Pizza Today - November 2023 - 37

HOT FRIED APPETIZERS GO CLASSIC
Story by Denise Greer
N
ostalgia is hot and so are fried
appetizers. Yes, I said fried.
Americans love their fried
delights. Some diners are looking for an
escape from their daily diets, often building
cheat meals into their week. Craveworthy
fried foods strike a chord with
these hungry patrons, making fried foods
big sellers on appetizer menus.
You could go with frying something
new and creative. Fried goat cheese balls
and even deep-fried garlic butter have hit
TikTok. While some may be looking for
the " State Fair " gimmicky fried foods, the
classics will still continue to be beloved.
Let's highlight five traditional apps to
test and enhance in your pizza kitchen.
Before we dive into recipes, let's talk
logistics. If you do not have a fryer and all
of your food comes from your pizza oven,
you can still offer some of these specialties.
But it will require you to experiment
to get a crispy breading in an oven as well
as a baking process that will not hold up
your pizza bake times.
Now let's look at five fried appetizer
staples from PizzaToday.com:
Fried Mozzarella
1 pound mozzarella string cheese or
sticks cut from a block
1 cup all-purpose flour
1½ cup Italian breadcrumbs
2 eggs, lightly beaten
Oil for frying
Marinara sauce for dipping
Use three bowls or plates - one bowl for the
flour, one for the egg and one for the breadcrumbs.
Toss the cheese in the flour, then dip it
in the egg to coat. Next, dip the cheese in the
breadcrumbs to coat thoroughly.
Arrange the breaded sticks in a single layer
on a baking sheet. Refrigerate for up to an
hour. You can make a number of trays. Don't
crowd the sticks on the trays. Cover with
plastic wrap and refrigerate. The window here
is about two hours in the cooler. Beyond that,
they pick up too much moisture and the breadcrumb
coating tends to peel off during frying.
To order, fry the breaded mozzarella in hot
oil (350-360 F). Fry until golden, less than a
minute. Remove from the oil and let drain.
Serve with warm marinara sauce.
Fried Caprese Nuggets
1 large summer tomato diced
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 fresh mozzarella, torn in small strips
5 to 7 fresh basil leaves torn in pieces
10 to 12 ounces of your proprietary
pizza dough
Coarse sea salt as needed
Shaved or grated Parmigiano Reggiano
Thin sliced Prosciutto di Parma or other
charcuterie
Toss the tomato, one tablespoon extravirgin
olive oil, mozzarella and basil in a bowl.
Heat vegetable or peanut oil to 350 F.
Roll out the dough to ¼-inch thick and then
cut with a pizza cutter. (For a more elegant
edge cut, use a serrated dough cutter or a
calzone crimper.) Fry the pieces until golden
brown. This should not take long, as they will
puff up right away. When the dough is done,
toss the other ingredients with the dough,
letting the mozzarella lightly melt.
Add more extra virgin olive oil if needed,
and sprinkle with Parmigiano-Reggiano. Serve
with prosciutto di Parma slices or salami for a
full entrée.
Pickle Chips
1 gallon cayenne hot pepper sauce
1 pound of butter
1 tablespoon of garlic powder
1 tablespoon of onion powder
2 ounces of honey
Dill pickle slices
Combine all ingredients in a heavy-bottom
sauce pot and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove
from heat and blend thoroughly so as to incorporate
the butter with the hot sauce. Take your
favorite dill pickle slices, the thicker the better,
and dredge with whole wheat flour. Deep fry
at 350 F for 4-5 minutes or until crispy. Finally,
toss in the Buffalo sauce in a small mixing
bowl. Serve with a side of Ranch or Bleu
Cheese Dressing for dipping.
Arancini
1 cup raw sushi rice
2 cups chicken stock
1 large portabella mushroom chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small white onion diced
3 ounces sweet Italian sausage
¼ cup Parmesan
2 cloves crushed garlic
salt and pepper to taste
Breading
1 egg
1 cup flour
1 cup Italian breadcrumbs
Saute the minced onion and mushroom
in the olive oil along with the sausage and
garlic. Once the onions are translucent and
the sausage is cooked, add the rice and the
chicken stock. Simmer on a fairly low heat for
approximately 20 minutes. Remove from heat
and stir in the Parmesan. Set aside covered
and let cool.
Scoop and roll rice balls to desired size. Let
them chill, then bread them with a standard
breading procedure (flour, egg wash, breadcrumbs).
Keep them refrigerated until ready to
fry at 350 F for about 4 to 5 minutes.
Toasted Ravioli
2 large eggs
½ cup canned evaporated milk
1 cup Italian-style breadcrumbs
Oil for frying
24 small, bite-size, meat-filled ravioli
(thawed, if using frozen)
¼ cup grated Parmesan
2 cups marinara sauce, warmed
In a small bowl, beat and combine the eggs
and milk. Put the breadcrumbs in another
small bowl. Heat the oil to 350 F for frying.
Dip ravioli in egg mixture to coat. Let the
excess drip off, then dredge in breadcrumbs.
Arrange ravioli on a sheet pan or tray.
Fry ravioli until light golden brown.
Sprinkle with Parmesan and serve with
warm marinara as dipping sauce.
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Pizza Today - November 2023

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