Deep fried herbs

[Sugarella]

These days when I need herb leaves deep fried I just do them in a shallow pan, then save the oil in the freezer. I do keep oil batches seperate, because obviously I don't want my basil frying oil tasting like mint, or vice versa.

For those of you doing this often though, how do you go about it? I think it'd be a giant pain to use one deep fryer then have to clean the oil out between herbs. Not to mention that it'd be unbelievably time comsuming.

Do you actually do it this way, or do you have several small deep fryers ready and waiting, or is there some other way I'm missing?

Thanks.....

[nicolekaplan]

place the herbs on a piece of lightly oiled plastic wrap that is tighly wrapped to a plate. then cover with another piece of wrap and microwave

[Sugarella]

Woo hoo!!!!!!

Never would have thought of that in a million years Nicole....thanks.

I don't have a microwave in my workspace but they're cheap enough I can get one. (Don't have one at home for that matter.) Any ideas how long I should zap them for?

[johnsmith45678]

Just curious, why deep fry herbs?

[Sugarella]

Just curious, why deep fry herbs?

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Because they're yummy, they're easier to eat than a whole fresh leaf, and if paired correctly with other flavours in a pastry they make an excellent garnish.

[Sethro]

Plus it really pops the color if you want bright bright green.

I think "deep" frying is misleading verbiage here, as it implies some sort of breading. Actually that could be good, as most breaded and fried things are...hmmm...

Edited June 25, 2006 by Sethro (log)

[Grub]

Stirfried basil beef is absolutely fantastic with deep fried basil. It really adds another dimention to the dish -- great taste, crunchiness, and great color.

Nuking herbs sounds extremely clever. Definitely worth trying, that. Deep frying basil is extremely exciting...

Thanks -- great advice.

[Sunny Simmons Steincamp]

I think "deep" frying is misleading verbiage here, as it implies some sort of breading. Actually that could be good, as most breaded and fried things are...hmmm...

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This moves away from "pastry and baking" relevance, but fried herbs are unbelievable. I first saw this done in a Saveur magazine (from back in 2000) in an article on tempura. They're beautiful, and have never failed to get expressions of amazement from folks who'd never heard of such a thing!

<img src="http://www.amarisse.net/tempimages/herbtempura.jpg">

[dockhl]

Do you dip them in flour or a batter or something before you fry them?

[Sugarella]

Do you dip them in flour or a batter or something before you fry them?

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Not for pastries I don't; I just submerge them briefly into the hot oil then dunk in cold water, then run through a salad spinner to dry them off. Mine stay malleable that way, and keep their colour.

Some people deep fry them longer until they're crispy.....you could also batter them first for a savory dish like the last few people have suggested. Mmmmm ..... they'd be lovely with tempura batter wouldn't they?

[K8memphis]

This is not pastry related but it's related to this fried leaf discussion. I love fried spinach. No kid would ever have a problem eating his spinach if all the Mom's fried it. It's crunchy and ethereal, like it would float away--just wonderfully good.

I now return you to your regularly scheduled pastry board

[dockhl]

This is not pastry related but it's related to this fried leaf discussion. I love fried spinach. No kid would ever have a problem eating his spinach if all the Mom's fried it. It's crunchy and ethereal, like it would float away--just wonderfully good.

I now return you to your regularly scheduled pastry board 

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I love fried parsley lke this.

Now I have a question...........

what kind of pastries do you make with fried herbs?

[nicolekaplan]

for micro technique you just go a little at a time until you get what you want. trust me when i say being too generous with the timer will cause it to catch on fire.

[Sugarella]

Thanks Nicole....I'll keep that in mind! (We did have a microwave when I was a kid.... I learned you can't make hard boiled eggs that way real quick!)

This'll make good use of my oil mister though....

Now I have a question...........

what kind of pastries do you make with fried herbs?

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You would do this anywhere you'd normally use a fresh herb, if you're inclined. It's not necessary of course, but an awful lot of people still regard fresh herbs as garnish rather than something to be eaten with the food they're served with. So if the food, or pastry in this case, is topped with a cooked sprig of herbs people are more inclined to eat it with the pastry in one go, and that is the point of marrying flavours together.

I'm really limited in what I'm able to do because I only do pastry catering for clients who have already ordered an event cake, so the client dictates how experiemntal I'm able to be. And all of the pastries I'm doing are minis, 2 bites at most. But a few things I've done so far are deep frying a mint sprig paired with a fresh raspberry to top a chocolate mini torte covered in a reduced raspberry puree, and I've done deep fried lemon verbena as an accompayment to a lemon blueberry mini cheesecake. Basil is popular as well because there are so many varieties of it and it works really well when paired with sweet things. And last fall I deep fried some zucchini flowers for an accompanyment to pumpkin cheesecake with a cinnamon birch glaze.... they didn't turn out as nice as I would have liked and didn't keep their shape well so I think I'll play around with them again this fall when they're in season. Come to think..... any edible flower would work well too, like pansies or lavendar.

[cakesuite]

Can you use that micro technique with foil and a hot oven?

[...tm...]

I just tried the microwave method of "frying" sage and basil and it turned out great. After my first attempt blew a hole through the Saran Wrap I decided to go with my instincts and just use paper towel to cover and prevent oil from spraying all over the microwave. I just brushed the leaves with olive oil first. This technique is pretty similar to a microwave foliage drying/pressing technique in which the flower or leaves to be pressed are sandwiched between two unglazed ceramic tiles and an absorbtive natural fiber.

Anyway, it's kind of fun how the leaves came out perfectly flat--sure, the scrunched-up, deep-fried leaves elicit more questions from those who aren't expecting fried herbs, but the perfectly flat leaves also have their decorative possibilities.

[dockhl]

I just tried the microwave method of "frying" sage and basil and it turned out great.  After my first attempt blew a hole through the Saran Wrap I decided to go with my instincts and just use paper towel to cover and prevent oil from spraying all over the microwave.  I just brushed the leaves with olive oil first.  This technique is pretty similar to a microwave foliage drying/pressing technique in which the flower or leaves to be pressed are sandwiched between two unglazed ceramic tiles and an absorbtive natural fiber. 

Anyway, it's kind of fun how the leaves came out perfectly flat--sure, the scrunched-up, deep-fried leaves elicit more questions from those who aren't expecting fried herbs, but the perfectly flat leaves also have their decorative possibilities.

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Hmmmmmmm............

how long did you microwave? At high?

[Sethro]

I want to fry some beet greens or thai basil now, and see if it gets purple-er. That would be hot.

[...tm...]

I zapped them on full power for 2-4 minutes. They certainly weren't overdone. It is hard to give a definate time with different microwaves, herbs, etc. My sage leaves were definately crisp and breakable after 2 minutes, but still had quite a bit of moisture. I liked it better after 4 minutes--at that point even the stem was crisp, crumbly, and tasty. I didn't push it any farther, as my roommates are still recovering from when I microwaved a a ginger infusion (minus the water) and the ginger caught on fire. Burning ginger smells a lot more like incense than ginger.

[scordelia]

Not quite pastry and baking, but I fry sage leaves as a little cocktail snackie.

Take a handful of flour, a handful of cornmeal and about a half bottle of beer and combine. Add black pepper. Dip the sage leaves in the batter and fry in olive oil until golden brown. Sprinkle with kosher salt and serve right away.

They are so yummy!