Beignets de Fleurs de Courgette — Cook

Ingredients

12–16 courgette flowers, male flowers only, harvested the same morning, pistil removed, inspected for insects
For the beer batter
150 g plain flour
200 ml cold beer, carbonated; must be cold
1 tbsp olive oil
1 pinch fine salt
2 egg whites, whipped to soft peaks
Optional stuffing
50 g fresh chèvre, or a small piece of anchovy per flower
2 litres neutral frying oil, maintained at 180 °C
1 pinch fleur de sel, for immediate seasoning after frying

Method

1
Inspect each flower: open the petals gently, remove the pistil (it is bitter), and check for insects. If stuffing, tuck a small piece of fresh chèvre or anchovy inside and twist the petal tips closed. The flowers are ready when the petals are intact, dry, and fully open.
2
Make the batter: combine the flour, cold beer, olive oil, and salt in a bowl and whisk to a smooth, lump-free consistency. Whip the two egg whites to soft peaks in a separate bowl. Fold the whites into the batter at the last possible moment before frying — this is where the dish lives or dies: under-folded whites leave streaks; over-folded whites collapse the lift that makes the coating shatter rather than chew.
3
Bring the frying oil to exactly 180 °C and verify with a thermometer. Lower a small drop of batter into the oil — it should rise to the surface and colour within 20 seconds, confirming the temperature is correct.
4
Hold each flower by its stem, dip it into the batter to coat completely, allow the excess to fall back into the bowl for two seconds, then lower it into the oil. Fry in small batches — no more than three or four flowers at a time — for 60–90 seconds. The batter will puff and turn an even pale gold; it is done when the surface is uniformly coloured with no pale patches remaining.
5
Lift the beignets with a spider or slotted spoon and drain on absorbent paper. Salt immediately with fleur de sel. Serve within 30 seconds: a perfect beignet shatters at first bite, yielding a soft, sweet flower within.