Crispy Kontomire Egusi Fritters with Hot Mayo

Method

1. Put 3 cm of water in a 20 cm pot, add the leaves and boil on medium heat for 15 min. Kontomire must be cooked until completely soft; spinach needs only 2 minutes. Let cool, then squeeze very hard with both hands and chop finely. Leftover water makes the oil spit and the fritters soggy.

   Add in this stepKontomire (cocoyam leaves) or spinach 300 g

   medium heat

2. In a bowl, mix the egusi, flour, baking powder and salt, then beat in the egg. Add the very finely chopped onion, the deseeded and minced pepper, the smoked fish (skin and bones removed, finely flaked) and the chopped leaves. The batter should be thick enough not to slide off a spoon; if it's too wet, add flour 1 tablespoon at a time.

   Add in this stepGround egusi (melon seeds) 60 gPlain flour 60 gBaking powder ½ tspSalt ½ tspEggs 1Onion ½Scotch bonnet pepper (or habanero) ½Smoked mackerel 80 g

3. In a small bowl, mix the mayonnaise, hot sauce and lime juice to make the dip.

   Add in this stepMayonnaise 4 tbspHot pepper sauce 2 tspLime ½

4. Pour the oil into a 18 cm deep pot to a depth of about 3 cm and heat on medium-high heat for 7 min to 175 °C. Without a thermometer, a drop of batter should bubble at once and float up. Never leave hot oil unattended and keep wet utensils away from it.

   Add in this stepVegetable oil for frying 500 ml

   medium-high heat

5. Using two wet spoons, slide tablespoons of batter gently into the oil. Don't crowd the pot: fry in 2 batches, each on medium heat for 4 min, turning once, until deep golden. Drain on kitchen paper and let the oil come back up to temperature before the next batch.

   medium heat

6. Serve hot with the hot mayo. Let the leftover oil cool completely before disposing of it.