Name: Alla Wolf-Tasker’s tempura zucchini flowers
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 200 gm plain flour, sifted, plus extra for dusting; 50 gm cornflour, sifted; 30 gm baking powder; 12 zucchini flowers (preferably female with small zucchini attached); Oil for deep-frying; Lemon wedges and mayonnaise, to serve

Alla Wolf-Tasker’s tempura zucchini flowers

Crisp, delicate, and a worthy starter.

Serves 4

Prep

20M

Cook

15M

Total

35M

“We often serve these zucchini flowers with a sauce Jacqueline,” says Alla Wolf-Tasker, executive chef of Dairy Flat Farm in Daylesford, central Victoria. “But they are also excellent on their own, crisp and well-seasoned.”

Ingredients

200 gm plain flour, sifted, plus extra for dusting

50 gm cornflour, sifted

30 gm baking powder

12 zucchini flowers (preferably female with small zucchini attached)

Oil for deep-frying

Lemon wedges and mayonnaise, to serve

Method

1.For tempura batter, whisk flours, baking powder and iced water (about 450ml) in a large bowl to form a batter the consistency of pouring cream.

2.Remove stamens from inside each flower by gently opening flower and carefully snapping off stamen. Heat enough oil in a medium saucepan to reach a depth of 5cm, to 180°C. Dust flowers in extra flour then dip, one at a time, into batter and deep-fry, turning halfway, until golden and crisp (4 minutes). Drain on paper towel and season with salt. Serve with lemon wedges and mayonnaise.