The mixed, fried vegetables on the Roman table on Christmas Eve is mainly based on seasonal vegetables.
The prince of the winter vegetables is always: the legendary broccoli!
This batter matches perfectly well with broccoli, as it swells and crackles when bitten.
I adapted the recipe from one of my chef teachers, Andrea Palmieri.

Roman-Style Fried Broccoli

  • Preparation time: 20 minutes
  • Ingredients for 4-6 servings
  • Difficulty: Easy recipe

  • Ingredients
  • 1 Romanesco broccoli
  • For the batter:
  • 250 g of all-purpose flour
  • 250 g of rice flour
  • 30 g of cornstarch
  • 270 ml of sparkling water
  • 6 g of fresh brewer’s yeast
  • 1 pinch of salt
  • 1 pinch of sugar
  • 1 teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Peanut oil for frying to taste
  1. Instructions
  2. Prepare the batter. Dissolve the brewer’s yeast in a bowl of water. Add the flours, the pinch of salt and sugar, and finally the oil. Cover the bowl and leave the batter to rise for a couple of hours at room temperature. Place the batter in the refrigerator for another hour.
  3. Wash the broccoli well, removing the outer leaves first.
  4. Cut it into florets that are preferably all the same size.
  5. Boil them in boiling, salted water for a few minutes.
  6. Drain them when they are still “al dente,” and pat them dry with a kitchen cloth.
  7. Place the seed oil in a deep pan and bring it to a temperature of 350°F.
  8. Dip the broccoli florets in the batter and then the oil a few at a time.
  9. After a few minutes per side, drain the florets and place them on a plate with absorbent paper.
  10. Season with salt and serve super-hot.

Tips to ensure the success of the dish:

  • You must not overfill the frying pan so as to avoid causing the temperature to drop excessively. It is better to do more consecutive cooking.
  • Between one round of frying and the next, I always put the batter back in the refrigerator, because it must always remain cold.
  • Always use a thermometer to measure the oil temperature. It is an inexpensive tool and is useful for keeping the oil from exceeding the smoke point.