Why my deep fried pickles finally came out crispy after 3 tries

I kept ending up with soggy pickles no matter what. Last Sunday in my tiny kitchen I figured it out. The trick was double coating them in cornmeal batter and letting them rest on a wire rack for 10 minutes before frying. I used a cast iron skillet with peanut oil at 375 degrees. The first batch stuck to the basket and fell apart. Second batch was better but still greasy. Third batch with the rest time and hot oil came out perfectly golden and crunchy. Has anyone else had luck with a different batter style for wet veggies?

2 comments

2 Comments

haydenbutler16d ago

I watched a video from this old cook on YouTube who swears by adding a little bit of rice flour to the cornmeal mix. Tried it with onion rings and it cut down on the grease big time. Maybe that extra crispiness would've helped your first two batches stick less too. The rest time on a wire rack is probably the main thing though, lets the coating set so it doesn't slide off in the hot oil. I never thought about using peanut oil for deep frying veggies, that sounds like a solid choice with the high smoke point. Might give your method a shot with some okra this weekend.

alexw7516d ago

Yeah the rice flour thing is interesting, @haydenbutler. I saw that same video I think, that old guy with the suspenders? My grandmother used to do something similar with her fried chicken where she'd add a tablespoon of baking powder to the flour mix. Said it made the crust lighter and it definitely worked. I tried the rice flour trick on some zucchini slices last summer and it did help them stay crunchy even after they cooled down a bit. The wire rack rest is key though, I learned that the hard way when I lost half a batch of mushrooms to the bottom of the fryer because I rushed it. Peanut oil is my go-to now for anything deep fried, I just wish it wasn't so pricey compared to vegetable oil.