Mixed Fried Seafood and Vegetables (Fritto Misto all'Italiana)

La storia di questo piatto

Fritto Misto all'Italiana is golden Italian cooking in a single paper cone, where garden and sea share one crisp, sunlit coat. Squash blossoms, zucchini, aubergine, porcini, cauliflower, prawns and white fish: each one a small tradition, eaten with the fingers and a squeeze of lemon.

Ingredienti

• 12 pieces Zucchini flowers
• 2 pieces Zucchini
• 1 pieces Eggplants
• 200 g Fresh porcini mushrooms (or button mushrooms as an alternative)
• 250 g Cauliflower
• 300 g Shelled prawns
• 300 g Hake or whiting (fillet)
• 250 g 00 flour
• 60 g Cornstarch
• 290 ml Very cold sparkling water (with a few ice cubes)
• 1 piece Egg (optional)
• 12 g Fine salt (2 g on the fish, 1 g in the batter, the rest for blanching and finishing)
• 2 g White pepper
• 1.5 liter Peanut or high-oleic sunflower oil for frying (deep-frying, not all of it is consumed)
• 2 pieces Lemon
• 20 g Fresh parsley (1 small bunch)

Preparazione

1. Clean the zucchini flowers: open them gently and remove the yellow stamens with a small knife, without tearing the petals. Wash zucchini, eggplants and cauliflower under cold running water and dry them thoroughly with paper towels or a clean cloth: residual water would make the oil spatter. Clean the mushrooms dry, with a damp cloth or a small brush, without washing them as they would absorb water.
2. Cut zucchini and eggplants into thick sticks about 1 cm wide. Divide the cauliflower into small florets and blanch them for 3–4 minutes in plenty of water with about 5 g of salt, then drain, refresh in ice water and dry very well. Leave small mushrooms whole and halve or quarter the large ones. Each piece should be small enough to fit comfortably into the batter and the pot.
3. Clean the prawns: remove the head, peel off the shell and legs, cut along the back with the tip of a knife and remove the dark intestinal vein. For the fish, remove the skin and any bones, then cut the fillet into 4–5 cm pieces. Pat prawns and fish well with paper towels, then season them lightly and evenly with 2 g of salt and 1 g of white pepper.
4. Prepare the batter as late as possible: sift the flour and cornstarch into a bowl to remove lumps. Add 1 g of salt, the remaining white pepper and, if using, the egg. Gradually pour in the very cold sparkling water with a few ice cubes, stirring lightly with a fork or whisk: the batter may keep small lumps. It should have the consistency of liquid cream, coating the spoon and sliding off slowly.
5. Place the batter in the refrigerator for a short rest, no longer than 15 minutes: the cold keeps it light and makes the fry crisper, while a longer rest would lose the bubbles.
6. Preheat the oven to 90°C and set a wire rack over a baking tray. Pour the oil into a deep pot and heat it over medium-high heat to 180°C: with 1.5 liters, this takes about 10–12 minutes. Without a thermometer, dip a dry bread cube: it should stay on the surface sizzling and turn golden in 30–40 seconds. The oil must not smoke: if it smokes, it is too hot, so lower the heat immediately.
7. Check that the oil is at 180°C and start with the vegetables: dip a zucchini flower (or a zucchini slice, or an eggplant piece) into the cold batter, lower it gently into the oil and fry only a few pieces at a time, otherwise the temperature drops and the fried food absorbs oil. Fry until golden, with a dry, steady sizzle, then drain with a slotted spoon, blot briefly on paper towels and transfer to the rack in the oven to keep the pieces hot and crisp. Continue with all the flowers, zucchini and eggplant.
8. Bring the oil back to about 180°C and continue with cauliflower and mushrooms in the same way: fry until golden, drain and keep them on the rack in the oven. If the pieces fry more slowly, the oil has cooled: wait a moment before adding more.
9. Finish with prawns and fish, which cook quickly: check the oil temperature, dip them in the batter and fry the prawns for 2–3 minutes and the fish for 3–4 minutes, until the batter is golden and the flesh is opaque. Drain on paper towels and gather everything on the hot rack.
10. Cut the lemons into wedges. Arrange the very hot fried food on a large serving platter, sprinkle with a little fine salt and add roughly chopped fresh parsley. Serve immediately, with lemon wedges on the side.