Crispy pea fritters is a handy recipe for those times when your fridge is bare. Because who doesn’t have some frozen peas lurking in the back of the freezer? Pull them out, and you’ll have a delicious stack of fritters ready in just 20 minutes – no need to thaw the peas first!
Crispy pea fritters
This recipe was born from an emergency breakfast situation. The fridge was extremely bare, I didn’t have bread, I only had one egg and I don’t eat cereal.
A freezer rummage produced a scruffy bag of peas leftover from last weeks’ Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup and it will surprise no one that I had plenty of cheese on hand. Cheese can solve any meal dilemma, my friends! 😇 And today, we’re using it to turn an un-assuming bag of frozen peas into a stack of crispy cheesy golden fritters.
Very little batter and lots of raggedy crispy cheese edges
The batter is based on my beloved crispy corn fritters recipe which uses equal parts flour and cornflour/cornstarch to make a crispier fritter, with just enough batter to hold the fritter together. We’re not making pancakes here – we want to taste peas, and cheese, not fluffy cakey crumb!
I also switched out the parmesan for pre-shredded cheese because I didn’t have the motivation to shred at the time these fritters came into existence (I was still in my PJ’s), and found that the fritters cooked up with jagged cheese-laced edges. Very rarely in life does less effort get rewarded with better results, so I’ll take that!
What you need
Here’s what you need to make crispy pea fritters using frozen peas.
Frozen peas – Just regular frozen peas or baby peas, it works fine for both. No need to thaw or pre-cook. Frozen peas are cooked before being frozen so there’s no need to cook it beforehand, they just need to be heated which happens in the time the fritter takes to cook on the stove (3 – 4 minutes).
Fresh peas – For show offs who want to use freshly harvested home-grown peas , blanch the peas, drain well, cool, then use per recipe. No, I’m not jealous at all.
Cheese – Any melting cheese other than mozzarella can be used (it’s not flavoured enough). Cheddar, tasty cheese, colby, Monterey Jack, pepper jack.
Packet shredded cheese is fine, no need to shred your own like I sometimes (strongly!) recommend. I use a 3 cheese blend (mozzarella, colby, parmesan), see photo above.
Cornflour (cornstarch) AND regular flour – This recipe calls for both because cornflour makes the fritter crispier, but if you just use cornflour then the batter is too gluey and has an unpleasant texture. So the flour adds lightness to the batter while cornflour adds crispiness!
Can you skip the cornflour? Yes you can. The fritter is still fairy crispy thanks to the cheese, but it’s crispier with the cornflour. But if I was out, I wouldn’t hesitate to make the recipe!
Gluten-free flour – I haven’t tried it myself but a reader reported success, saying you wouldn’t even know the difference! Given how little batter there is compared to peas, this makes sense. 🙂
Baking powder – This lightens up the batter a bit so it’s not overly dense inside. You can substitute with baking soda (bi-carb).
Egg and milk (or water) – To make the batter. The egg holds everything together (the ultimate food glue!) and the milk is to loosen the batter a touch to get the right consistency.
Garlic powder – For a touch of earthy garlic flavour. Substitute with fresh garlic pressed through a garlic crusher or very finely chopped (if the pieces are too big, they won’t cook through sufficiently).
Green onion – For a touch of freshness, though I wouldn’t hesitate to make this if I was out.
Substitute with onion (regular or red) – sauté it in a little oil then let it cool before mixing it into the batter (I would add finely minced fresh garlic too).
Lemon yogurt dipping sauce
I’m actually quite happy munching away on the pea fritters plain. But there’s no denying a dipping sauce elevates it! I like to use a simple Lemon Yogurt Sauce (love the touch of lemony garlicky flavour) though even just plain yogurt with a swish of olive oil would suffice.
Here’s what you need for the Lemon Yogurt Sauce.
For the yogurt, use a plain, unsweetened yogurt (I like to use Greek or Greek-style yogurt). I always use full-fat but low fat will work fine too.
How to make Crispy Pea Fritters
Here’s how to make it. I love that the only thing you need to pull out the cutting board for is to slice up some green onion!
Batter first – Put the flour, cornflour, egg, milk, garlic powder, salt and pepper into a bowl and mix to combine.
Frozen peas – Add the peas, still frozen, plus the cheese and green onion. Then mix so the peas are coated in the batter. It will look like there is not enough batter. Have faith – the little there is sets when cooked and glues the peas together (the cheese helps too). Too much batter = pancake situation = crispiness compromised = disappointing!
Pack to measure – Scoop up the batter using 3 tablespoon cookie scoop (# 20) or a 1/4 cup measure. Pack it in tightly.
Flatten – Place / flick the batter into the pan.
Flatten the mound to about 1.25cm / 0.5″ thick.
Flattened! Then repeat with remaining batter to make 4 or 5 at a time.
Cook for about 1 1/2 minutes on each side until it is deep golden and crispy. Adjust the heat as needed if it’s browning too quickly or slowly. And be brave – make sure you cook until very golden, because golden = crispy!
💡TIP: Don’t skimp on oil for fritters. Heat enough oil into your pan so the base is covered completely. Remember, oil thins out as it heats up so it will spread more. If you don’t use enough oil, your fritters will end up burnt rather than golden and crispy which is so disappointing.
Drain the excess oil on paper towels then repeat with remaining batter. You should get 9 or 10, depending on how tightly you pack the cup. Then serve with the Lemon Yogurt Dipping Sauce! (Which is just a mix together situation so I skipped the step photos for that.)
Have these as a meal, serve as a starter, a hearty snack or for breakfast with a runny egg.
Whatever time of the day it is, the moment you bite into the crispy golden crust may be the best part of your day. And to think that all it took was a bag of frozen peas!! I love these sort of emergency recipes. Very handy when you need to eat, right now, without going to the store. – Nagi x
Crispy pea fritters FAQ
Nope. Peas are cooked before they are frozen, so you just need to heat them through to eat. So you can just mix them in frozen, then they re-heat in the time it takes for the batter cook and the surface to become lovely and crispy!
Sure can. I suppose you grow your own. No, I’m not jealous at all! 😂 Shell, cook, drain well and cool, then follow the recipe.
Tried it. While it makes the fritter look greener (because the batter becomes green), it massively impacts the crispiness of the fritter (because of the moisture inside the peas). I tried just mashing half then a quarter of the peas and still had the same issue.
Mashing also does not improve the pea flavour. You get the most pea flavour from biting into the whole peas rather than mashed and mixed into the batter.
Yes! It works just fine here. Sometimes it’s a hard no (like Mac and Cheese, Queso cheese dip), sometimes it’s a “strongly recommend” to shred your own (like – pizza, lasagna), and sometimes it is totally fine to use pre-shredded (like Cheese Muffins, Lunchbox Pizza Bread). Pre-shredded cheese works just fine for these Pea Fritters.
Cooking geek-out! Why it can matter: Pre shredded cheese is coated with anti-caking agents which prevents the cheese from melting as nicely as freshly shredded. It also causes sauces (like béchamel cheese sauce used in Mac and Cheese) to be slightly grainy. The extent of graininess varies from brand to brand, depending on what and how much anti-caking agent they use.
Also, most pre shredded cheeses tend to be fairly chunky batons rather than thin strands like you get with freshly shredded cheese grated using a box grater. What this means is that 1 cup (100g) packet shredded cheese will cover less surface area than the same volume of freshly shredded (because thicker batons = less cheese strands than more finely shredded cheese).
See? I did warn you this was a geek-out moment!
Yes but the fritters will be a little less crispy and you’ll only get 7 or 8. Also, because cheese adds flavour into the fritters, I added extra spice and herbs to compensate. I used 1/4 teaspoon each paprika and onion powder, and 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano.
Yes, I noticed it is a common cheese of choice for pea fritters. The creamy saltiness goes nicely with peas! If you opt for feta (and it is delicious!), just know your fritter won’t be quite as crispy. Because feta doesn’t crisp up when pan fried. 🙂
Yes you can. If they are pre-cooked you can add them into the batter frozen, like the peas. If they are raw, they will need to be cooked first (blanch, steam, sauté). Drain well, else excess water may compromise crispiness, and cool before using.
The frozen mixed vegetables (like I use in fried rice) come to mind as a handy alternative (and so colourful too!).
Non-watery vegetables like carrot, green beans, stalks of broccoli and cauliflower and root vegetables can be used in this recipe but the vegetables need to be pre-cooked. Dice then you can either boil, steam or sauté. Drain well, else excess water may compromise crispiness, and cool before using. If you sauté, that’s a good opportunity to add extra flavours (like garlic, paprika, onion or garlic powder or other seasoning of choice).
For watery vegetables like zucchini, different steps are called for (eg shred, salt, squeeze out excess water). See below the recipe card for more fritter recipes!
I like to pan fry to warm it through again which also crisps up the surface slightly. Just a light spray of oil in the pan is all that’s needed.
Watch how to make it
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Crispy pea fritters – great emergency meal!
Ingredients
Batter:
- 1/4 cup flour (plain/all-purpose) – Note 4 gluten free
- 1/4 cup cornflour / cornstarch , or more flour (Note 1)
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp cooking salt (kosher salt), or 1/4 tsp table salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 large egg (~55g/2 oz)
- 2 tbsp milk (any type, any fat %), or water
Add-ins:
- 2 cups frozen peas , still frozen (break up large clumps) (Note 2)
- 1 cup shredded cheese (cheddar, tasty, colby – anything that melts, Note 3), packet shredded is fine
- 3/4 cup finely sliced green onion (ok to omit)
For cooking:
- 1/4 cup olive oil , for cooking
Lemon Yoghurt Dipping Sauce:
- 1/2 cup plain yogurt
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1/8 tsp finely grated garlic , optional
- Pinch each salt and pepper
Instructions
Abbreviated recipe
- Mix the Batter ingredients. Stir in the Add-ins. Scoop, flatten, cook 1 1/2 minutes each side. Eat!
Full instructions
- Lemon Yogurt Dipping Sauce – Mix the ingredients together in a bowl and set aside while you cook the fritters to let the flavours meld.
- Fritter batter – Mix the Batter ingredients until combined. Add the Add-ins, then mix until the batter coats all the peas. It will look like waaaay too much peas for batter, but have faith! The batter will set as it cooks.
- Measure & flatten – Heat enough oil to cover the base of a pan on medium high (~2 1/2 tbsp). Pack a 3 tbsp cookie scoop (#20) or 1/4 cup measure firmly with the mixture. Place mound in the pan, then flatten to 1.25 / 0.5" thick. Repeat to to fill the pan (I do 4 – 5 at a time)
- Cook – Cook for 1 1/2 minutes until the underside is golden, then turn and cook the other side for 1 1/2 minutes until golden and crispy. Transfer onto a paper towel lined tray. Repeat with remaining batter to make 9 -10 in total.
- Serve with Lemon Yogurt Dipping Sauce!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
My fritter life
You can fritter almost anything!
Life of Dozer
In real time – shot from this morning. Not looking thrilled about the prospect of going into the office today! 🤨 Little does he realise all the cooking I’m doing at work today!
And one from last week that I’m still traumatised about – Ikea fail and Dozer looking extremely concerned (rightly so!). Simple little kids’ bench I deemed as perfect to be Dozer’s new eating table* I managed to completely stuff up. I was wondering why I was left with 3 screws leftover at the end……???
I had to disassemble the whole thing and start again. 🤯 I’ll stick to cooking!
* Dozer now eats and drinks from an elevated height, a precaution for one of his increasing number of old-man problems he’s riddled with these days! Yet, I love him more with every passing day. ❤️
Hi Nagi & Dozer!
I LOVE this recipe ..I was wondering if this recipe would work if I added julianned ham? I would also like to add in some dill into the fritter itself or into the lemon yogurt dipping sauce? What do you think?
Hi Deborah! Dill would be beautiful in this, either in the fritter or in the dip. 🙂 Ham will work well but reduce the amount of peas ie use a total of 2 cups of “stuff” – ham and peas combined. YUM. – N x
I love peas, I eat them right out of the can cold, that is how much I love peas so this recipe really suits me fine, I have 4 bags of peas in the freezer so will be making these for breakfast with scrambled eggs. Thanks a bunch for this recipe Nagi.
OK. Eating frozen peas FROZEN?? THAT is the first I have heard of that!!! 🙂 N xx
When my daughter was little and hated eating vegetables, she would always eat “frozen green candy” and nearly 30 years later, we still have it as a snack. Frozen peas eaten frozen are great.
Yes! I did the same thing with my two daughters, (now 45 years later) they both love frozen peas and corn too. Actually when I pour out fr. peas or corn for a recipe, I always measure twice as much so I can snack while cooking😋.
I need to try it!! This summer 🙂
These look delicious, will they be ok with gluten free flour?
Hi Chris! I haven’t tried but this is the sort of recipe I think should work just fine 🙂 N x
Thank you Nagi for this Pea Fritter recipe, I’m going to make it tonight with the yoghurt dip. It looks so yummy.😋 Big hug for Dozer.
Hope you love it Silvia! Hug passed on and happily received 🙂 – N x
Lovely and very easy to make, which I’ll do tomorrow. I have a Ninja dual zone air fryer, and wonder if you can provide some recipes for such an appliance? Mostly I can ad lib and adapt the recipe, and the meals usually turn out fine, ig you take a conservative approach. Cheers, Andrew
Hi Andrew! You know, I’ve always had this idea in my mind to have an air frying expert to convert my recipes for the air fryer! Just need the time to find someone 🙂 N x
As with all of your recipes, it’s
easy and delicious. Can i replace the flour with gluten free flower and/or just use gluten free? Would that change the quantity used?
Thank you and best wishes.😀
Hi Christine! I haven’t tried this specifically with GF flour but I think it should work fine because there is so little batter 🙂 Would love to know if you try it! N x
I don’t eat breakfast but these would be good for a lunchtime snack. Poor Dozer he looks very sleepy I bet he wanted to have a sleep in on these chilly mornings. I love assembling IKEA products just finished a couple of items so give me a shout the next time you need a hand.
Ha, he WAS very sleepy! I had to rouse him from his cosy bed to go into work and he wasn’t happy! Shouldn’t offer for IKEA assembly help because I am more than likely to take you up on it…..
Mom made me an elevated food station with an IKEA nightstand! The top of it got lowered a tad to accommodate my height. We even found a mint green silicon food mat to match the spray paint she used on the nightstand. Dozer is so lucky to have a pawsome mom. 🐾🐾💜
AWWW! You’re so lucky Lily! Mine is still naked pinewood. My mum doesn’t have your mum’s eye! 😂 ~ Dozer