna.
If I left the food uncovered in a warm oven, that was fine in the short term, but after a while, the breading got harder, and the food started to dry out. My final answer is that deep fried food should be served fresh. If it must be kept warm for a time, I’ve found it best to cover it loosely with paper towels and put it in a warm oven. Just warm though – and for as short a time as possible.

Reheating deep fried food is also tricky. In order to keep a crispy coating, place the food on a baking pan in a 375° F to 400° F oven until it is warmed through. Keep an eye on it so that it doesn’t overbrown. It will not be exactly the same as when it was first fried, but it will be passable. You can do the same using an air fryer.

What about deep frying frozen food?

When frying frozen food as opposed to non-frozen (but still raw) food, I suggest frying on the lower 325° F setting for a slightly longer time. That will allow for the interior to cook through without risking overbrowning the exterior. You could also thaw whatever you’re frying first – but there are often reasons that a frozen, packaged food instructs you to cook or fry “from frozen.” When in doubt, follow the package or recipe instructions.

The bottom line is that deep fried food is tasty and preparing it successfully is within your grasp! Plan ahead, keep an eye on your cooking, always practice safety, and the more you fry, the more confident and fearless you will be.