Rosalie's Accras

Back in March I celebrated my birthday in the middle of the ocean, surrounded by good friends and delicious food.
I am sharing the recipe for one of the exquisite appetizers of the night. My friend Audrey prepared her signature accras. She grew up eating these cute crunchy cod fritters at family picnics by the ocean in Guadeloupe. We named them Rosalie’s Accras as a tribute to her mom.

These little fritters will make you travel to beautiful Caribbean islands; they have the right amount of saltiness, a crispy crust with a tender, flaky heart… add a squeeze or two of fresh lemon to brighten things up. The sun is shining. Start packing… ;)

Bon appetit!

Rosalie’s Accras

Ingredients
1 pound salted cod fillets*
1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 eggs
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon of salt
Cayenne pepper to taste
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup onions, diced
1 shallot, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves
1/2 green bell pepper roughly chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, roughly chopped
Vegetable oil (for frying)
lemon or lime for serving

Directions
Prep all the ingredients.
You will need 2 big bowls, plastic wrap, a food processor with the blade attachment, one small ice cream scoop, paper towels, a small pot, one pot for frying, a slotted spoon and a spatula.

The day before: You need to remove as much salt as possible from the cod. Place the fish fillets in a bowl, fill with fresh water, cover with plastic wrap and let it sit in the fridge for 12 hours. Change the water 3 to 4 times… On the day of cooking: place the cod fillets in a small pot with water, bring to a boil. Remove the fish and set aside.

In a bowl, mix flour and baking powder. Add the eggs, melted butter, milk, salt and cayenne pepper (just a few pinches or more if you like spicy food!). Whisk slowly to avoid lumps. You should have a thick and smooth batter. Set aside for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in the bowl of a food processor, combine the onions, shallot, garlic and peppers. Pulse a few times. Add the fish fillets and mix to achieve a homogenous paste like puree. With a spatula, fold the fish mixture into the egg-flour-batter.
When the oil is ready and hot, using a small ice cream scoop, form your fritters and release them directly in the hot oil. Fry on both sides for a few minutes until golden and crispy. Work in batches and do not overcrowd the pot.
With a slotted spoon, remove the cooked accras and let them drain on paper towel.
Serve hot with lemon or lime wedges and some cayenne pepper on the side for an extra kick.

*you can use shrimps or cooked chicken. If you are not using salted fish fillets skip the step where you remove the salt…