Pennsylvania Dutch corn fritters are basically corn fritter pancakes. Stuff a pancake-type batter full of delicious sweet corn and fry the patties to golden perfection. The results are amazing!
Corn fritters can be served for breakfast topped with maple syrup or as a side dish for dinner. A few delicious toppings would be sour cream, green onions, and fried crumbled bacon. Trust me, they are good on their own as well, and I actually prefer them plain or with sour cream.
Jump to:
- Ingredients
- How to Make Easy Fritter Batter for PA Dutch Corn Fritters
- Fried Sweet Corn Fritters
- Bacon Corn Fritters
- Summertime Corn Harvesting
- The Difference Between Amish-style Frozen Corn and Store-bought Corn
- What to Serve with Corn Fritters
- More Amish Side Dish Recipes
- 📖 Recipe Card
- Pennsylvania Dutch Corn Fritter Recipe
Ingredients
- Sweet Corn provides the main flavor and texture for the fritters, offering sweetness and a satisfying crunch.
- Salt enhances the flavor.
- Black pepper adds a subtle heat and depth of flavor, complementing the sweetness of the corn.
- Paprika adds a hint of smokiness and additional depth of flavor.
- Butter gives richness and moisture, enhancing the flavor and texture of the fritters. (I use salted butter.)
- Egg acts as a binder, helping to hold the ingredients together and create a cohesive batter.
- Milk adds moisture to the batter, ensuring that the fritters are not too dry and have a tender texture.
- All-purpose flour provides structure and stability, helping the fritters hold their shape during frying.
- Baking powder is a leavening agent that helps the fritters rise and become light and fluffy.
- Cracker crumbs add texture as well as a savory flavor. They also help bind the ingredients together. (I use ritz cracker crumbs.)
- Oil is used to fry the fritters, providing the necessary heat for them to cook evenly and develop a golden-brown crust.
How to Make Easy Fritter Batter for PA Dutch Corn Fritters
This old-fashioned Dutch corn fritter recipe is very easy to make.
Simply mix the batter ingredients by stirring them together in a bowl. Heat oil in a skillet, and drop the batter by large spoonfuls (or use a cookie scoop for uniformity) into the hot oil. Spread the batter to form a thick pancake.
Fry the corn fritters for a couple of minutes on each side until golden and crispy. Place on paper towels to absorb any extra oil. And serve immediately.
Fried Sweet Corn Fritters
This is not exactly a healthy corn fritters recipe, although there is no added sugar. This may be surprising because a lot of Amish recipes tend to have sugar in the ingredients.
I pan-fry my Pennsylvania Dutch corn fritters to avoid all the extra oil saturation that comes with deep-frying. But if you prefer, feel free to deep-fry them. Or you could also fry them in an air-fryer.
You can cut corn off the cob and use fresh sweet corn (this is the best). Or you can take the easy route and use thawed frozen corn or canned corn. Pennsylvania Dutch corn fritters are good either way.
Bacon Corn Fritters
You could also add some fried and crumbled bacon to your fritters for an extra flavor profile, or added protein.
I mean who doesn't love bacon? It adds a great flavor to many dishes, including corn fritters. So feel free to add some crumbled, fried bacon to the batter.
Summertime Corn Harvesting
Most Amish families grow a lot of sweet corn every year. My mom always planted rows and rows of sweet corn. And sometimes we planted enough to sell to local markets, neighbors, etc.
So for several weeks through the summer, we were up at daybreak, wading through the tall wet corn patch, picking and sorting through piles of corn. And of course, any ears that didn't look perfect would be thrown on a separate pile for us to husk and prepare for our freezer.
Every year we cut the kernels off of hundreds of ears of sweet corn. If you have ever harvested and frozen sweet corn, you know that it is a lot of work. However, we sure enjoyed eating it all year long and making Amish corn fritters.
The Difference Between Amish-style Frozen Corn and Store-bought Corn
The sweet corn that I grew up eating had young, tender kernels. We always picked it before the ears were very fat.
Then we cut off the tops of the kernels with a sharp knife and scraped out the juice. So it was a mixture of whole-kernel corn and creamed corn.
And there is no comparison between the corn we ate and the huge tough kernels of corn that you buy at the supermarket. It was sweet, tender, and so delicious!!
Sometimes we made baked corn or corn fritters, but mostly we ate Amish-style sweet corn with just some added butter and salt. It is quite delicious and was by far our favorite vegetable.
I'm adding an affiliate link to show you the kind of corn cutter we used as kids before my mom trusted us with a knife. Ours was stainless steel though, and we often removed the creaming blade because we liked to have whole kernels.
What to Serve with Corn Fritters
I have a roundup post with a collection of 37 different recipes for ideas on what to serve with corn fritters. Make sure to check it out if you're needing ideas.
I hope you enjoy this Amish corn fritters recipe. If you try it, I'd love it if you left a comment and star rating below. Thank you!
📖 Recipe Card
Pennsylvania Dutch Corn Fritter Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups sweet corn Equals one can or two large ears of fresh sweet corn
- 1 tsp. salt
- ⅓ tsp. black pepper
- ¼ tsp. paprika, optional
- 1 ½ tsp. butter, melted
- 1 egg, beaten
- ¼ c. milk
- ½ c. flour
- 1 ¼ tsp. baking powder
- 1 c. cracker crumbs I use Ritz crackers, but feel free to use any kind you desire.
- Oil, for frying
Instructions
- Mix corn, seasonings, and wet ingredients.1 ¾ cups sweet corn, 1 tsp. salt, ⅓ tsp. black pepper, ¼ tsp. paprika, optional, 1 ½ tsp. butter, melted, 1 egg, beaten, ¼ c. milk
- Add dry ingredients and mix well.½ c. flour, 1 ¼ tsp. baking powder, 1 c. cracker crumbs
- Heat a thin layer of oil in a skillet over medium/high heat.Oil, for frying
- Drop the batter into the hot oil, using a large teaspoon or a cookie scoop. Spread the batter to make a thick pancake.
- Fry for about 2 minutes on each side, or until golden.
- Place onto paper towels to drain any excess oil. Serve immediately.
- Serve plain, top with sour cream, green onions, and bacon, or drizzle with maple syrup.
Margaret Hill
My mother often made corn fritters as a side dish. We always ate them plain or
used Maple syrup. They were always enjoyed.
Raising my children I can't recall ever making them. Recently my son surprised me with corn fritters he made from fresh corn. It sure brought back some memories.
I'm anxious to try this recipe. My mother was from a Pennsylvania Dutch family.
We enjoyed many Amish foods. I still cook many foods from my past.
Anna
Awesome!
Jann Hartman
I highly recommend the corn cutter mentioned above. I have my mom's old corn cutter (creamer), and it makes it so much easier. My recipe is old and very basic. I use only fresh corn and eggs (1 egg for every 2 ears of corn). Just enough flour to hold together. Salt and pepper to taste. But, you can add whatever works for you. I like mine to just taste like corn, never sweetened, as a savory side dish.
Anna
Yummy!
Steve
Hi Anna, we're in Pottstown, Pa which is within an hour of Lancaster Co. 1st time making corn fritters today. I found your recipe easy and delicious. These are better than Grandmom's fritters and if she was still around to see this, I would get an ear full for sure, haha. I found one full sleeve of smashed crackers equals one cup and the best way to drop into the pan is an ice cream scooper sprayed with cooking oil. Great recipe, thank you.
Anna
Thank you for taking the time to leave a nice comment and tips!
Clari
PA Dutch (German) here. Familyās been here since 1736.
Ritz crackers, bacon, paprika? Interesting, indeed! My nanna would be scandalized! šā¤ļø
Anna
Sorry šš. There are all kinds of variations.
Darlene Martin
Love Corn Fritters. We like to eat them topped with lettuce and hot bacon dressing. Yum.
Anna
Hmmm... sounds interesting. Guess I should try that sometime.
Violet Lemm
I've been making Corn Fritters my whole life it seems, getting the original recipie from my German mother-in-law. Your Ritz Cracker recipie intrigues me, have never seen this used before. Thanks for the interesting recipies.
Anna
You're welcome. If you try it, let me know what you think.
JOANN JOHNSON
This is EXACTLY how my mom made corn fritters. Her side of the family was definitely not Amish. However, they were German immigrants, from a group of families from the Palatinate region. They came to Clearfield County, PA in the 1840's, and then later migrated en masse to Vernon County, Missouri.
My family dinners as an Oklahoma kid seemed kind of weird compared to my friends (they had much more "Southern" type food). Now I get it...your whole website is like my family cookbook! Thank you! š
Anna
Yes, I believe that a lot of Amish food would have German roots. š
Jann Hartman
When we were in Germany a few years ago we saw many similar/familiar foods, and some differences. Sauerkraut is made/served with a pig's knuckle (we always had a nice pork roast). And, you have to ask specifically for mashed potatoes!
We finally found Pig Stomach at a restaurant on our last day there. It is "Saumagen" Sau is Pig and Maugen is Stomach in German. And, they served a thick slice on sauerkraut!
Anna
Would love to visit Germany and Switzerland.