Banh Khoai Lang Chien Xu (Crispy Sweet Potato Bites), No Added Refined Sugar
Sweets and drinksFried CakesVietnamAbout 3 hours including freezing time
These sweet potato bites come out with a crackling crust and a center as smooth and soft as ice cream. The hard part is the waiting, because the mixture needs a full two hours to set before it cuts cleanly and holds together in the oil.
The sweet potato is steamed soft, blended hot with the milk and sweetener, strained, then cooked with cornstarch until thick before it goes into the mold.
This batch weighs about 1.2kg, at roughly 245 calories per 100g.
Method
Peel 400g sweet potato, wash it thoroughly under running water and cut it into rounds about half a finger joint thick.
Steam the sweet potato over medium heat for 20 to 30 minutes, until it is very soft and mashes easily.
While it is still hot, put it straight into a blender with 100ml unsweetened oat milk and 36g kOBE Monk Fruit Blend and blend until completely smooth.
Strain the mixture through a sieve into a clean pot to remove any fibers.
Mix 40g cornstarch with the remaining 100ml unsweetened oat milk until fully dissolved, pour it slowly into the sweet potato pot and cook until the mixture thickens.
Line a rectangular container with plastic wrap, pour in the sweet potato mixture, level the surface and cover it with the overhanging wrap. Freeze for about 2 hours.
Lift it out, peel off the wrap and cut it into squares or rectangles just under a finger joint thick.
Set up three separate bowls: 3 beaten chicken eggs, 200g crispy frying flour and 200g panko breadcrumbs. Dip each piece in the frying flour, then the egg, then roll it in the panko.
Heat about 300ml cooking oil in a nonstick pan over medium heat. Once the oil is properly hot, lower the pieces in and fry in small batches until the crust is golden and crisp, then lift them onto paper towel.
Tips
Keep the oil temperature steady, because cool oil soaks into the coating and oil that is too hot burns the crust before the center warms through.
Do not cover the bites while they are hot, since condensation softens them quickly.
Cook the sweet potato mixture until a spoon drawn through leaves a clear trail, because a loose one will not cut into pieces.
A full 2 hours in the freezer is what lets the pieces cut cleanly and hold together in the oil.
Frying in small batches keeps the oil from dropping in temperature.
Need kOBE Monk Fruit Blend?
The recipe above is sweetened with kOBE Monk Fruit Blend, measured 1:1 like sugar. See the product page or send us a message.