Perkedel Jagung (Corn Fritters)
The coming months I’ll be making a special request recipe for Dutch-Indo magazine Moesson. This Perkedel Jagung recipe is the second of many to come.
Last month I’ve made the much-requested Martabak Telor. But there is another snack Moesson fans love to eat: Perkedel Jagung.
For example, Mady writes on Moesson’s Facebook page:
As a child of 9-10-11 years, I got out of bed after the afternoon sleep and the jongos always made a lovely snack; boiled or fried jagung, corn fritter. I would like to know if and how you can prepare it.
Want to see how I make my perkedel? Watch this video.
Perkedel Jagung
Of course Mady you can make this perkedel jagung at home. I went through a few Indonesian cookbooks and I’ve found several perkedel jagung recipes. From very simple, to somewhat more complex in taste. I also checked out on youtube how chefs in Indonesia make corn fritters nowadays. How many eggs go in? Is it possible to make jagung with canned corn? And should I add flour?
After a few experiments with leek and flour, I present you this recipe. It produces perkedel that are full of flavor, delicious and crispy and can be made with canned corn.
I also add some slices of carrot. Of course, you can leave that out, but I think it provides more body and extra natural sweetness. The orange of the carrot combines beautifully with the yellow of the corn.
Flour
Beb Vuyk explains in her book that grating the fresh corn cob causes the moisture to come out of the corn kernels. This moisture has a binding effect. Because this is different with canned corn, I use some flour to bind the corn fritters together. I opt for rice flour.
This Perkedel Jagung recipe is ready in 30 minutes and you can make about 10 fritters with this amount of ingredients.
Ingredients
- 200 grams of canned corn kernels
- 40 grams of carrot slices
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 2 tablespoons of red onion
- 1 egg
- 1/2 tablespoon fresh celery
- 1/2 tablespoon fresh coriander
- 20 grams of rice flour
- 1 chili pepper (optional)
Herbs and Spices
- 1 tsp laos
- 1 tsp ketumbar (coriander)
- 1 tsp of jinten (cumin)
- pinch of kentjur
- lime wedge
- chili sauce or sweet soy sauce as a condiment
- emersion blender or food processor
The colors of the ingredients look nice together, don’t they? I buy rice flour at my local Asian store, but lots of supermarkets sell rice flour too. I go for red onions because I love their sweet flavor and their color.
Preparation
I weigh 100 grams of corn kernels and place them it in a jug, along with egg, garlic, powdered spices, and the salt. I blend with my emersion blender for 3 seconds.
Now I have made a somewhat heavy batter that is already full flavored.
I pour this into a bowl and add the rest of the ingredients: onions, fresh celery, fresh coriander, carrot, the rest of the corn grains and the rice flour.
I love my perkedel with a hot chili finely chopped through the batter. But it is not necessary.
Frying
Meanwhile, my oil is getting hot. I do not fry my jagung too hot, otherwise, the inside is not cooked properly and the outside will burn. I fry my perkedel a few minutes on each side (I turn them halfway) until golden brown.
Serve
I serve my Perkedel Jagung with chili sauce, but with a sweet soy sauce it’s delicious too. Just before serving I sprinkle some lime juice over the perkedel. I love lime. It works on almost everything. It makes these jagung fresh and tropical.
Perkedel Jagung can be eaten as a snack but is also delicious as part of a bigger Indonesian meal. Maybe a nice addition to your Christmas dinner? Maybe you will make it for breakfast. It doesn’t matter a perkedel jagung is nice any time any day. Selamat Makan!
