Fried squash blossoms or zucchini flowers are a traditional cucina povera type of recipe from Italy. Minimal ingredients with fresh zucchini blossoms and the result is nothing short of marvelous!
When my brother was a little boy, he would wake up on a summer morning and run out to the garden and pick all the male zucchini flowers he could find. He’d run back to the house and present them to my mother.
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No, he wasn’t trying to earn points by being the most thoughtful child, he wanted them for lunch! He loved them so much that it was the first thing on his mind upon awakening.
In case you aren’t familiar with zucchini blossoms or squash flowers or courgette blossoms, or whatever you want to call the flowers from this plant, let me answer a few questions. Those of you who already love fried zucchini flowers can scroll down to the recipe.
You may also enjoy this baked zucchini recipe from my Nonna Chiarina!
What are Fried Squash Blossoms / Zucchini Blossoms?
Fried squash or zucchini blossoms are the flowers that bloom on zucchini and squash plants. In order not to disturb the fruit that grows, we only eat the male blossoms (which don’t produce a zucchini/courgette). More details are provided below. When made using this recipe, they are cleaned, dipped in batter and pan fried for a tasty appetizer!
Can I Eat Squash Blossoms and Zucchini Blossoms?
As you can deduce from what I wrote above, the answer is YES! Not only are they edible, but they are incredibly delicious!
How do the Zucchini Flowers Taste?
Honestly, they taste like nothing else I’ve ever had. They do not have a floral taste to them as some other edible flowers do. If you want to know, there’s only one way to find out!
Where to find Squash Blossoms or Zucchini Blossoms for this Recipe.
That all depends on where you live. As you can see from the photo above, zucchini blossoms are plentiful at the markets in Italy when they’re in season. However, if you’re like me and live in the US, sometimes you can find them. I’ve seen them at farmer’s markets here in LA, and even saw them in a grocery store once! I was so excited, but I will warn you, this is rare.
Try this easy zucchini flower frittata, too!
Your best bet, if you live somewhere where these glorious blossoms aren’t sold, is to grow them (if you have a garden spot), or ask a friend who grows zucchini to share! Many people aren’t even aware that zucchini flowers are not only edible, but delicious when battered, and/or stuffed and fried (either pan fried or deep fried).
If you’re cooking your pizza sauce, you’re doing it all wrong!
Do Zucchini Blossoms Become Zucchini? How to Choose a Blossom for Cooking”
This is actually an important question if you are growing zucchini for the vegetable, and the answer is yes and no. When picking squash blossoms to cook, look for the blooms without a baby zucchini at the end of it. These are what I referred to as the male flowers. They will bloom, wilt and die; no fruit will come of them, but they help fertilize the flowers so the plant will bear fruit. The female flowers are also edible, but stick to the males so you don’t disturb the fruit production.
Here’s an Italian zucchini recipe to try!
How to Prepare and Serve Squash and Zucchini Blossoms
I’m glad you asked! Let’s get to the recipe from my Nonna Chiarina. This is a traditional and authentic way to prepare the fried zucchini blossoms. They can also be stuffed with cheese and anchovies, battered then fried, which is a traditional Roman way of preparing them.
My Zia Iolanda made fried zucchini blossoms when I was visiting her in Italy this past June. She deep fried them, which you can also do, but I just pan fry them. They’re like zucchini flower fritters, for lack of a better name.
Tips for Making this Recipe & Frequently Asked Questions.
Can you Stuff Zucchini Blossoms?
Yes! Check out my recipe for mozzarella cheese stuffed zucchini flowers!
Can you eat the squash blossom stems?
Yes, the stems are edible, so no worries about eating the stem and the stamen and pistil, too. I remove them, but you don’t have to.
What’s the difference between a squash blossom and a zucchini blossom?
Not much, except it’s just a matter of distinguishing the two. Squash as a term of vegetables includes zucchini, however, we usually refer to the yellow ones as squash (often “yellow squash”). The blossoms from both plants work perfectly fine. I’ve even cooked pumpkin blossoms.
Have a glut of zucchini or courgette flowers? Use them in this frittata recipe.
Can I eat the Blossoms Raw?
Absolutely, they’re an edible flower.
Can I Refrigerate the Blossoms Before Using them in a Recipe?
For best results, pick the flowers in the morning when they are wide open and perky, and try to cook them as soon as possible. Zucchini blossoms are extremely delicate and will start to close and shrivel quickly. Technically, you can refrigerate them, but I don’t advise it. It will be more trouble than necessary.
Now, let’s get to the recipe!
How to Make Traditional Italian
Fried Zucchini / Squash Blossoms
recipe by Christina Conte (from my Nonna Chiarina) serves 4 as a starter/appetizer
FULL PRINTABLE RECIPE BELOW
What You’ll Need
Equipment: whisk, nonstick pan or cast iron pan
Ingredients
- flour
- salt
- milk
- zucchini/squash/courgette blossoms
- oil for frying
Note: the amount of batter is more than you will need. Also, my Nonna never added anything to the flour and water mixture, but if you’d like to use sparkling water or a pinch of baking soda, go ahead).
Directions: How to Make This Recipe
Clean the Blossoms.
Remove the pistil and stem of the flowers, then rinse gently and dry on paper towel. It’s okay if they tear a little or you open them completely. It’s easier to make sure there’s no dirt or bugs inside this way.
Make the Batter.
Put the flour and salt in a bowl which you can dip the flowers into. Add the milk, and then the water a little at a time and beat with a whisk or fork. Keep adding the water until a thick consistency is reached. Beat well for another minute or two. Set aside to rest for 10 minutes or longer.
Dip the Flowers.
Preheat the oil in the frying pan. It should be hot when adding the flowers. You can test it with a drop of batter if you’re unsure.
Dip the blossoms in batter, coating well but allow a bit of the excess batter to drip.
Fry the Flowers.
Heat oil in the pan. Add the battered flowers to the hot oil in the pan (if you’re tired of buying non-stick pans, Scanpan CS+ is for you. I LOVE these pans). Again, you don’t have to deep fry these. Pan frying in a little olive oil is just as good.
Fry until cooked on one side, then turn and continue to cook until ready.
Remove and place on paper towel lined plate.
Best eaten while still hot/warm.
Traditional Italian Fried Zucchini Blossoms (Courgette/Squash Flowers)
Crispy fried zucchini blossoms made in a traditional Itailan way.
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup (2 oz) flour
- 2 good pinches of salt
- about 3 oz water (sparkling water is optional)
- 1 tsp milk (omit for lactose intolerance)
- 8 to 10 zucchini blossoms (or as many as you want to make)
- olive oil for frying
Instructions
Clean the Blossoms.
- Remove the pistil and stem of the flowers, then rinse gently and dry on paper towel. It's okay if they tear a little or you open them completely. It's easier to make sure there's no dirt or bugs inside this way.
Make the Batter.
- Put the flour and salt in a bowl which you can dip the flowers into. Add the milk, and then the water a little at a time and beat with a whisk or fork.
- Keep adding the water until a thick consistency is reached. Beat well for another minute or two.
- Set aside to rest for 10 minutes or longer.
Dip the Flowers.
- Preheat the oil in the frying pan. It should be hot when adding the flowers. You can test it with a drop of batter if you're unsure.
- Dip the flowers into the batter, coating well, then add to the hot oil in the pan.
Fry the Flowers.
- Add the flowers to the hot oil in the pan. Again, you don't have to deep fry these. Pan frying in a little olive oil is just as good.
- Fry until cooked on one side, then turn and continue to cook until ready.
- Remove and place on paper towel lined plate. Best eaten while still hot/warm.
Notes
Note: the amount of batter is more than you will need. Also, my Nonna never added anything to the flour and water mixture, but if you'd like to use sparkling water or a pinch of baking soda, go ahead).
Have a glut of zucchini? Here’s a delicious recipe
from Maria at She Loves Biscotti!
So, what do you call these blossoms? I call them zucchini flowers.
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I made these today. They were delicious. I put homemade tomato jelly on some and hot pepper syrup on others.
Glad you enjoyed them, Cathy!
I found out yesterday I can cook the flowers and went online to find out how! This is my first year gardening and now I’m lamenting all the male flowers that have gone to waste the last month! First thing this morning I went and picked the 3 flowers I had and did this recipe. I used the rest of the batter on banana peppers. I had an odd breakfast of fried zucchini flowers and banana peppers. My young son looked at me like I was a monster for cooking the pretty flowers lol next year I’ll be planting more zucchini plants specifically for the flowers. Thanks for sharing!
I’m so excited to try this recipe today!! And I love learning the Italian dialect from the comments here. Thank you for sharing!
Can you use the flowers that have fallen off the plant due to heavy rain?
If they are freshly fallen, then yes. You’ll know if they are too old as they just will be unusable.
My grandmother used to grow her own zucchini and fry the flowers. My mother never did that. Her comment was “she was 8th of 10 children and was never allowed to do anything as the elders (6 sisters and 3 brothers) always did everything for her. But, while I was never offered to taste the flowers, I never forgot that my grandmother would cook them and I always wanted to try that. Well, here I am, 78 years old, growing my own zucchini and learning about male flowers versus female, and will for the first time try your recipe which sounds easy and delicious. My question for your readers: Are you familiar with the word “Gugootz”. I remember that word and I associate it with zucchini. Does anyone recognize that word? If it’s not for zucchini flowers, do you know what it is for? Thank you in advance for your resposes.
Yes, Nancy! Gugootz is a dialect word for zucchini :) I’m so glad you’re going to try the fried flowers! I think you’ll love them! Let me know!
Gugootz is slang for cucuzza squash. The long green squash we used to grow that used to get so long it would curl. They used to make it in the thin tomato sauce with a little garlic and onion. Look up images it will bring back memories.
Very Italian thing