Kimchi and gruyere rice fritters

🥘 Ingredients

• olive oil 3 tbsp
• onion ½
• salt
• garlic 3 cloves
• whole milk 200 ml
• cooked brown basmati and wild rice mix 1 packet
• egg yolks 2
• kimchi 500 g
• green beans 80 g
• coriander 1 ½ tbsp
• gruyere 80 g
• sesame seeds 2 tbsp
• plain flour 90 g
• egg whites 2
• sunflower oil 800 ml
• lemons 2

1. 1

   Add the olive oil , onion and three-quarters of a teaspoon of salt to a medium saucepan on a medium-high heat and fry for 6 minutes , stirring occasionally, until soft and golden. Add the garlic and continue to fry for 30 seconds to a minute, until fragrant.
2. 2

   Add the whole milk , lower the heat to medium and simmer gently for 5 minutes , until thickened and reduced slightly. Remove from the heat and leave to cool for 5 minutes , then stir in the cooked brown basmati and wild rice mix , egg yolks and an eighth of a teaspoon of salt. Refrigerate for 30 minutes , or until completely cool.
3. 3

   Meanwhile, set 160g of the kimchi aside, to serve. Squeeze the remaining kimchi through a sieve, collecting three tablespoons of the liquid in a small serving bowl (set this aside for later), and transferring the drained kimchi solids to a chopping board (you should have 320g). Roughly chop the kimchi, then add to the pan with the cooled rice mixture, along with the green beans , coriander , gruyere , sesame seeds and plain flour . Stir until fully combined.
4. 4

   Whip the egg whites (reserved from above), by hand or with an electric whisk, until you get stiff peaks, then gently fold through the rice mixture until combined.
5. 5

   Heat the sunflower oil in a large saucepan on a medium-high heat until it reaches about 180C/350F. Test the oil is hot enough by dropping in a tiny bit of batter; it should sizzle but not colour straight away. Fry the fritters in four batches (three at a time), to avoid lowering the temperature of the oil too much. Using a large serving spoon, carefully drop 95g of batter per fritter into the oil, and fry for 4-5 minutes , turning a few times, until golden-brown all over; turn the heat down if they're browning too quickly. Transfer the fritters to a tray lined with kitchen paper, and continue in this way with the remaining batter.
6. 6

   Add the lemons juice to the bowl with the reserved kimchi liquid. Transfer the fritters to a large platter, sprinkling over the remaining sesame seeds and a light sprinkling of salt. Serve hot with the kimchi sauce, lemon wedges and the reserved kimchi alongside.