Apfelküchle im Bierteig mit Puderzucker auf einem Porzellanteller, daneben Äpfel, Eier und Zimtstangen

Apfelküchle – Apple Fritters in Beer Batter

Crispy, airy and golden brown – wonderfully crunchy outside, soft and juicy inside. An Austrian classic that tastes best fresh from the fryer.

Apfelküchle im Bierteig mit Puderzucker auf einem Porzellanteller, daneben Äpfel, Eier und Zimtstangen

Ingredients

Serves 8

Beer batter

  • 6 eggs
  • 200 g flour
  • 100 g brown sugar
  • 2 tbsp oil
  • 300 ml well-chilled Bohemia Weizen beer
  • 2 pinches of salt

Apples

  • 8 large tart apples
  • Juice of 2 lemons
  • Oil for frying

For dusting

  • Powdered sugar
  • Cinnamon or cinnamon sugar

Method

  1. Make the beer batter: Separate the eggs. Mix the egg yolks with the flour, brown sugar and oil into a smooth batter. Gradually stir in the well-chilled Bohemia Weizen. Beat the egg whites with the salt until stiff and gently fold them into the batter. Let the batter rest for a few minutes so the flour can swell.
  2. Prepare the apples: Peel the apples and remove the core with an apple corer. Cut into slices about 1 cm thick and drizzle with lemon juice so they don’t turn brown.
  3. Heat the oil: Heat the oil in a deep pan to about 170 °C (340 °F). When small bubbles form around the handle of a wooden spoon, the oil is roughly at the right temperature.
  4. Fry the Apfelküchle: Gently stir the beer batter once more before frying. Dip the apple slices into the batter a few at a time and deep-fry them in the hot oil until golden brown and crispy on both sides. Lift them out with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. The finished Apfelküchle can be kept warm in the oven until serving.
  5. To serve: Dust the warm Apfelküchle with powdered sugar and cinnamon or cinnamon sugar. They go especially well with vanilla sauce, vanilla ice cream or a fruit compote.

Sabine's Tip

Why beer makes the batter so wonderfully crispy: In a frying batter, beer creates a particularly crispy, airy and golden-brown crust.

  • Carbonation makes it airy: The gas bubbles in the beer expand when heated and loosen the batter.
  • Alcohol makes it crispy: Alcohol evaporates faster than water. This makes the batter coating dry out faster while frying, so it turns beautifully crisp.
  • Malt and sugar give it color: The components of the beer support browning and give the Apfelküchle their beautiful golden-brown color and a delicate aroma.

Use the beer as fresh and well-chilled as possible for the batter, so that as much carbonation as possible is retained.

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