While cooking, listen to this: Pin It Down by Madison Cunningham

Six years ago, when I moved into my first NYC apartment, I recruited my dad to help me get situated. It was an easy sell — I’m his only daughter and was a bundle of nerves, as any recently graduate would be. While I was at work, he got a head start on building the IKEA furniture and setting up my bed so I didn’t have to sleep on an air mattress. It was a no-brainer for him, a homebuilder.

When I got home at the end of the day, he gifted me not one, but two toolkits. A cute purple one filled with every single tool you would ever need — including a saw with three different blades, which, to this day, is still in it’s plastic casing, untouched. The second toolkit was less fancy, but had about twelve or so screwdrivers, you know, just in case. He teased me that the toolkits were filled with “boyfriend testers" — the purple screwdriver was cute, but the one with the interchangeable heads was the real golden ticket. Plus the saw, of course.

The thing is, though, I’m very handy. I have two younger brothers, and I’m proud to say my dad would say I’m his handiest child. So, at the end of the day, if the “boyfriend test” fails, but the guy is still a keeper, I’ll let it slide knowing I’m well-prepared for any kind of apocalypse — or just your run-of-the-mill broken dresser.

Being handy means you’re often called upon to fix/hang/assemble by your friends regularly. Or, as was the case recently, it means being on-site when the smoke detector goes off because your tiny friend decides to cook chicken at midnight and something in the oven starts smoking. Thankfully, she had a step ladder and her taller friend (me) around. Otherwise, I’m not sure she would have been able to turn it off herself. It’s not the first time I’ve saved the day by knowing how to stop an alarm, drill an anchor into drywall or change a hard-to-reach lightbulb.

Speaking of kitchen mishaps, making these fritters — inspired, of course, by last summer’s trip to Japan — involved a bit of a snafu. I may not have needed either of my tool kits, but when you crank the heat up too high on a vat of very-hot oil and then drop something in that at high heat tends to ‘pop,’ you just might be risking third-degree burns. Only a minor freak-out on Rina’s end, mostly because there was oil all over her stove, floor and wall. Nothing a handy pack of Mr. Clean Magic erasers and some good old-fashioned elbow grease can’t fix.

This mishap was hardly our first struggle with the laws of thermodynamics, but the results were well-worth the kitchen drama that ensued. One bite of these fritters, and I was transported to the tiny kitchen in Kyoto where my brother and I ate corn tempura with rice and unagi, my favorite.

The ultimate cozy snack — with a bit of an Asian flair. If you make these fritters, I will personally come over and build your furniture or hang your photos, “boyfriend tester” and all.

xo, Alyssa

JAPANESE TEMPURA CORN FRITTERS

Yield: around 20 fritters, depending on size

Prep Time: 15m | Fry Time: 15m | Total Cook Time: 30m

Category: Snacks, Sides, Vegan

Source: lightly adapted from NDTV Food

Special Equipment: bundt pan (optional, see instructions below), heavy-bottomed skillet, chopsticks, cooling racks

Note: it is CRUCIAL that your oil is hot but not scalding. If your oil is too hot, you’ll end up with popped kernels and oil all over your kitchen, so use a test kernel in the oil before you start frying the fritters. Not that we know from personal experience…

Ingredients

3 ears of corn

1 cup cake flour*

¼ teaspoon baking soda

Hefty dash garlic powder

Pinch salt

3 nori sheets, chopped or torn into small pieces

1 cup ice-cold water

Vegetable oil, for frying

*if you don’t have cake flour, use 1 cup of all-purpose flour, remove 2 Tablespoons and add in 2 Tablespoons of cornstarch and mix.

Instructions

Prepare corn: shuck the corn and cut off the kernels. You can use a bundt pan for this - stick the corn into the hole of the pan and saw the kernels off, which will fall into the bowl of the pan. You can also do this in a large bowl or on a cutting board.

Heat the oil and set up: in a heavy-bottomed pan or skillet, add a 2-inch deep level of oil. Place some cooling racks on your work surface and line with paper towel.

Make the batter: in a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, garlic powder, salt and nori. Whisk the water in slowly, until a thin batter that runs off the whisk in a thin ribbon forms. Gently stir in the corn.

Test the oil: place one corn kernel into the oil as a test subject. If it doesn’t fry and bubble, the oil needs to be hotter. If the corn freaks out and splutters everywhere, turn down the heat and wait a few minutes. If it starts to bubble nicely, you’re good to go.

Fry the fritters: using a Tablespoon or large soup spoon, gently ladle the batter into the oil. Don’t crowd the pan, otherwise the oil’s temperature will go down. Let each fritter fry for a minute or so, then use chopsticks or a spatula to gently flip it over. When both sides are golden brown, you’re good to go.

Finish the fritters: when each fritter is ready, place it on the paper towel-lined cooling racks and sprinkle with a bit of kosher salt. Allow to cool before slightly before serving.

To serve: you can serve these on their own or with a dipping sauce of your choice, like tentsuyu or another tempura dipping sauce.

To keep: these should be eaten immediately, since they’ll go soggy on you in the fridge.