Everyone loves a corn fritter! But if you wish they had a little more protein and bite to them, then you're going to love these Tofu Sweet Corn Fritters! This recipe is smokey, and has the perfectly crispy bite, every single time. Make them to have for breakfast, or for a yummy dinner!
I'm a big fan of fritters in all kinds of formats! Crispy on the outside, and packed with veggies and perfect for dipping or a snack. But I wanted to add more bite and protein, and the addition of firm tofu, grated into the batter is absolutely perfect. You still get all the yummy flavor of the corn fritter, and the firm tofu adds a little extra texture as well as good-for-you protein.
If you love the idea of adding tofu to a fritter or vegan meatball, check out my Zucchini Tofu Meatballs with Tomato Orzo. Or if you just want to try a really great fritter, these tasty herb packed Zucchini Fritters are delicious snacks for using up loads of summer zucchini. I love to serve these fritters with Air fryer roasted tomatoes or big dollops of my Tomato Onion Chutney.
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🌽Ingredients
Here are the ingredients you'll need for this vegan corn fritters recipe:
- Fresh Sweet corn (or frozen corn kernels): Either chop fresh corn off the cob, or use frozen corn or even canned corn
- Green Onions: Also sometimes called spring onion or scallions.
- Extra Firm Tofu: If you can't find extra firm, you can press firm tofu and crumble it rather than grating.
- Chickpea Flour: this creates part of the batter and helps to bind the ingredients.
- Potato Starch: Potato starch is the key to having a really lovely crispy exterior on the fritters. You could also use corn starch (also known as corn flour in the UK and Australia)
- Garlic powder: For flavor!
- Smoked Paprika: this creates a lovely smokey, slightly addictive flavor.
- Bouillon Powder: to add extra savory notes.
- Thyme or Oregano: these both add savory notes and a lovely herbal flavor.
- Vegetable Oil for Frying: choose an oil with a high smoke point such as avocado oil or sunflower oil.
- Flakey Sea Salt and Black Pepper to taste.
See recipe card for quantities.
👩🍳Instructions
Follow along with these easy step by step instructions for the perfect crispy corn and tofu fritters.
2. Cut the corn kernels off the cob. Add the tofu and corn to a large mixing bowl.
3. Add the corn starch, chickpea flour, green onions and seasonings to the corn and mix well.
4. Add water bit by bit and mix until you get a thick chunky batter that will stick together and to a spoon.
5. Use a cookie or ice cream scoop and scoop out even balls of the corn and tofu fritter mix. Firm the balls up in your hands and lay out ready to use.
6. Heat oil in a large frying pan, fry the fritters in batches, flattening them down with a spatula. Cook until crispy and golden brown on one side, then flip and cook on the other. Lay out on a paper towel-lined plate or wire rack to keep crisp and remove any excess oil.
The fritters need to get a 'crust' before attempting to flip them, so be sure to cook for 2-3 minutes before checking, otherwise they might fall apart as you try to flip them.
Hint: pop the balls of fritter mix into the fridge to firm up even more if you have time.
🌶️Substitutions & Variations
Here are some yummy ways you can switch up this recipe to use according to your tastes and what you have available.
- Regular Flour-You can swap out the chickpea flour for regular flour if you're not needing to make this recipe gluten-free.
- Spicy -add hot sauce, cayenne pepper or chili flakes to the batter. Go as spicy as you like.
- Cheesy- add some of your favourite vegan feta or parmesan cheese to the batter before cooking for a yummy cheesy fritter.
- Peas- swap the corn for frozen or fresh peas.
- No Tofu, just use corn, or add grated zucchini, carrot, chopped red bell peppers or other vegetables.
- Other herbs: get creative with the herbs by adding chinese chives, half a cup coriander /cilantro or fresh parsley to the batter.
🍳Alternative Cooking Methods
Instead of pan frying the tofu corn fritters you can either:
- Oven bake: Lay out balls of the fritter mixture on a parchment lined baking tray. Press the fritters down with a spatula and spritz with a little oil. Bake at 180c/360f for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.
- Air Fry: On an air fryer rack, gently press down on the fritters to make the fritter shape. Spritz with oil and air fry at 180c/360 for around 10 minutes or until crispy.
🔪Equipment
You'll need a grater, a large mixing bowl and a good sharp knife to cut the corn and other vegetables. You'll also need a non-stick frying pan or a baking sheet.
🫙Storage
Store the cooked fritters in an airtight container for up to a week in the fridge. Reheat or just eat cold. They make a great lunchtime snack.
Top tip
Gently press down onto the fritter when adding it to the frying pan. Then leave it to cook for 2-3 minutes and form a 'crust' which helps to stabilise the fritter when flipping it to cook the other side.
❓FAQ
The secret to crispy fritters is adding potato starch to the batter. It gets a super crispy bite that can't be achieved with just flour.
More Fritter Recipes!
Can't get enough of fritters? Try these too!
What to eat with corn fritters:
Why not try one of these salads with your corn fritters:
📖 Recipe
Corn & Tofu Fritters: Gluten Free & Vegan
Equipment
Ingredients Note:
For accuracy, I measure all ingredients in metric as standard, then convert and test the recipe for American cup measurements etc.
(Heads up Aussie and UK readers- your measurements in cups are sometimes different, so please use metric or check you have the correct cup and spoon type!!)
Ingredients
- 250 g (2 cups) sweet corn kernels (either fresh, frozen or canned)
- 250 g (1 cups) firm tofu (grated)
- 100 g green onions
- 2 tablespoon thyme (dried or fresh)
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder (crushed)
- 1 teaspoon boullion stock powder
- 90 g (¾ cup) chickpea flour
- 90 g (¾ cup) potato starch
- 80 ml (⅓ cup) water (to bind the fritters)
- 1 teaspoon flakey sea salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 350 ml sunflower oil (for frying )
Instructions
- Grate the tofu and remove the kernels from the corn cob if using fresh corn on the cob. Finely chop the spring onion.
- Add the grated tofu, corn, chopped spring onion, chickpea flour, corn starch and all the seasonings to a large bowl and mix.250 g sweet corn kernels, 250 g firm tofu, 100 g green onions, 2 tablespoon thyme, 1 teaspoon smoked paprika, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon boullion stock powder, 90 g chickpea flour, 90 g potato starch
- Add water bit by bit as you mix, until you get a thick, chunky batter that sticks the corn kernels and tofu together in the bowl. If the batter is looking a bit dry, add water tablespoon by tablespoon until it is the desired consistency.80 ml water, 1 teaspoon flakey sea salt, 1 teaspoon pepper
- Use an ice-cream scoop to scoop out portions of the fritters. Roll each between your palms to ensure they stick together.
- Add the sunflower oil to a frying pan and allow it to get to a medium-high heat. Add the fritters in batches of 3 or 4 to the frying pan and squish down with a spatula so they form flat pancake style shapes.350 ml sunflower oil
- Cook the fritters until crispy on one side, then use a spatula to carefully flip. Cook the other side of the fritter until golden brown.
- Lay the fritters out on a paper towel or wire rack to allow any excess oil to be removed.
- Serve with roasted tomatoes and your favourite chili sauce or ketchup.
Notes
- Oven bake: Lay out balls of the fritter mixture on a parchment lined baking tray. Press the fritters down with a spatula and spritz with a little oil. Bake at 180c/360f for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.
- Air Fry: On an air fryer rack, gently press down on the fritters to make the fritter shape. Spritz with oil and air fry at 180c/360 for around 10 minutes or until crispy.
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