Crispy Leeks with Tangy Yogurt Caper Dressing

Of all the things I could have dreamed of making with leeks, never would I have thought to bread and crisp them.

Cooking my way through Plenty is like following the path less traveled on.  It makes so much sense.  Why wouldn't I bread and crisp leeks?  This man is brilliant.

Adapted from p. 42 of Ottolenghi's Plenty 

Serves 4 as a salad topping or appetizer

Ingredients

3-4 leeks, whites, cut into 5 cm parts

3-4 serrano chiles (optional)

150 mL sunflower oil for frying

Breading:

1 cup panko crumbs

1 tsp coriander powder

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1/2 tsp chile powder

few cracks black pepper

1/4 tsp fleur de sel

1 egg, beaten

Dressing/Dipping sauce:

juice from 1/2 lime

1 1/2 Tbsp capers

2 small green onions, sliced thinly at an angle

2 - 3 Tbsp yogurt

1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil

pinch fleur de sel

few cracks black pepper

Directions

1.  Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, then add the leek pieces, reduce the heat, and simmer for about 15 minutes.  You want the leek pieces to be tender, not mush.. but not hard either.  Drain and pat dry (or let dry).

2.  While the leeks are blanching, prepare the breading stand.  Mix all the breading ingredients except the egg together on a plate.  In a separate bowl, have the beaten egg ready.

When the leeks are dry, dip each piece into the egg, then roll around in the breading.  I added 4 serranos from my garden in this step.

3.  Heat the sunflower oil in a sautée pan on high and fry each breaded leek piece for about 30 seconds on each side.  You may need to do this in batches.  They should be nice and golden.  Do this with your serranos as well.  Set aside onto paper towels.

4.  Make the dressing or dipping sauce.  Stir all the ingredients together.

5.  Serve as finger appetizers or as a salad topping.

I did both.  I couldn't help it.

Once salad, and then the leftovers were finger food appetizers.

The texture is insane.  Crunchy on the outside, creamy on the inside, hot vs cold sauce.  The dipping sauce has that tang that pairs perfectly with the crunch.

This will be making an appearance at my next happy hour evening... and I'll make people guess what they are.
Oh and the serrano?  Best decision I've made all week!

This is delicious beyond words.. why didn't I think of this myself?