The products we used:
A Crispy Classic
Tempura is a classic style of frying food in Japan. Although it’s a deep-fried food, it has a reputation for being healthier than other fried foods like the ever-popular Japanese fried chicken, fried shrimp, french fries, tonkatsu, etc. I’m not sure why, but I guess it’s because many of the popular tempura ingredients are vegetables, such as mushrooms, lotus root, pumpkin, etc. The batter is lighter than typical frying batter, too, meaning you consume less oil.
Whether you’re trying to eat a bit healthier or just want to enjoy a nice, light fried meal, you can’t go wrong with tempura. And if you’re new to tempura, then keep reading because we have a recipe and we aren’t afraid to use it.
Recipe
Ingredients
- Tempura ingredients
- Flour, 1 cup (100-110g, about 3.5-3.9 oz) + a little extra for dusting
- Frying oil, fill the deep-frying pan to a height of 2.5-3cm (1-1.2 inches)
- Egg, 1/2 beaten egg
- Cold water, 1 cup (200ml, about 6.8 fl oz)
Tempura sauce ingredients (optional)
- Dashi broth, 200ml (1 cup)
- Soy sauce, 40ml (2 2/3 tablespoons)
- Mirin, 40ml (2 2/3 tablespoons)
- Grated daikon radish
Prepare ingredients
Cut your ingredients into appropriate sized chunks. We used chicken, shrimp, eggplant, mushrooms, pumpkin, and okra.
Make batter
To make the batter, combine the beaten half-egg with water. Add flour and whisk until there are little or no flour chunks.
Prepare and heat oil
Add oil to the frying pan. The oil should be about 3 cm / 1 inch deep.
Heat the oil to about 175 c / 350 f. If you don’t have a thermometer, you can simply add a bit of batter to the oil to test it. A basic rule of thumb is that if you add the batter, it should float down to the bottom and then immediately float back to the top. That’s why 1 inch is the recommended depth of the oil.
What kind of oil?
You can use any oil you like. Japanese typically use a mix of seed or vegetable oil and a bit of sesame seed oil for flavor. Animal fats are starting to make a come-back in the US, and I’d personally like to try tempura with beef tallow. If you try trying tempura in tallow or other animal fats, let us know how it went!
Coat ingredients
Dust your ingredients with flour and then coat them in batter. For best results, immediately put the ingredients into the frying oil after coating them in batter.
Fry
Fry the ingredients. Each ingredient, depending on how thick or thin you cut them, will require a different cooking time. Getting them the right thickness for each ingredient will take practice. Just make sure to get the oil the right temperature and look for the batter to turn a crisp light brown. If the food isn’t fully cooked, then take a note to cut it into a smaller piece for next time.
Collect tempura batter bits
While frying, you’ll get a bunch of extra batter floating in the oil. When your ingredients are just about ready to come out, use an oil filter to pick them up and set them aside for later.
Make tempura onigiri
Once your food is ready, you can mix the tempura batter bits with some rice, a bit of soy sauces, and a garnish (like dry parsely). Feel free to make some onigiri with the added character of tempura to them!
(Optional) Make tempura sauce
Tempura is often eaten with a special light dipping sauce. Mix the dashi broth, soy sauce, and mirin. Take some daikon radish, grate it using an onioroshi grater, and set it in the sauce as the cherry on top of this delicious meal.
Serve and enjoy
Congratulations, you now have some hot and crispy tempura ready to eat!
Ingredient ideas
Here’s a list of popular ingredients used for tempura:
Seafood: - Shrimp - White fish - Squid - Scallops
Vegetables: - Sweet potato - Pumpkin/kabocha squash - Eggplant - Green beans - Mushrooms - Onion rings - Bell peppers - Lotus root - Japanese sweet pepper
Other: - Shiso leaves - Nori - Baby corn - Asparagus
When preparing ingredients, remember these key tips: 1. Cut pieces to similar sizes for even cooking 2. Pat everything very dry before battering 3. For shrimp, make small cuts along the belly to prevent curling 4. Remove excess moisture from vegetables 5. Root vegetables should be sliced thin enough to cook through
It’s just that easy
Tempura is a simple food that relies on the flavors of the fresh ingredients you fry.
