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Broad Bean Tip Fritters

To harvest broad bean tips simply pinch off the very tips of the plants, this is a combination of leaves and white flower buds. They are wonderfully sweet and crunchy. Recipe loosely based on Fried Zucchini Flowers from Mangiare Italiano by Maria Pia.

Ingredients

To Cook:

  • 12-15 broad bean tips
  • approx. 1 cup olive oil or grapeseed oil

Batter:

  • 3 free-range egg whites
  • 1/4 cup unbleached white flour GF: use rice flour or GF flour mix
  • 1/4 cup tapioca arrowroot or potato flour
  • 1 tablespoon finely chopped mint leaves
  • generous pinch of sea salt

To Serve:

  • lemon wedges
  • sea salt

Instructions

  • First pour the oil into a heavy-based shallow pan (I used a cast iron skillet) to come about 1cm up the sides. Turn the heat to moderate/ low and leave to slowly heat up while preparing the batter.
  • Combine the batter ingredients in a small bowl and whisk to combine.
  • Once the oil is hot (check by dropping in a little batter mix, it should lightly brown within 30 seconds). Dip a broad bean tip into the batter to thinly coat then carefully place it in the oil. Repeat with 4-5 more tips to fill the pan - don't overcrowd. After approx. 30 seconds, once the fritters are lightly golden on the bottom, flip over and cook the other side until golden. Use a slotted spoon to remove the tips (starting with the first tip that went into the pan), draining as much oil as possible then place on a paper towel lined plate. Cook the remaining tips.
  • Serve immediately with lemon wedges and salt, for each person to flavour is desired. This is a true spring garden treat!

Notes

!Cooking with Olive Oil
We are often told not to use olive oil for cooking, and generally I don't. However there are a few instances where I would and they are always using a traditional technique as with this recipe. In times past olive oil was most certainly used to cook zucchini flower fritters, before refined vegetable oil even existed. Olive oil has a smoke point of around 180C, which is when the oil begins to oxidise and produce free-radicals. When a small amount is heated in a pan it can easily reach and exceed 180C. However, when a larger quantity of oil is used, such as when shallow frying using a low temperature, the quantity of the oil prevents it from reaching smoking point. With all that said, these fritters are rather high in fat so I would treat them as an occasional food. And of-course you could also use tallow or lard or any refined oil you have on hand.