Instructions

1. Wash your vegetables and set them in a colander to drain. Wipe the outsides dry, using paper towels.

2. Slice the vegetables on a cutting board, keeping the thickness as consistently between 1/8 inch and 1/4 inch as you can. This will ensure that they all get done at the same time.

3. Fill the bottom of a wide, shallow container such as a pie plate with a layer of cornstarch. Shake the plate gently to loosen the cornstarch and aerate it a bit.

4. Crack an egg into a second pie plate or other shallow dish and add 1 to 2 inches of milk. Beat the egg and milk together until the mixture is smooth and creamy with no visible bits of yolk.

5. Fill a third pie plate about halfway full with corn flour. Season the corn flour with salt and pepper and whatever herbs or spices your prefer. Garlic and chili powders work well as do lemon pepper and rosemary or Herbes de Provence.

6. Dredge each vegetable slice in the cornstarch, coating both sides. Lay each slice on top of the cornstarch and tap it lightly with the tip of your finger. Flip it and repeat on the other side.

7. Dip each coated vegetable piece into the milk and egg mixture. These two steps are necessary to get the corn flour to stick as it is not fine enough to stick well to bare vegetables.

8. Coat the wet vegetables with the seasoned corn flour. Dip them back into the milk and egg mixture and then coat them in corn flour a second time for a thicker, crunchier coating.

9. Lay your coated vegetables on a clean, dry platter and cover them loosely with plastic cling wrap. Place them in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to one hour before frying them. This helps the coating dry out a bit, which helps keep it from falling off in the hot oil, if you are frying them.