“In isolation I’ve leaned hard on the everyday Bangladeshi food my mother cooked when I was growing up,” says Sohla El-Waylly. “It makes me feel safe in a way grilled cheese or fried chicken just can’t. She’d fry up these crispy, sweet fritters anytime there was a ripe banana around, so during quarantine I called her for the recipe. When I make kolar pitha now, it transports me back to her kitchen, which is exactly where I need to be.” Traditionally these banana fritters are sweetened with a syrup made from gur or jaggery, which gives them a musky aroma and a dark brown color. This version uses maple syrup, which hits many of the same notes as those sweeteners.
Ingredients
Makes 20
1
1
½
¾
½
¼
1–2
Preparation
Step 1
Blend banana, egg, and maple syrup in a blender until smooth, about 15 seconds. Add rice flour, salt, and baking powder and blend again until fully incorporated, about 10 seconds. (Or mash banana with a fork and whisk with the other ingredients in a medium bowl.) Cover batter and let sit at least 20 minutes and up to 2 hours to allow rice flour to hydrate.
Step 2
Set a wire rack inside a rimmed baking sheet and line rack with paper towels. Pour ghee into a small high-sided skillet, preferably cast-iron, to come at least ⅓" up the sides (more fat will result in rounder fritters). Heat over medium-high until an instant-read thermometer registers 350° or fat rapidly sizzles when a dollop of batter is added to the pan, about 5 minutes.
Step 3
Using a 1 Tbsp. measuring spoon, drop batter straight down into skillet in a compact circle. Fry 4–6 fritters at a time, depending on the size of your skillet, until edges are dark brown, centers puff up, and fritters are mostly cooked through, about 2 minutes. (Initially edges will curl up and centers will look sunken and wet, but don’t worry.) Using 2 spoons or chopsticks, turn fritters and fry until other sides are dark brown, about 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to prepared rack and let drain. The fritters will feel soft right out of the oil, but they will grow crisp as they sit. Remove any loose bits of batter from the oil and check the temperature before frying the next batch. Serve hot.
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