As the home of fried chicken and so many other fried things, America's south is the perfect place to begin our fry up. There ain't nothing fancy here, folks. Just your regular onion, garlic and pepper powders, plus a slosh of hot sauce to give the batter a little kick. Keep it quick and crunchy, and if you're not used to frying, cut the pieces a bit smaller for more cooking control.
Southern fried chicken Source: Brett Stevens
The ubiquitous Japanese panko breadcrumbs are once again put to work coating all manner of items for these deep-fried skewers. Called 'kushi katsu' these crispy sticks of chicken, pork and other things are naturally perfect izakaya-style fare, so that's your cue to stock up on a case of Asahi beer.
Deep-fried skewers Source: SBS Food
Something magical happens to fish fins and skin when met with hot oil. All those scrappy, save-for-the-chooks bits transform into crunchy, crispy morsels worth fighting over. Never will you see a fish carcass picked cleaner than one that has been fried. So in the interests of minimising food waste and maximising your flavour intake, consider Luke Nguyen's deep-fried snapper with ginger and lime. Save the eyes for us!
Deep-fried whole snapper
This is what we're looking at here: lamb mince that's been pan-fried with onion and spices, wrapped in a dough made from yet more lamb mince, then deep-fried until golden. These lovely, deep-golden kibbeh pods couldn't be more adorable. They also don't feel all that naughty, which means we can probably have double helpings, yes?
5. Get puffed
Kibbeh with burghul
Remember that cute little girl in the taco advertisement who suggests her family make flat-bottomed taco shells? Well, she is way out of her league. If we're going to get serious about tortilla vessels for ferrying Mexican goodness into our mouths, we need look no further than Paul Wilson's puffy tacos that superbly and deliciously hold a Napa chicken salad. Case closed, amigos.
Puffy tacos with Napa chicken salad Source: Cantina
This sugary and plump Portuguese doughnut may look like it's blowing a big raspberry, but its rudeness can be forgiven when you take a bite of its yolk-rich crème pâtissière centre.
Bola de Berlim
As far as fried sweets go, these Italian cheese pastries or 'sebadas' lack the audacity of fried ice-cream, they don't possess the cutesy appeal of a frosted doughnut, and they don't have the crazy-as-all-get-out attitude of a funnel cake, but what they do have is a certain refinement. You can serve these with an espresso and know they're in the right place.
Fried cheese pastries (sebadas) Source: Chris Chen
We've got your number. It's number 65. Or chicken 65, to be exact. This Indian snack has become such a cult dish that legends abound as to its name's origin. But nobody actually knows one way or another how this fried Kashmiri-spiced chicken came by its moniker. It doesn't really matter, though. A rose by any other name – and all that.
Chicken 65
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