Yes, you have read this correctly.
Deep fried Strawberries. This is
so unusual that your guests will be talking about it
for weeks. Get the freshest
and largest whole strawberries you can find.
Deep Fried Strawberries with
Custard Sauce
For the Sauce:
Custard sauce can easily be purchased in most
grocery stores, you can skip this part and buy
some sauce.
4 cups half and half
1/2 cup sugar
2 inch piece vanilla bean or 1 tsp. vanilla
5 egg yolks (save the whites)
For the Strawberries:
36 strawberries
2 cups flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. sugar
1 1/2 cups beer (light in color like Bud)
5 egg whites
cream of tartar
Oil for deep frying
powdered sugar
To make the sauce:
In a small saucepan scald 4 cups half and half with 1/2 cup sugar
and the vanilla. Discard the vanilla bean
after the cream is scalded.
In a bowl beat 5 large egg yolks until they are light and add
the scalded cream to the yolks, in a stream, beating continually.
Transfer the custard to a heavy saucepan and cook it
over low heat,
stirring until it coats the back of a spoon. Put the sauce in a
chilled bowl covered with buttered wax paper, for at least 2 hours.
(Can be made the day before.)
To make the strawberries:
Wash, dry and hull the strawberries thoroughly. Heat oil in a deep fryer to 375
degrees (I like to use my electric skillet for this).
In a large bowl, combine 2 cups
flour and 1/4 tsp. of sugar and salt, add 1 1/2 cup
beer in a stream and beat the
mixture until it is smooth. In another
bowl beat the 5 egg whites with a pinch
of cream of tartar until they are stiff. Then fold the egg whites
into the beer
batter gently, but thoroughly. Dip the strawberries into the batter and
fry them
a few at a time, for one to two minutes or until golden brown. Drain them
on a
plate lined with some paper towels. Roll the
strawberries in powdered sugar
and serve on top of the custard sauce.
