You know the drill. It’s marrow season and we need to find creative ways of eating marrow to do justice to this wonderful veggie.
What I LOVE about marrow (which may I point out, is just an overgrown zucchini/courgette) is that it has a long shelf life.
Similar to a pumpkin, a freshly picked marrow can last weeks (if not months) if kept in the right conditions. For me, that has meant on the scullery bench top with the pumpkins. In shade, they haven’t succumbed to squishy bits or any sign of decomposition. Yip Yip. The thick skin helps to protect it from the elements. THIS is how they survived winter in past generations. Fresh produce, cleverly planted and harvested before the rain.
Marrows are the grown-up of the tender, young zucchini. The skin gets thicker, the fruit certainly gets larger (4-5 times bigger than a zucchini) and the monster lays dormant ready for picking. As with all things exposed to the sun for a long time, the skin thickens, so it’s best that you peel the skin off before cooking (whether green or yellow skinned marrow). This is not so essential when you are preparing a low-cook casserole as time and flavours infuse and tough, bitter skin can be transformed into a soft layer of ‘yum’.
With a marrow theme, thus far this season I’ve conquered:
- Curried Courgette Sandwich Pickle, a chunky and flavoursome pickle that’s great with just about everything
- Chocolate Courgette Cake, a moist cake that will surprise everyone (no one knows it’s got vegetables inside)
- Nutella Marrow Muffins, an experiment that worked out WONDERFULLY
- and now Marrow Fritters
For the likes of pickles, as done with eggplant, salt is sprinkled and extracts the bitter juices overnight before rinsing and cooking. Not so the case for a quick-cook fritter! You can either remove the skin with a vegetable paring knife, or a vegetable peeler; then remove the pithy, floury inner flesh and seeds with a spoon. This will leave you with strips of firm marrow, easy to grate and handle (similar structure to a firm cucumber).
This recipe may seem absent of liquid, but don’t be concerned. The natural juices of the marrow infuse with the flour and polenta to make a fabulous batter and the egg is just there for the final binding. Otherwise, no milk required for this recipe: dairy free all day long.
Marrow Fritters
Makes: 12-14 fritters
Ingredients
- 2 cups marrow, grated
- 1 large onion, finely diced
- 3 Tbsp polenta
- 3 Tbsp flour
- 1/4 tsp dried chilli flakes
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 egg
- 2 Tbsp Rice Bran Oil
Method:
- Prepare the marrow (remove the skin, seeds and pithy inner flesh) and grate the firm flesh.
- Dice up onion into fine pieces.
- Combine both the grated marrow and onion in a bowl. Add polenta and flour, dried chilli and salt, and coat the vegetables well.
- Finally fold egg (well beaten) into the vegetable mix. While it may not seem a lot of liquid, it is enough to bind everything! The water from the marrow (which is natural) will help.
- Heat a fry pan on medium, add oil then pan fry spoonfuls of batter until golden brown. Cook well on each side (10-15 minutes until crisp and golden brown, depending on your temperature). Flip over, and repeat for the other side.
Delicious served with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, generous sprinkling of fresh parsley, a dollop of relish and a side of salad.
Enjoy!
