Capers in Vinegar

The caper is not a fruit, but the unopened floral bud of the caper bush. Bursting with capric acid and rutin (a phenolic compound sometimes crystallizing into visible white spots), it undergoes maturation in an acetic brine. This concentrate of acidity and salt is the ideal chemical tool to balance excess fat (like in a brown butter for skate meunière). Fried for a few seconds in boiling oil, they open like flowers and offer an explosive saline crunch.