Perfect Fritter Mix

Fresh is always best when it comes to fish and seafood, but you don't always have the ingredients on hand to take immediate advantage of your catch. That was until the Auckland based company Fogdog made things so easy and convenient - especially for us blokes.

Last year Fogdog introduced its now infamous 'just add beer' beer batter. You just empty the contents of the beer batter pack into a bowl, and then add a stubby size bottle of beer, less a couple of swigs. Stir the mixture into a batter, then dip in the fish and fry until golden brown. Brilliantly simple and great tasting with Original, Cajun and Lemon Pepper flavour options.

With fish sorted, Fogdog then looked at seafood. Fritters are a great way to enjoy many of the seafood delicacies that can be harvested along the coastline. Pipis, mussels, paua and whitebait etc all go further and appeal to a wider range of people when served as fritters, so when we heard that for the summer of 2010 Fogdog had introduced an instant fritter mix - we were keen to check it out. We were not disappointed!!

Supplied in a convenient inexpensive twin pack, the only other ingredients you will need are a bottle of beer and around two cups of the item to be 'frittered'. With shellfish, we preferred this to be cooked and diced first before adding to the beer and mix. However we also experimented with whitebait, mixing them in raw and cooking them in the pan the usual way - surprisingly good! The proof of course is in the eating and out testers all gave the Fogdog fritters the thumbs up - they couldn't speak, they had their mouths full!

Be sure and pack some Fogdog fritter mix into the pantry at the beach or at home this summer. Blokes, this mix gives us a simple beer based entree option for the barbeque and with live mussels available at supermarkets etc, your mates won't even realise that you didn't in fact risk life and limb dodging white pointers in crashing swells to gather the kaimoana for the tasty fritters they are tucking into.

One last thing, the Fogdog fritter mix is the perfect base for most other fritters you may enjoy. Not the least of which is the corn fritter. With a can of whole kernel corn, fritter mix and beer, you can whip up an instant graze for unexpected guests either on the barbeque or in the frying pan.