Ingredients
| DIPPING SAUCE | |
| 2 tablespoons rice vinegar | |
| 1 tablespoon gochujang (gluten-free if required) | |
| 1 tablespoon maple syrup | |
| 1 teaspoon soy sauce (or tamari if gluten-free) | |
| 1 teaspoon sesame oil | |
| 1 small clove garlic, crushed or finely grated | |
| FRITTERS | |
| 1 cup kimchi (check label for animal products), roughly chopped | |
| 300g firm tofu, crumbled into small chunks | |
| 3 spring onions, whites and greens thinly sliced | |
| large handful spinach, roughly chopped | |
| 150g (1¼ cups) white rice flour | |
| ½ teaspoon salt | |
| ½ teaspoon baking powder | |
| ½-¾ cup water | |
| cooking oil, for frying |
I adore Korean kimchi for its funky, spicy, sour flavours, and fortunately, it’s easy to find vegan versions (which don’t include a fish sauce or fermented shrimp, common in traditional kimchi). These fritters are an awesome way to enjoy kimchi in an approachable way – it brings serious flavour to these light and crispy fritters without being too in your face. Even my girls love them. The tangy dipping sauce is made with gochujang, an umami-packed Korean chilli paste readily available at supermarkets in New Zealand. It’s spicy, but not in a ‘blow your head off’ way.
This fritters recipe was adapted from the kimchi pancake recipe in East by Meera Sodha.
View the recipe collection here
Instructions
| 1. | Start by preparing the dipping sauce. Stir all ingredients together and set aside until ready to serve. |
| 2. | To make the fritters, combine kimchi, tofu, spring onions, spinach, rice flour, salt and baking powder in a mixing bowl. |
| 3. | Add just enough water to create a light batter that holds everything together. I find ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons to be just right. |
| 4. | Heat a large frying pan over medium heat and add a thin layer of oil to coat the pan. |
| 5. | Drop in heaped tablespoonfuls of batter and fry until the bottom is deeply golden, then flip and cook the other side until deeply golden. |
| 6. | Keep the fritters warm in a low oven while you cook the remaining batches until the batter is finished. |
| 7. | Serve fritters hot, with dipping sauce. |
This is an edited
extract from Simply
Veg by Amber Bremner
© 2025. Published
by Upstart Press.
Photographs by
Amber Bremner.