Fried Squash Blossoms With Ginger, Shiso & Ricotta Filling

I love squash blossoms! Creating this recipe was actually my first encounter with them as well and it really was a wonderfully satisfying one 😋

I had always wanted to try squash blossoms and specifically, I’ve always wanted to try them stuffed and deep fried!

There is just something about the combination of the crispy deep fried blossom paired with a creamy filling that seemed super appealing to me.

I live in Queens, NYC and try to make the time to make my way down to Union Square Farmer’s Market as often as possible during the warmer months. Last summer, I was fortunate to find massive bouquets of squash blossoms and decided to try making them, the result was wonderful!

As complex as this recipe may seem, it’s actually pretty easy to execute and each component comes together pretty quickly. To top this, the blossoms themselves only take a few minutes to fully cook.

Cleaning wise, I prefer to remove the Stamen as it contains most of the pollen and doesn’t have the best texture. I also removed the outer Calyx leaves from the sides but also feel free to keep both of these parts if you prefer (sometimes they are left intact but I prefer to remove).

For the batter, I went pretty light with some flour, cornstarch, soda water and a touch of baking soda. It’s a fairly forgiving mixture so no worries if your measurements aren’t exact.

For the filling, I wanted something really creamy, bright, fragrant and with a little kick to it. I used ricotta as the base along with some grated pecorino, young ginger (regular ginger will also work fine), lemon zest, sliced shiso and Aleppo pepper flakes.

Give them a quick drag in the batter and then lay them in the oil in the same dragging motion to give them a quick fry until golden brown.

These really exceeded my already high expectations and are probably one of my favorite recipes I’ve worked on since I started this page. I love everything about them, from the use of farm fresh and seasonal produce, to referencing an Italian dish but using more asian ingredient for a different flavor profile, the the flavor itself (bright and complex) and the mix of crunchy and creamy textures.

I hope that you enjoy!

Cheers,

Joey

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