15 Fried (And Gone To Heaven) Recipes

A pile of sugar-dusted easy raised doughnuts on a white plate.

Easy Raised Doughnuts ~ Cuddureddi1/15

Cuddureddi. It means "a cause for celebration" if you're from Italy. Well, actually, it means "a sort of doughnut." Sorta the same thing.

Pieces of batter-fried chicken piled on a white platter.

Batter-Fried Chicken2/15

Proof that it doesn't take buttermilk or an insufferably long overnight brine to make insanely tender, crazily crisp, gosh darn perfect fried chicken.

A root vegetable latke topped with a dollop of applesauce.

Root Vegetable Latkes3/15

An impressive and enticing use for healthy roots and tubers that, thankfully, doesn't taste virtuous at all. In fact, it actually feels quite indulgent.

Seven pieces of gluten-free fried chicken on a paper towel-lined rimmed baking sheet.

Gluten-Free Fried Chicken4/15

Because we believe awesome fried chicken is a birthright for all, we bring you this gluten-free, dairy-free, paleo-friendly bird.

A white plate of pan-fried bananas with brandy that have been drizzle with coconut cream with a fork resting on either side.

Pan-Fried Bananas with Brandy5/15

Boozy bananas are lavished with a cheater's caramel sauce made with butter, brandy, and brown sugar in this outrageously simple riff on a Southern classic. No flames required.

A cheddar and potato latke topped with chives and applesauce on a plate with a spoonful of sour cream beside the latke.

Cheddar and Potato Latkes6/15

Crisp on the outside, tender on the inside, and pretty damn indulgent with gooey Cheddar through and through.

Vegetable tempura of zucchini, beets, carrots, squash on a paper towel on a plate

Seasonal Vegetable Tempura7/15

We could stare at this staggeringly stunning tempura all day—and eat it all night. Talk about a nifty tactic to get us to eat our veggies.

An oval plate with four pieces of Southern fried chicken wings.

Southern Fried Chicken Wings8/15

Perfectly battered. Nicely seasoned. And easy as heck. That's how we like our fried chicken wings, thank you very much. This recipe delivers all that.

A dozen pieces of double fried Japanese chicken on a paper towel.

Chicken Karaage ~ Japanese Fried Chicken9/15

You haven't lived until you've had chicken karaage, which is Japanese-style chicken that's marinated in soy and fried twice until crisp and oh so nice.

A stack of four cilantro-jalapeño latkes on a plate, with sliced jalapeño on top and sour cream on the side.

Cilantro-Jalapeno Latkes10/15

These unconventional latkes are gonna rock your world. They're lovely at all times of day and on all occasions.

A whole deep-fried turkey, garnished with sage, bay, and thyme leaves on a wooden cutting board.

Deep-Fried Turkey11/15

Crisp, burnished skin and moist, impossibly tender meat can be yours. (Yes, deep-fried turkey IS everything it's bragged up to be.)

A pile of homemade onion rings on a parchment-lined baking sheet with a spoon resting beside them.

Homemade Onion Rings12/15

Our latest stay-at-home pasttime? inhaling these onion rings while standing at the stovetop and reveling in the shatter of their crisp crust and the crazily tender onion encased within.

A mini funnel cake dusted with confectioners' sugar.

Mini Funnel Cakes13/15

Forget the state fair. You can have funnel cakes whenever you want. And as many as you want. Without asking your parents' permission. And they're as quick and easy as pancakes.

A pile of homemade potato ruffles on a white surface.

Homemade Potato Ruffles14/15

These shatteringly crisp, undeniably sophisticated potato ruffles--chips, if you will--have no ridges. Nor do they need them. They're intoxicatingly, satiatingly lovely just as they are.

Three halves of deep-fried peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on a black oval platter with a knife on the side.

Deep-Fried Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwiches15/15

Oh yes we did! We battered and deep-fried a childhood classic and then pronounced it magnificent. We think you will, too.