Corn dogs
This quintessential carnival food is traditionally made with frankfurters, but you could also use chipolatas or merguez. If you do so, however, make sure the sausages are not too thick and cooked in advance. These quantities will make slightly more batter than is required here, but you need so much to coat the sausages properly; use up any excess batter to make hush puppies – carefully drop small spoonfuls into the remaining hot oil and fry for a couple of minutes until golden.
Prep
20 min
Cook
20 min
Serving size
4 people
Ingredients
100g polenta
75g plain flour
½ tsp salt
½ tsp aleppo chilli (or ¼ tsp regular chilli flakes)
1 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp coriander seeds, roughly crushed
1½ tbsp caster sugar
½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda
3⅓ tbsp (10g) finely chopped chives
200g plain kefir (or plain natural yoghurt )
1 egg
1 tsp honey
1 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1½ litres vegetable oil, for frying
6 good-quality frankfurters, cut in half to make 12 mini sausages (or 12 cooked chipolatas)
2 tbsp cornflour
12 wooden skewers or lollipop sticks (snapped in half if very long, in which case use just 6)
Hot sauce or condiment of choice, to serve
Method
1. Whisk the first 10 ingredients in a medium bowl. In a small bowl, whisk the kefir, egg, honey and melted butter, then pour into the cornmeal mixture and whisk thoroughly to combine – the batter should be quite thick. Pour into a tall, narrow jar or glass (this choice of vessel will ensure the sausages get fully immersed in the batter when dipped in) and set aside.
2. Pour the vegetable oil into a medium saucepan and, on a medium-high heat, and bring up to 170C. Have ready a cooling rack or a tray lined with kitchen roll, and a heat-resistant slotted spoon or a pair of tongs.
3. Thoroughly dry the sausages with kitchen roll (if using cooked chipolatas or merguez, wipe off any excess oil). Put the cornflour on a small plate, roll the sausages around in it until evenly coated, then shake off any excess. Insert a skewer into one end of each sausage, and push it up halfway inside the sausage until secure.
4. Take a sausage and, holding it at the skewer end, dip it in the batter - it helps to tilt the jar or glass a bit, and to swirl the sausages around to make sure they’re evenly coated. Holding the skewer at an angle, carefully lower it into the hot oil. Repeat, then cook the sausages three or four at a time and turning them frequently for four minutes, until a deep golden brown, and place on the rack or tray to drain. Repeat with the rest of the sausages and serve warm with your hot sauce or condiment of choice.
