I want to say I pulled this recipe out today because I was just trying to use up some last bits of veg in my house. But, the truth is, I have a long-standing, undying love for vegetable fritters. Sometimes, a fizzy batter and a shallow fry in a skillet is the best treatment you can give a vegetable. That’s the case today with these sweet potatoes and collard greens.
How to live the vegetable fritter life
When you settle in to make these fritters, please embrace your food processor. Shredding a sweet potato on a box grater and finely chopping collards by hand is certainly an option. But, it also extends the number of minutes that stand between you and some crispy-fried goodness. Here’s my food-processed (food processorized?) veg, plus some thinly sliced onion and minced garlic, ready for fritter action:
And here is where I take a moment to thank our local farmer’s market, Tarheel Too because they are awesome and NC produce is amazing.
All of those veggies pictured above get folded into a batter of equal parts flour and cornstarch, a little baking powder, and club soda. Water is ok, but go for club soda if possible because bubbly is always better – in life and in your fritter batter.
While all of this 👆 is happening, heat about a quarter of an inch of oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.
Are you picking up what I’m puttin’ down? No deep frying needed. Just a short, simple shallow fry. Those oil droplets on my stove aren’t even from these fritters – they’re from chicken I made earlier! Don’t let them fool you into thinking this dish is super messy. It’s only a little messy… I swear. Who really cares anyway because this👇 is what you get:
That lemon/garlic/mayo/yogurt dipping sauce (recipe in the notes) sends these suckers right over the top. No kidding.
So, yes, these Sweet Potato Collard Green Fritters are as supremely delicious as you would imagine. And while they still taste like vegetables, they also have the wonderful badness of being slightly greasy, in exactly the way you want yummy food to be. All my love to all the other fritter-loving fools out there. #frittersforever
*This post contains an Amazon Affiliate link to the food processor that makes my life easier almost everyday, from which I may earn an income!
PrintSweet Potato Collard Green Fritters
Sweet Potato Collard Green Fritters, for when you want something healthy… but not too healthy. Shredding the sweet potatoes and collards in the food processor makes this recipe come together super quick. Serve with a lemony garlic yogurt sauce on the side!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 8 fritters 1x
- Category: appetizer, side dish
- Method: shallow-fry
Ingredients
- 1/2 C flour
- 1/2 C cornstarch
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 C club soda
- 1 medium sweet potato, peeled and shredded in a food processor (you need about 2 cups)
- 2 handfuls of coarsely chopped collard greens, finely chopped in the food processor (you need about 1 cup)
- 1/2 an onion, thinly sliced
- 1 TBS minced garlic
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt, plus more for sprinkling
- 1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
- 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
- oil for frying (enough to come 1/4″ up the sides of a skillet)
Instructions
- Set a wire rack inside a baking sheet lined with paper towels and preheat your oven to 200 degrees.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, and baking powder. Add the club soda, whisking until a smooth batter is formed.
- Add the sweet potato, collards, onion, garlic, salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper to the batter and stir to coat.
- Meanwhile, heat 1/4″ of oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. When the oil shimmers, working in batches, use a large cookie scoop or a 1/4 C measuring cup to drop mounds of batter into the oil. Flatten the centers of the fritters out with a spoon and fry on the first side for 2-4 minutes. Flip and fry on the second side for another 2-4 minutes, until golden brown.
- Transfer the fritters from the oil to the wire rack and sprinkle with salt. Keep them warm in a 200 degree oven until ready to serve. See notes for how to make a lemony garlic dipping sauce to go alongside!
Notes
A lemon/garlic/mayo/yogurt dipping sauce is perfect to serve with these fritters. To make it, combine equal parts Greek yogurt and mayo in bowl, grate in a clove or two of garlic, add a squeeze of lemon juice, and season with a pinch of salt.
Keywords: vegetable fritters, fried collard greens, fried sweet potatoes