Crispy, nutty, and briny, Fried Capers are magical little flavor bombs that add an incredible dimension of flavor and texture to salads, pasta, meat, and vegetable dishes.
Something magical happens when you quickly fry capers. They lose a lot of their pungency and become nutty, crisp and incredibly light. Imagine a flower bud immediately blooming on contact with hot oil, each of its petals becoming ethereally light and crispy. Their salty, briny flavor makes them an addictive little garnish.
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What are capers?
Capers are the unopened flower buds of the spiny caper bush (Capparis spinose). They get their sharp pungency from a sulfurous, mustard-like compound called glucocapparin. Capers of all sizes may be cured in salt or brined in salt and vinegar. They are found in dishes like veal piccata, tapenade, and spaghetti alla puttanesca.
Capers are not the same thing as caper berries. While capers are the immature flower buds of the bush, caper berries are the fruit the bush produces once the buds have flowered and then been fertilized. Caper berries are about the size of a grape and are often harvested with their stems attached. They are also cured in vinegar like capers.
Capers are not naturally sour; to obtain the briny, salty flavor for which they are famous they must be cured in seasoned vinegar, a process that been used for thousands of years.
What do fried capers taste like?
Capers have been valued since ancient times for the burst of salty, lemony, briny flavor they give to foods. Get past the brine, and they have a floral, grassy flavor. Frying capers takes away some of the vinegary sharpness and brings out a nutty, crispy, crunchiness. When fried, the flower buds open up and each petal becomes as light as gauze and crackly crisp. Even the stamens inside the flower become crispy.
Where do capers come from?
Capers are grown in parts of Asia, the Middle East, the Mediterranean, North Africa, Southern Europe, Turkey and California.
Pickling capers is a long and tedious process. The plant from which the tiny flower buds are plucked is prickly, and they’re too small and delicate to be plucked by machine, so they have to be harvested individually by hand. After being picked, capers are sorted by size. The smallest are named “non pareilles” and are the most expensive. Next in size are surfines, capuchins, fines, and capotes. Then they are dried, brined, or salted.
How to make fried capers
Use capers that are brined in a jar. Drain the capers and put them on a paper towel or kitchen towel to dry them as much as possible.
In a small saucepan, heat ⅛ inch vegetable or olive oil until it shimmers (350°F). Add the capers to the hot oil (they’ll give off some liquid at first, so watch out for spattering oil) and fry until they turn golden brown and begin to crisp. This takes me about 2-3 minutes, depending on the size of the caper. Fry in batches if you’re doing a lot, otherwise you’ll cool the oil down too much.
Drain carefully and put on paper towels to absorb excess oil. The capers can be made 3 to 4 hours ahead; keep them uncovered at room temperature.
How to use
Fried Capers add a pop of briny, fruitiness to any dish. They’re an elegant garnish for pasta, salads, fish, or grilled meats. They’re also addictive little nibbles on their own! Leftover frying oil will be infused with caper flavor and can be used again to sauté fish, chicken, or vegetables, or wherever you might like the flavor of capers.
How to store
The capers can be made 3 to 4 hours ahead. Keep them uncovered at room temperature so they stay crispy. Any leftover can be stored at room temperature, covered, for up to 3 days.
Recipe
Fried Capers - Magical Flavor Bombs for Your Food
Ingredients
- 3.25 oz jarred capers in brine
- vegetable or olive oil to fill small saucepan ⅛ inch deep
Instructions
- Pour oil into small sauce pan to ⅛ inch deep.
- Heat oil until shimmering or 350F.
- Drain capers and dry on paper towels or kitchen towel.
- Add capers to pan without overcrowding, in batches if making a large quantity.
- Fry until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes.
- Carefully remove capers from oil with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towel.
- Let rest a few minutes before using. If making ahead, they can stay uncovered at room temperature for several hours.
- To store, keep in covered container at room temperature for several days.
Notes
- Make sure to drain the capers in a strainer as well as pat dry!
Nutrition
Enjoy, friends!
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2pots2cook says
Kelly dear, you have opened a new Universe for me ! Never fried only pickled these beauties !!!! Thank you so much for this idea 🙂
Kelly says
How I'd love to have my own caper shrub and pickle them myself! Thanks so much, Davorka!
Ron says
Great info on capers. We serve capers sautéed in butter and shallots under grilled flatfish, but never fried. A great idea and one I look forward to tasting soon.
Kelly says
That sounds delicious, Ron! I'll have to give it a try. Thanks so much!
Katherine | Love In My Oven says
I would LOVE these!! I would scatter these all over a salad or in a stir fry. Salty is my kind of topping! I have never had fried capers, Kelly. Now I've got to try!
Kelly says
Their flavor is so addicting. Once I tried it, I was hooked! Thanks so much, Katherine!
Valentina says
Capers are one of my favorite ingredients and I use them all the time. I haven't ever thought to deep fry them. Can't wait to try it. Thank you! 🙂
Kelly says
They're such a great garnish. I love their briny flavor. Thanks so much, Valentina!
mimi rippee says
So interesting! I knew they came from a Mediterranean bush, but not anything else. I'm actually surprised they don't cost more! I've fried capers because it was part of a salmon crudo recipe I followed. Really fabulous.
Kelly says
They're technically supposed to be more expensive, but I get them for about a $1.50 a bottle. Not complaining though! Salmon crudo sounds amazing. Thanks so much, Mimi!
Amy Whiting says
I decided to fry up some capers last minute to add to an nduja pesto pasta and it elevated it massively. Brought another texture and nuttiness to the dish (to which I also added a lemon-Parmesan pangratatto and rocket.)
Kelly says
Amy, that sounds absolutely fantastic! It's amazing what fried capers can add to a dish, isn't it? Thanks so much!
Healthy World Cuisine says
Frying capers really add so much flavor and fun to so many dishes. We love adding them on top of baked lemon fish as a garnish. Beautiful photos and lovely post. Pinning to all of our favorite boards.
Kelly says
I just want to sprinkle them on everything! Well, almost! They're terrific with lemony flavors. Thanks so much, Bobbi!
Kathy @ Beyond the Chicken Coop says
These look so interesting. I love crunchy foods and I'll be these capers are delicious. This is a recipe I will need to try!
Kelly says
They're so easy and add such a fun flavor and texture. They're incredibly light! Thanks so much, Kathy!
Neil says
I've never fried capers before Kelly. Always just used them straight from a jar and only ever in making tartar sauce, ha ha! Now at least I have a new use for them. My try this!
Kelly says
We love capers here, Neil! They're briny flavor is so good with fish and of course in our favorite lemon chicken with capers. Frying them adds a whole new dimension. Thanks so much!
Thao @ In Good Flavor says
That's incredible! Who would have that you could fry capers?! I have to give this a try. Thanks for enlightening me, Kelly!
Kelly says
It's such a nifty trick! It's amazing to see the buds bloom open. Thanks so much, Thao!
marcie says
I've never even thought to fry capers, now it's all I want to do! I love capers, and the way you describe them after they've been fried sounds amazing! These are on my list to try. 🙂
Kelly says
They're so incredible fried, Marcie! So light and so crispy! And of course we love the flavor. Thanks so much!
Susan says
What a delightful idea and we love capers in this house! I can't wait to try them 🙂
Kelly says
They're so good! Hope you enjoy them as much as we do! Thanks so much, Susan!
Rocky Mountain Woman says
What a great idea! I use capers a lot in my cooking, but have never tried them fried.
Thanks for the tip!
Kelly says
They're so cool fried! And the oil they cooked in has a wonderful, briny caper flavor! Thanks so much!
Haylie / Our Balanced Bowl says
Kelly, these look amazing! Being from the South, I love anything fried...but like you said, these look like pure flavor bombs for your food! YUM! I've actually never had capers...but this recipe will change that 🙂 Awesome one as always!
Kelly says
I use capers a lot for the shot of flavor they give. And of course one of our favorite dinners is a lemon chicken with capers. Frying them just makes them so much more wonderful. Same great flavor, but with this amazing light and crispy crunch. Thanks so much, Haylie!
Easyfoodsmith says
Gosh! they sound fabulous <3
Kelly says
They're pretty amazing! Thanks so much, Taruna!
angiesrecipes says
I love to use fried capers for my salads too!
Kelly says
They're fabulous on salads! Thanks so much, Angie!