IMBB Eighteen: Let's Get Frying!

You didn't really think that I would make it ontime for an IMBB, did you? Despite having bought an entire book devoted to deep frying, as I pointed out on Zarah Maria's delightful blog, the closest I got to IMBB Eighteen was scoffing a giant greasy spring roll on Chapel Street this weekend. It was from a takeaway restaurant devoted entirely to vegetarian food and had some laudable sentiments about respecting the earth and our food supply written above the door. Their curries and other main dishes looked quite tasty and so I decided to give their spring roll a go. Bad bad idea! It was huge and greasy and tasted of nothing but soggy cardboard and grease. When I eat a spring roll I know it's all about the crispy pastry, but I do like some indication of the original filling - be it animal, vegetable or mineral (salt salt, yum!).

I did have a quick flick through the deep fry book for some inspiration, but I felt in the mood for something dessertish and none of the five dessert recipes appealed in any real way. But as my minor contribution to this netfryfest, I thought I would share what caught my eye about this little book in the first place. At the front, there is a section on equipment, and after the deep fat fryer, recommends the Dutch oven or large enamelled cast iron pan. Now I never would hasve even thoufght of using this, but as author Sunil Vijayakar points out "Their heavy base and thick sides absorb heat and hold it evenly, which helps to keep oil at the right temperature. They are also very stable, which is particularly important when deep-frying."

Apparently, the pan should be at least 20cm wide and 15cm deep. It makes a lot of sense really. When frying in a large saute pan, I've noticed the temperature plummet when I've dropped in a bundle of frozen goodies, and the time it takes for the temperature to resurge is time that the food spends absorbing oil instead of being cooked by it. So there you go. You learn something new every day. In this case, don't eat spring rolls on Chapel Street, as it is a very busy shopping precinct and it is hard to find somewhere to eject a spring roll from your mouth discreetly!