Corn Fritter BLT with Old Bay Mayo
Wrap up the sandwich in parchment paper to keep all of the tasty bits in order.
This Corn Fritter BLT is what happens when two of summer's best foods refuse to share the spotlight.
I added a thin, crispy-edged corn fritter to the traditional stack of thick heirloom tomato, properly crisp bacon, lettuce and a generous swipe of homemade Old Bay mayo. Lightly toasted milk bread holds everything together without competing with the filling. The fritter is mostly fresh corn with just enough batter to keep it together—which is exactly how a corn fritter should be.
This is not a tidy sandwich. Tomato juice, mayonnaise and sweet corn are going to get involved. Lean in. If you want another sloppy summer sandwich, try out this Cilantro Chicken Meatball Banh Mis. Or if you want to round out your summer meal with a cold dessert, I cannot recommend my favorite, and my friends’ favorite, Mango Tiramisu.
Why fresh corn matters
This recipe uses both the kernels and the corn milk hiding on the cobs. After cutting off the kernels, run the back of your knife firmly down each stripped cob. The creamy pulp that collects in the bowl adds concentrated corn flavor and helps bind the fritters without requiring enough flour to make them cakey.
I also mash about one cup of the kernels into a chunky paste. That paste acts as another binder while the remaining kernels stay whole, sweet and juicy. The finished batter should look like corn barely held together by batter, not pancake batter with a little corn floating in it.
What I tested: cornstarch versus cornmeal
I tried cornmeal first because it seemed like the obvious way to reinforce the corn flavor. Instead, it made the fritters mealy and gave them too much of a bite. They ate more like cornbread cakes than crisp fresh-corn fritters.
Cornstarch was the better move. It helps the irregular edges fry crisp without competing with the texture of the kernels. A small amount of all-purpose flour and one egg provide the structure, while the scraped corn milk and mashed kernels bring the actual corn flavor.
The case for Old Bay mayo
Fresh corn, bacon and tomatoes all love salt, acid, and a little heat. Old Bay does most of that work in one shake, while lemon juice and hot sauce sharpen the mayonnaise and keep the sandwich from feeling heavy. Lots of cracked black pepper makes it taste like it belongs on a BLT instead of at a crab boil—although the two are not exactly enemies.
The recipe below makes the mayo from scratch with an immersion blender. If you prefer a shortcut, season about 3/4 cup prepared mayonnaise with the Old Bay, hot sauce, and black pepper to taste.
Make the corn fritters ahead
The corn fritters can be cooked in advance, which makes this much easier to serve for lunch or a summer party. Let them cool completely on a wire rack, then refrigerate them in an airtight container with parchment between the layers for up to two days.
Reheat the fritters on a wire rack set inside a sheet pan in a 400°F oven for 6 to 8 minutes, flipping once, until hot and crisp again. You can also re-crisp them in a lightly oiled skillet over medium heat. Do not microwave them unless crispy edges have stopped bringing you joy.
Easy variations
Make it vegetarian
Kill the bacon and fry the corn fritters entirely in neutral oil. Add ripe avocado to replace the bacon's richness. Thick slices will give you the prettiest cross-section; lightly mashing the avocado into the mayo will make the sandwich a little less slippery.
Swap the lettuce for sprouts
Fresh sprouts would be DELISH here. They bring the freshness and crunch you want from the lettuce while making the sandwich look even more summery. Use a generous handful of alfalfa, broccoli, or mixed sprouts and make sure they are completely dry before assembling.
Tips for corn fritters that stay together
Scrape the cobs so the corn milk goes into the batter.
Mash one cup of kernels into a chunky paste, not corn soup.
Let the batter stand for 5 to 10 minutes before frying.
Use a generous 1/3 cup per fritter and immediately spread it into a thin, roughly 5-inch round.
Do not flip until the first side is deeply golden and the edges look crisp and set.
Move the cooked fritters to a wire rack rather than paper towels so steam does not soften the bottoms.
Season the tomatoes immediately before assembly. Earlier than that and they will dump water everywhere. Use a paper towel to soak up the excess water so it doesn’t make your sandwich soggy.
Corn Fritter BLT with Old Bay Mayo
A thin, crispy fresh-corn fritter joins thick heirloom tomato, crisp bacon, lettuce and homemade Old Bay mayo on lightly toasted milk bread for a corn-heavy sandwich made for peak summer.
Yield: 4 Sandwiches | Prep time: 25 minutes | Cook time: 30 minutes | Total time: 55 minutes | Category: Lunch, Main Course | Cuisine: American | Method: Skillet
For the Corn Fritters and Bacon
3 ears fresh corn, shucked
1 large egg
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 green onions, thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
6 to 8 strips thick-cut bacon
Neutral oil, as needed for frying if the bacon is lean
For the Old Bay Mayo
1 large egg
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 1/2 teaspoons Old Bay seasoning
A few dashes hot sauce
Freshly cracked black pepper
1 cup neutral oil
For Assembly
8 slices Japanese milk bread or soft white bread, lightly toasted
2 to 3 large ripe heirloom tomatoes
Iceberg or butter lettuce, washed and thoroughly dried
Flaky salt
Freshly cracked black pepper
Instructions
Prepare the corn. Stand each ear upright in a wide, shallow bowl and slice off the kernels. After removing the kernels, run the back of your knife firmly down the stripped cobs to scrape the corn milk and pulp into the bowl.
Mash some of the kernels. Transfer about 1 cup of the kernels to a food processor and pulse briefly until they form a chunky corn paste, not a smooth puree. Alternatively, mash them aggressively with the back of a spoon.
Mix the fritter batter. Combine the mashed corn, whole kernels, corn milk, egg, flour, cornstarch, green onions, kosher salt, black pepper and baking powder. The mixture should look like corn barely held together by batter. Let it stand for 5 to 10 minutes while you cook the bacon.
Cook the bacon. Lay the bacon in a cold large skillet, then bring the pan to medium heat. Cook, turning as needed, until properly crisp. Transfer the bacon to paper towels and leave the rendered fat in the skillet. When cool enough to handle, break each strip in half for assembly.
Make the Old Bay mayo. Add the egg, lemon juice, Dijon, Old Bay, hot sauce, black pepper and neutral oil to a narrow container just wider than the head of an immersion blender. Place the blender firmly on the bottom and blend without moving it until a thick, pale emulsion begins to climb the container. Slowly raise and tilt the blender to incorporate the remaining oil. Taste and adjust the lemon, hot sauce, Old Bay or pepper. Refrigerate until needed.
Fry the fritters. Add enough neutral oil to the bacon fat to create a generous coating across the skillet. Heat over medium. Scoop a generous 1/3 cup of batter into the hot fat and immediately flatten and spread it with the back of the measuring cup into a thin, roughly 5-inch round about 1/2 inch thick. Repeat without crowding the pan.
Brown both sides. Cook the fritters for approximately 3 to 5 minutes per side, until deeply golden with crisp, irregular edges. Flip carefully with a thin spatula. Transfer the cooked fritters to a wire rack and repeat with the remaining batter, adding more neutral oil when needed. You should have 4 corn cakes.
Toast the bread. Lightly toast the milk bread or white bread. It should be just firm enough to support the filling while remaining soft inside.
Prepare the tomatoes. Cut the tomatoes into thick slices, about 1/4 to 1/3 inch. Immediately before assembly, season both sides with flaky salt and black pepper.
Assemble. Spread one slice of lightly toasted bread generously with Old Bay mayo. Add the tomato directly against the mayo, followed by bacon, lettuce and one warm corn fritter. Add a tiny extra swipe of mayo to a second slice of bread and place it on top. Press gently and cut in half. Repeat with the remaining ingredients and serve immediately.
If we have done our jobs correctly, the cross-section should go: toasted bread, mayo, red tomato, bacon, bright lettuce, golden corn and toasted bread.
Notes
Raw eggs carry a food-safety risk. Use a pasteurized egg for the homemade mayonnaise if serving someone who is pregnant, very young, elderly or immunocompromised. Keep the mayo refrigerated and discard it if it has been left at room temperature for more than two hours.
If the rested batter will not hold together when pressed, add 1 tablespoon flour. If it seems dry, stir in a spoonful of water or milk.
For a vegetarian sandwich, omit the bacon, fry the fritters in neutral oil and add avocado.
Cooked fritters can be refrigerated for up to two days and reheated in a 400°F oven for 6 to 8 minutes.