Crisp prawn fritters (ukoy) recipe
These crunchy Filipino fritters (known as ukoy) are great matched with sweet chilli sauce and a slice of lemon. Enjoy them as a snack or an appetiser.
"At a market in southern Spain, I saw a smiling chubby man in a motorised wheelchair surrounded by friends. He was playing a game involving a cup and a pile of grey pebbles. Intrigued, I approached. To my amazement, the pebbles appeared to be alive. They were! And they were tiny live shrimp, jumping about jerkily as they were scooped up and put into paper cones for the waiting customers. They were destined for the delicious crisp fritters known as tortillitas de camarones."
Ingredients
- 75 g plain flour
- 35 g cornflour
- 1 egg, well beaten
- 80 ml water
- 2 tsp fish sauce
- 1 pinch freshly ground black pepper
- 100 g peeled and deveined prawns, chopped
- 60 g beansprouts
- 40 g carrot, cut into thin matchsticks
- 1 spring onion, thinly sliced
- 1 measure groundnut or corn oil; enough for deep-frying and oiling
- 2.6 oz plain flour
- 1.2 oz cornflour
- 1 egg, well beaten
- 2.8 fl oz water
- 2 tsp fish sauce
- 1 pinch freshly ground black pepper
- 3.5 oz peeled and deveined prawns, chopped
- 2.1 oz beansprouts
- 1.4 oz carrot, cut into thin matchsticks
- 1 spring onion, thinly sliced
- 1 measure groundnut or corn oil; enough for deep-frying and oiling
- 2.6 oz plain flour
- 1.2 oz cornflour
- 1 egg, well beaten
- 0.3 cup water
- 2 tsp fish sauce
- 1 pinch freshly ground black pepper
- 3.5 oz peeled and deveined prawns, chopped
- 2.1 oz beansprouts
- 1.4 oz carrot, cut into thin matchsticks
- 1 spring onion, thinly sliced
- 1 measure groundnut or corn oil; enough for deep-frying and oiling
Details
- Cuisine: Filipino
- Recipe Type: Snack
- Difficulty: Easy
- Preparation Time: 20 mins
- Cooking Time: 5 mins
- Serves: 4
Step-by-step
- Sift the flour and cornflour in a bowl. Add the egg, water, fish sauce and black pepper to taste and whisk to make a smooth batter.
- Cover and rest for 10–15 minutes.
- Stir in the remaining ingredients, except the oil.
- Heat enough oil for deep-frying in a suitable pan to about 180C, or until a cube of bread browns in 30 seconds.
- The fritters should be as flat as possible so take a wide metal spatula and oil it. (In the Philippines, they use banana or cacao leaves.) Dip a soup spoon (the kind you eat your soup with) of the mixture and deposit it on the spatula. Flatten it a little. Lower the spatula into the oil, then slide the ukoy off into the oil.
- If you can’t manage step 5, just drop them into the oil straight from the spoon, but note they will be chunkier and not as crisp. Fry on both sides until cooked through. Remove and drain on kitchen paper.
- Serve immediately with a fruity vinegar, with optional chilli and garlic slices in it.
Recipe taken from Wrapped by Gaitri Pagrach-Chandra, published by Pavilion.
Photography by Keiko Oikawa
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