4-Ingredient Corn Fritters (Easiest Recipe Ever!)

Crispy on the outside and soft on this inside, these 4-ingredient corn fritters are perfect as an appetizer or side dish! Make them at home in just a few easy steps.

If you want to make an impressive appetizer or great side dish, these corn fritters are where it’s at. They are deceptively easy, but those crispy exteriors and sweet-and-savory interiors make them a great way to impress friends and family. 

These can be served with a variety of cuisines. They’re typical in American southern dishes, but also Indonesian cuisine, a variety of Native American tribal cuisines, and even Peruvian cooking. Talk about versatile!

What’s in a 4-ingredient corn fritters?

 These simple snacks are made with minimal ingredients that are easy to find at your local grocery store!

• Corn: Gotta have corn in corn fritters! You can use frozen, fresh, or canned corn. For frozen, steam the corn before you start. For fresh corn, make sure it’s been cooked or steamed. For canned, go ahead and drain the liquid before you begin.
• Self-Rising Flour: Self-rising flour combines all-purpose flour with pre-mixed baking powder and salt, streamlining the process by providing both flour and leavening agent in one measurement. If you prefer to prepare it yourself, King Arthur Baking offers an excellent recipe.
• Eggs: These are here to hold things together. You’ll need 2 medium eggs.
• Vegetable Oil: You can use any neutral frying oil here. Canola oil, avocado oil, sunflower oil, and peanut oil are all good alternatives if you don’t want to use vegetable oil. Do not use coconut or olive oil — their smoke point is too low to get a good crispy fry!

Step 1 | Grind the Corn

As mentioned in the ingredient notes, your corn needs to be steamed or drained (if using canned corn) before you begin. Your first step is to take the cooked/drained corn and mash it in a blender or food processor. Your corn will still be slightly chunky, but you need most of it to be mashed up. If you like corn bits in your fritters, you can reserve 1/2 cup corn kernels and add it back in the next step.

In a large bowl, mix the corn, flour, and eggs. This is a base recipe, which you can absolutely dress up, so if you want to add any mix-ins or spices here, feel free. Many people enjoy chopped green onion, lime juice, cayenne pepper, maple syrup, and seasoned salt. 

Pour your vegetable oil into a heavy-bottomed pot or non-stick frying pan. You want about 2 inches of oil in your pot or pan. Heat the oil to 375°. This will ensure a nice, crisp fry!

Once your oil is hot enough, drop your corn mixture n to fry. You can use a large spoon or an ice cream or cookie scoop to drop the batter in. Fry your fritters for 2-3 minutes or until they are golden brown and crispy.

Remove your fritters from the hot oil and place on a plate lined with paper towels. You can serve your crispy fritters warm with a dollop of sour cream or your favorite sauce!

Variations

This recipe is versatile enough to be used with other vegetables. Here are a few of my favorites: 

• Zucchini Fritters: Simply replace the corn with 1 large steamed and mashed zucchini to create delicious zucchini fritters!
• Sweet Potato Fritters: The only change you need here is to replace the corn with 1-2 steamed and mashed sweet potatoes. You can steam the potatoes in the microwave to make this even easier! 
• Cauliflower Fritters: You’re probably sensing a pattern at this point. Yep, you can make this by replacing the corn with 1 head of cauliflower that has been steamed and mashed.