Ingredients
| 1 litre neutral oil | |
| 1 large onion, finely chopped | |
| 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped | |
| 6 makrut lime leaves, spines removed, leaves finely sliced | |
| 280g creamy, medium-flavoured goat’s cheese (I used Cranky Goat Reginald | |
| 50g grated parmesan | |
| ¼ cup finely chopped chives | |
| 8 fresh jalapeño chillies, split lengthways, seeds discarded | |
| 1 cup milk | |
| 1 cup standard flour | |
| 1 cup panko breadcrumbs | |
| ½ cup polenta | |
| citrus wedges, to serve |
You can swap out jalapeños for king sweetie capsicum or shishito peppers for a milder kick.
Instructions
| 1. | Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a medium- sized frying pan and cook the onion and garlic gently for 3-4 minutes. |
| 2. | Add the lime leaves and toss over the heat for 1 minute until you can smell the lime aroma. Remove from the heat. |
| 3. | Cut the goat’s cheese into 2cm pieces with the outer rind attached. |
| 4. | Combine with the grated parmesan and chives. |
| 5. | Add the cooled onion mixture. |
| 6. | Mash all ingredients together – it’s OK if there are lumps. |
| 7. | Press 3 teaspoons filling tightly into the centres of the jalapeños. |
| 8. | Set up 3 bowls with the milk in one, the flour in the next and mix the panko crumbs and polenta in the third. |
| 9. | Dip each popper into the milk, then the flour, back into the milk, then thoroughly toss in the polenta/breadcrumbs. |
| 10. | Heat the remaining oil in a medium- sized pot to 150°C, or until a bread cube fries to a golden colour in 20 seconds. |
| 11. | Gently fry 3-4 poppers at a time for 2 minutes. Remove from the oil and drain. |
| 12. | Season with salt and serve with some citrus wedges. |
Food styling, recipes & photography David Neville