Recipe: Corn and clam fritters

Corn and Clam Fritters with lemon aioli at the POP dining event at the Basement Theatre. Photo / Grant Allen

These are great pass-around snacks from the barbecue. Prepare the mix in advance and cook on a moderate heat on the hot plate.

Makes 2-3 dozen

• 4 ears corn
• 2kg clams (or other shellfish)
• Half-glass of dry white wine
• 4 eggs
• Salt and pepper
• Self-raising flour, at least half a cup
• 4 spring onions
• • 6 sprigs parsley, chopped
• 6 sprigs coriander, chopped
• Butter for cooking

1. Steam the clams in a lidded pot with half a glass of dry white wine and the 4 spring onion whites, diced. Steam until the clams are just open (two to three minutes) at high heat. Strain and reserve the liquid.

2. Remove clam meat from shells and roughly chop. Cut kernels from cob and sauté in butter for a minute or two, add half a cup reserved and strained clam liquid. Cook for a further two minutes until liquid has slightly reduced. Cool.

3. Whisk eggs and add corn and clams. Mix with tbsp of self-raising flour. Finely chop the remaining spring onion greens and the parsley and coriander and add to the mix. Test mix by cooking a tbsp of fritter mix on a hotplate with a little butter. Add more self-raising flour if required. The mixture should have just enough flour to hold its form and rise slightly.

4. Continue cooking the fritters in batches, adding a little butter (or oil) to the plate as you go. Ben and Andreas served these with a preserved-lemon aioli.