Light and Crispy Tempura
Tempura is a delicate Japanese frying technique that produces an incredibly light and shatteringly crispy batter coating vegetables or seafood without any greasiness. The secret lies in using ice cold water and minimal mixing to keep the batter thin and airy.
Japanese style light and airy fried shrimp and vegetables in a delicate ice cold batter served with dipping sauce.
Nutrition per serving
Ingredients
main
batter
cooking
Instructions
Prepare the Ingredients
Pat shrimp and sweet potato slices completely dry with paper towels as any moisture will cause dangerous splattering in the hot oil. Lightly score the inner curve of each shrimp to prevent curling during frying. Dust everything lightly in flour and shake off any excess before battering.
Make the Tempura Batter
Combine egg yolk and ice cold sparkling water in a bowl and whisk briefly. Add flour all at once and stir just 3 or 4 times with chopsticks or a fork, leaving the batter very lumpy. The batter must remain ice cold and should not be smooth. Overmixing develops gluten and ruins the light texture.
Fry the Tempura
Heat vegetable oil to 180 degrees Celsius in a deep heavy pot. Working in small batches, dip each piece into the tempura batter letting excess drip off, then lower gently into the hot oil. Fry shrimp for 2 minutes and sweet potato for 3 to 4 minutes until the batter is pale golden and crispy.
Drain and Serve
Remove tempura using a slotted spoon and place on a wire rack to drain, never on paper towels which can make the bottom soggy. Serve immediately as tempura loses its crispiness quickly. Accompany with a small bowl of warm tentsuyu dipping sauce made from dashi, soy sauce, and mirin.
Substitutions
Common mistakes
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