Fried food. Who doesn’t love fried food? One fried food I had always wanted to try but never did because no one would suck up and share with me was fried pickles. It’s a Southern classic and I’ve always been intrigued. I mean I know you can fry just about anything, after all fairs deep fry Twinkies, Oreos and the like (neither of which I’ve tried yet for fear of artery blockage) but I decided if I wanted to try something so badly I was going to have to make it myself. I went on a frying spree throwing in onions and zucchini rounds as well.  Lucky for me, fried pickles are pretty tasty no need to fear ordering them anymore!

- 1/2 package tempura batter (can be found in grocery store)
- cold water as needed according to tempura instructions
- 2 cups panko bread crumbs
- 1 1/2 cup vegetable oil for frying
- 1 cup sliced onion rings
- 1 cup sliced zucchini rounds
- 1 cup sliced pickles (don’t do thin slices)
- salt and pepper to taste

In a bowl follow tempura batter instructions (usually will just entail mixing the tempura with water). Place oil in a frying pan. Put the pan on medium heat and allow oil to start getting hot. Depending on what kind of stove you have this can take a coupe to several minutes. Set up another bowl with panko bread crumbs. To check to see if the oil is ready take a tiny dollop of the batter and slowly drop into frying pan. If it floats to the top and the oil is bubbling then it’s ready.

Take a slice of each veggie, dip in tempura batter, roll around in panko bread crumbs and SLOWLY drop into frying pan. Let it fry for about a minute or so or until the outside is a nice golden brown. Remove from pan, shake off any excess oil and place onto a paper towel lined dish (this will allow it to absorb any remaining oil). Hit it with some salt and pepper. How quickly each piece will cook will be dependent on how thick each slice is. Remember the thicker it is the longer it will take. Also, don’t forget the more you put into the pan, the temperature of the oil will go down and it will take longer to cook so try and make sure you don’t overload your pan. Repeat the steps above as necessary for each veggie and then eat on up!