Lou and I recently visited our dear friends, Beth and Lee Mock, at their fish camp in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. Actually, fish camp is an understatement when describing their new home. It’s gorgeous! They did an excellent job. After Saturday’s shopping excursion to Dirt Cheap, we stopped by a little restaurant rightly named, J’s Restaurant. We began our meal with an order of Eggplant Fries. Y’all, they were so good I came home and made some myself. Since then, I have tried this recipe with yellow squash and zucchini. All 3 vegetables were perfect. I can’t believe I haven’t thought of doing that before. These are so tender on the inside and crunchy on the outside. Jack thought he was eating fried cheese!
Eggplant Fries
Ingredients:
1 eggplant, peeled and cut into fries
2 cups buttermilk
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning
2 cups panko bread crumbs
Directions:
Heat oil to 300 degrees. Combine the flour and Tony's seasoning in one bowl. Add the buttermilk to a second bowl and the panko bread crumbs to a third bowl. Rinse eggplant fries in cold water. Starting with just a few at a time, roll the fries in the flour, then the buttermilk and lastly the panko bread crumbs. Spread the fries on a cookie sheet and don't let them touch each other. Deep fry in the oil until brown and crispy. Remove from oil and place onto paper towels to drain. Lightly salt. Serve alongside Homemade Garlic Ranch dressing.