Ingredients for 4 people
- fleur de sel
- 20-30 begonia flowers* + 5-6 extra flowers for the salt
- 1 egg
- 100 ml ice-cold carbonated water (or a little more)
- 100 g flour
- 2 tbsp corn starch
- 1 tsp baking powder
- zest of 1 (organic) lemon
- 10 sprigs of dill, finely chopped
- Sunflower oil for deep-frying
How to prepare it
Crush the 5-6 extra begonia flowers with the fleur de sel and allow the salt to dry out a bit. Then start making the batter. Loosely beat the egg and mix through the ice-cold sparkling water.
Sieve the flour, corn starch and baking powder over a bowl and add that to the cold egg mixture whilst beating. Stir through some salt, the lemon zest and the dill.
Heat the oil to 180°C. Carefully pass the begonia flowers through the batter. Deep-fry five or six at the same time until golden brown, and drain on some kitchen paper. Sprinkle them with begonia salt and serve with a delicious aperitif - like a begonia cocktail, perhaps!
* Worth mentioning: never just tuck into a (cut) flower or plant. Only use edible flowers from specialist suppliers that have been grown for consumption.
