How to Frying Yucca Flowers.
You may have seen delicate yucca flowers in South American or Mexican recipes. Remove clusters of yucca flowers from the top of the yucca plant. Separate the flower petals and deep fry them in a batter. You can also boil the yucca flowers until they're soft and then stir them into scrambled eggs. Traditionally, yucca flowers are also the base for a simply flavored soup.Ingredients.
Petals from 12 to 15 yucca flowers.
1/4 cup (30 g) all-purpose flour or rice flour.
1/4 cup (30 g) mesquite flour (or all-purpose flour).
1/4 cup (32 g) corn starch.
1 cup (240 ml) sparkling water, ice cold.
1 egg yolk.
1/8 teaspoon (1 1/2 g) baking soda.
1/2 teaspoon (3 g) salt.
Oil for frying.
Hot sauce for serving.
Makes 4 servings.
1. Trim the petals from 12 to 15 yucca flowers. Cut the stems off of each flower and pull away all of the green base to release the petals. Pull the long central threads (the pistils and stamens) out and discard them.
Avoid rinsing the petals for this recipe because batter won't stick well to wet petals. Instead, you can look them over for insects and remove them.
2. Set up a frying station and heat the oil. Place a large, deep pot on the stove and pour in enough vegetable oil to come at least 2 inches (5 cm) up the sides. Turn the heat on to medium-high and heat the oil until it reaches 360 °F (182 °C). Lay several paper towels on a wire rack and set the rack next to your pot.
Insert a deep-fry thermometer into the pot to monitor the temperature of the oil.
The pot should be at least 7 quarts (6.6 liters) in size.
3. Whisk the dry batter ingredients. Get out a mixing bowl and measure in 1/4 cup (30 g) of all-purpose flour or rice flour, 1/4 cup (30 g) of mesquite flour, 1/4 cup (32 g) of corn starch, 1/8 teaspoon (1 1/2 g) of baking soda, and 1/2 teaspoon (3 g) of salt. Whisk the dry ingredients until they're combined.
You can find mesquite flour online or at some health food stores. If you can't find it, just use another 1/4 cup (30 g) of all-purpose flour.
4. Stir in the egg yolk and sparkling water. Place 1 egg yolk in the mixing bowl with the dry ingredients and stir it in. Pour in 1 cup (240 ml) of ice cold sparkling water and stir just until the dry ingredients are incorporated.
The batter will be a little lumpy, but you should avoid mixing the batter too much or it will become tough.
5. Coat some of the petals in batter and fry them for 2 to 3 minutes. Gather 3 flower petals into a little stack and lower them into the batter. Lift them up and drop one petal at a time into the hot oil. Place a total of 12 to 15 petals into the pot at once and fry them for 2 to 3 minutes. You can use a chopstick to carefully flip them over once while they fry.
Avoid frying all of the yucca petals at once or they may bring down the temperature of the oil too much. This can prevent the petals from crisping up.
6. Fry the rest of the petals in batches. Use a slotted spoon to lift out the fried yucca petals once they're dark golden brown. Set them on the paper towel-lined rack to drain. Let the oil heat back up before you add another batch (12 to 15 petals) of yucca flowers.
7. Serve the fried yucca flowers. Serve the yucca flowers while they're still hot and crunchy. Consider serving them with hot sauce on the side for extra flavor. Avoid storing leftover fried yucca flowers because they'll become soggy as they sit.
Things You'll Need.
Fried Yucca Flowers.
Measuring cups and spoons.
Large, deep pot (at least 7 quarts or 6.6 liters in size).
Scissors.
Deep-fry thermometer.
Wire rack.
Paper towels.
Slotted spoon.
Chopstick.
Whisk.
