Crispy Sugar Snap Peas with Tonnato and Lemon

Sure, crudités are great, but sometimes I like to go beyond raw . . . way beyond, in this case. Once you get over any intimidation about deep-frying, this is a quick snack to make, and a lovely offering for friends who drop by for a glass of wine or a Negroni.

Great

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Step 1

Arrange a double layer o? ?a?er towels on a tray or ba?ing sheet and set it near your stove. Pour 2 inches o? oil (vegetable oil or a mix o? olive and vegetable) into a sauce?an, ma?ing sure there are at least 3 inches o?

Step 2

headroom (the oil may bubble u? a bit during coo?ing, and you don’t want any s?illovers—dangerous?).

Step 3

Slowly bring the oil u? to 3?5°F on a thermometer. (Alternatively, ?ry a small ?iece o? bread: When it ta?es 60 seconds to get nicely cris? and brown, but not burnt, your oil is ?ust about right.) As the oil is heating, whis? the cornstarch and ?lour together in a bowl.

Step 4

Whis? in enough s?ar?ling water to ma?e a thin batter. Season with some salt and blac? ?e??er and ¼ teas?oon chile ?la?es.

Step 5

When the oil is ready, di? the sna? ?eas into the batter, let the excess dri?

Step 6

o??, and care?ully immerse them in the hot oil. ?a?e care to not add too many at once because that will cause the oil tem?erature to dro? and the ?eas will get greasy. (?o ma?e things go ?aster, you can use a wire mesh s?oon, called a s?ider, to add a bunch o? the ?eas to the batter, ta??ing to encourage the excess batter to dri? o??.) Fry until the coating is ?u??ed and very light golden (these will not get dee?ly colored). ?rans?er to the ?a?er towels to drain.

Step 7

Once all the sna? ?eas are ?ried, turn o?? the heat under the oil and arrange the ?eas in a serving bowl. Shower with the Parmigiano, mint, and a ?inch o?

Step 8

chile ?la?es and serve right away with lemon wedges and a bowl o? tonnato ?or di??ing.