Bacon and Corn Fritters

These bacon and corn fritters are smoky, and full of fresh corn flavor!

They’re bursting with cheddar cheese, and have a kiss of lime.

Basically, they’re the perfect weekend appetizer when you get together with friends or family.

They’ll evaporate off the platter, that I can promise!

How to make bacon and corn fritters

Ingredients Needed

• Corn: The general rule of thumb is that you want to cook fresh corn the day it’s picked.
  • So, get those ears husked and into the oven, into boiling water, or on the grill!
  • The sweetness of corn starts to recede by the hour, so you really want to get them cooked so that you can enjoy the maximum of the inimitable fresh corn flavor.
• Corn Meal: This helps reenforce the fresh corn flavor of the ears of corn.
• Bacon: The smokiness of bacon plays incredibly well with the sweet corn and the sharpness of the cheddar cheese.
• Smoked Paprika: You can use either sweet smoked paprika, or hot smoked paprika.
  • The heat level is up to you! (Or, you could use half sweet and half spicy to hedge your bets if there are young appetites involved.)
• Eggs: If you can find locally sourced eggs, those really will be perfect in this recipe.
  • Grass fed chickens produce eggs with less cholesterol, less saturated fat, more vitamin A, more omega-3 fatty acids, and more beta carotene.
  • Bonus: The yolks are absolutely spectacularly yellow! It’s well worth it to find a vendor at the farmers market, or even to find a farm stand.
• Sharp Cheddar Cheese: You really want the delightful bite of sharp cheese here. These sweet corn and bacon fritters won’t be as flavorful with plain cheddar cheese.
  • Sharp cheese equals delightful pairing with corn and bacon.
  • In fact, if you can find extra sharp cheddar cheese, that would even be better!

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Cook the sweet corn: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
   • Place ears of corn in a baking dish and coat evenly with about 1 tablespoon oil. 
   • Roast about 15 minutes.  Let slightly cool, then slice corn from the ear.
   • Discard ears.
2. Cook the bacon: In a Dutch oven to large pot, cook bacon crumbles over medium heat, stirring frequently, until crispy.
   • Transfer to a plate lined with a paper towel.
3. Make the fritter batter: In a large bowl, whisk together corn meal, flour, salt, black pepper, smoked paprika, cayenne pepper and baking powder until combined.
   • Mix in milk, eggs, lime zest and juice, cheddar cheese, bacon crumbles and sweet corn until combined.
4. Pan-fry the fritters: Add remaining oil to the Dutch oven or pot and heat to medium.
   • Working in batches, use a cookie scoop to drop dollops of fritter batter into the oil.
   • Fry 2-3 minutes per side, until browned and crispy on both sides and set.
   • Remove fritters and place on a paper towel-lined plate. Repeat with remaining batter.
5. Make the dipping sauce: In a small bowl, whisk together yogurt or sour cream, chives and black pepper.
   • Serve with fritters.

Storage Tips

Package: Let the fritters cool, then place them in an airtight container or large plastic bag.

Storage: Store them in the refrigerator up to 5 days or the freezer up to 2 months.

Reheat: You can microwave the fritters until they’re warmed through, but they taste even better when reheated in an air fryer or under the broiler until crispy and heated through.

Delicious appetizer recipes:

• Peach Guacamole
• Tomato Jalapeno Salsa
• Dill Veggie Dip
• Crispy Zucchini Fritters
• Mango Cucumber Salsa

Sweet Corn & Bacon Fritters

Print Recipe

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Fresh sweet corn and bacon fritters with cheddar cheese, lime and smoked paprika.

• Author: Julie Andrews
• Prep Time: 15 min
• Cook Time: 45 min
• Total Time: 1 hr
• Yield: 18 fritters / Serves 6 1x
• Category: Appetizer
• Method: Stove-Top, Baking
• Cuisine: American

Ingredients

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Fritters:

• 3 cups cooked sweet corn (from frozen, canned or off the cob)
• 4 tablespoons oil, divided
• 2–3 strips bacon, finely chopped
• ½ cup corn meal
• ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon coarse salt
• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
• ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• ¼ teaspoon baking powder
• ¾ cup milk
• 3 large eggs
• Zest and juice of 1 medium lime
• 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Chive Dip:

• ½ cup plain Greek yogurt or sour cream
• 4 fresh chives, chopped
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

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Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place ears of corn in a baking dish and coat evenly with about 1 tablespoon oil.  Roast about 15 minutes.  Let slightly cool, then slice corn from the ear.  Discard ears.
2. In a Dutch oven to large pot, cook bacon crumbles over medium heat, stirring frequently, until crispy. Transfer to a plate lined with a paper towel.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together corn meal, flour, salt, black pepper, smoked paprika, cayenne pepper and baking powder until combined. Mix in milk, eggs, lime zest and juice, cheddar cheese, bacon crumbles and sweet corn until combined.
4. Add remaining oil to the Dutch oven or pot and heat to medium. Working in batches, use a cookie scoop to drop dollops of fritter batter into the oil. Fry 2-3 minutes per side, until browned and crispy on both sides and set. Remove fritters and place on a paper towel-lined plate. Repeat with remaining batter.
5. In a small bowl, whisk together yogurt or sour cream, chives and black pepper. Serve with fritters.

Notes

To Reheat: Heat broiler to low and toast fritters until crispy.

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 3 fritters
• Calories: 367
• Sugar: 7
• Sodium: 486
• Fat: 23
• Saturated Fat: 7
• Unsaturated Fat: 16
• Trans Fat: 0
• Carbohydrates: 30
• Fiber: 4
• Protein: 16
• Cholesterol: 147