Fried Cucumbers with Sour Cream Dipping Sauce

For the Dipping Sauce

• 1 cup sour cream
• 2 tbsp. milk
• 1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
• 1 tbsp. minced chives
• 1 tbsp. minced parsley
• 1 tbsp. minced tarragon
• 2 cloves garlic, mashed to a paste with 1 tsp. kosher salt
• ¹⁄₄ small yellow onion, grated, juice reserved
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

For the Cucumbers

• 2 cups cornmeal
• 1 ¹⁄₂ cups flour
• 2 tbsp. baking powder
• 1 tbsp. celery salt
• 1 ¹⁄₂ tsp. sweet paprika
• 1 ¹⁄₂ tsp. kosher salt, plus more for sprinkling
• 1 ¹⁄₂ tsp. garlic powder
• 1 ¹⁄₂ tsp. onion powder
• 1 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1 ¹⁄₂ tsp. fresh ground black pepper
• 1 ¹⁄₂ lb. cucumbers, halved lengthwise, seeded, and cut into 3" x ½" sticks

Instructions

1. For the sauce, stir together sour cream, milk, juice, chives, parsley, tarragon, garlic paste, onion with juices, and salt and pepper in a bowl; cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
2. Pour oil to a depth of 2" in a 6-qt. Dutch oven and heat over medium-high heat until a deep-fry thermometer reads 375°. Whisk together cornmeal, flour, baking powder, celery salt, paprika, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and cayenne in a large bowl. Working in batches, add cucumber slices to cornmeal mixture and toss evenly to coat; transfer to oil and fry until golden brown and crisp, about 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer slices to a wire rack set over a baking sheet to drain. Serve hot with dipping sauce.