Hippo Bites: Sweet Potato Fritters with Prawn-Coconut Filling

Ingredients

Sweet Potato Dough

• 2 C
  
  Japanese sweet potatoes (purple fleshed with yellow meat)
  
• 1/2 C
  
  all purpose flour
  
• 1/2 tsp
  
  salt
  

Prawn-Coconut Filling

• 3 tbsp
  
  dried shrimp, rehydrated
  
• 2
  
  shallots, sliced
  
• 2 cloves
  
  garlic, chopped
  
• 1-inch slice
  
  ginger, chopped
  
• 1 tsp
  
  tumeric powder
  
• 1 stalk
  
  lemongrass, chopped
  
• 10
  
  raw shrimp, chopped
  
• 1/3 C
  
  coconut flakes
  
• 1/2 tsp
  
  salt
  
• Oil
  
  for frying
  

Directions

1. Cook, peel, and mash sweet potatoes, then set aside to cool.
2. Blend dried shrimp, shallots, garlic, ginger, tumeric and lemongrass into a paste, or grind using a mortar and pestle to achieve a paste-like texture.
3. Sautee spice mixture in a pan until brown around the edges and fragrant.
4. Mix in shrimp, then remove from heat once shrimp turn pink and add coconut and salt. Set aside to cool.
5. Combine cooled sweet potatoes with flour and salt to form a firm dough. Shape dough into ping pong balls, making a bowl shape in the middle with your thumb.
6. Fill each ball with (at least) one heaped teaspoon of filling and seal, then press into a slightly flattened ball.
7. Heat about an inch of oil to 375+ degrees in a large saucepan and fry until golden brown on each side. Drain on paper towels and serve.