Taro Shrimp Fritters

Ingredients:

• Fritters
• ½ pound peeled and deveined shrimp
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 4 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
• ½ pound taro, shredded
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon minced Thai chili, seeds and ribs removed if desired
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup tapioca flour
• ½ teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 ½ teaspoons Red Boat Fish Sauce
• Canola, peanut, rice bran, or grapeseed oil, for frying
• All Purpose Nước Chấm for dipping
• 1/4 cup Red Boat Fish Sauce
• 1 tablespoon vinegar
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 Thai chili, seeds and ribs removed if desired, minced
• For serving
• Lettuce
• Perilla leaves
• 1 bunch mint
• 1 bunch cilantro

Directions:

For the nước chấm:

1. Add the fish sauce, vinegar, sugar, and 1 cup water to a small sauce pot. Bring mixture to a boil.
2. Take the pot off the flame and add minced garlic and chilis.
3. Chill in the refrigerator until ready to use. Any remaining nuoc cham can be stored, covered, in the fridge for up to 1 week.

For the fritters:

1. In a medium mixing bowl, dissolve the baking soda, salt, and 2 cups water.
2. Add the shrimp and let it sit in the brine in the refrigerator for 15 to 30 minutes.
3. Combine the taro, garlic, chilies, tapioca, sugar, turmeric, fish sauce, and ¼ cup water in a bowl. Mix the ingredients to create a thin batter, then set aside.
4. Drain the shrimp, then dry the shrimp between paper towels. Set aside 6 shrimp — the plumper, the better — and mince the remaining shrimp. Place the minced shrimp into the batter. Mix to coat all the ingredients, then place the bowl in the refrigerator until you’re ready to fry.
5. Halve the 6 reserved shrimp lengthwise. Put in the refrigerator until ready to fry.
6. Fry the fritters.
7. If not serving right away, preheat the oven to 150°F.
8. Fill a deep, heavy bottom skillet or pot with 2 inches of oil. Choose a skillet or pot that is at least 4 inches high so that there is at least 2 inches of clearance from the top of the oil and the lip of the pan.
9. Heat the oil to 325°F. When it reaches temperature, pour ¼ cup of the fritter batter into a wide, shallow metal ladle. Press a halved shrimp onto the top of the fritter. Gently slip the fritter into the oil. Fry on each side for around 1-2 minutes, until golden and crisp. While frying, keep an eye on the temperature of the oil: It shouldn’t go above above 325°F, nor drop below 300°F. Fry the fritters in batches to help stabilize the oil’s temperature, about 3 fritters at a time, and wait for the oil to return to 325°F between each batch.
10. Once the fritters are golden, remove them from the oil and let drain on a baking pan lined with a wire rack. They’re ready to serve with nước chấm; if not serving immediately, place the rack in the warm oven to keep the fritters hot and crisp.