When our cooking school director Rosie Gill urged us to fry our squash blossoms, we were skeptics—beyond serving as a decorative garnish, are flowers really worth eating? Absolutely. Her fried zucchini blossoms, dipped in a quick batter and either air fried or skillet fried, made for a thrifty, bountiful, crispy, fritter-y, 10-minute summer snack that’s almost worth fighting over. The subtle, fresh flavor profile lends itself to endless varieties of batter flavorings, and you can use blossoms from all manner of squashes.

Make sure to use the male blossoms, which don’t bear fruit; they are attached to stems, while the females are attached to the squash. Watch how they're made on Instagram.

Crispy Fried Zucchini Blossoms

Ingredients

½ cup rice flour
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon turmeric (for color, optional)
1 teaspoon za’atar, Aleppo pepper, Ras el Hanout or other spice blend of choice (optional)
Salt
2-4 tablespoons seltzer water
6-10 fresh squash blossoms (depending on size), nasturtium blossoms, day lily buds, or other edible flowers.
¼ cup olive oil or neutral oil of choice

Directions

  • Dry flowers thoroughly and place on a plate. Line a second plate with paper towels and place next to burner.
  • In a medium bowl, mix with a fork or whisk flours, spices if using and ½ teaspoon salt. Add seltzer, mixing constantly, until the batter is the consistency of thick pancake batter.In a 12” skillet heat oil over medium-high until shimmering and a drop of the batter sizzles loudly when added.
  • Dip each blossom into batter to coat thoroughly. Let some excess drip off and add to hot oil.
  • Continue adding batter-covered blossoms until the pan is full but each blossom has some space around it. Leave blossoms until they are golden brown on the bottom side and release easily from pan. Depending on the size of the blossoms and thickness of batter, this can take 2-5 minutes.
  • Flip and fry the second side until it is golden brown as well. Remove blossoms once cooked and add to paper towel-lined plate.

To Air Fry:

  • Spray the fryer basket with cooking spray.
  • Preheat your air fryer to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
  • Fry the blossoms for about 4 minutes. Lightly spray the tops of your flower blossoms with cooking spray, then flip them over. Fry for another 4 minutes.
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