Vegetable Tempura

By CheeseDiva

Ingredients

• 2 quarts vegetable oil, for frying
• 1/4 cup toasted sesame oil, for frying
• 1 pound assorted vegetables, cleaned, trimmed as needed and cut into bite-size pieces
• 1/2 cup cake flour
• Vegetarian dashi, for dipping (see related recipe), or a dipping sauce of your choice
• 8 ounces daikon radish, peeled, coarsely grated and squeezed to remove excess liquid
• 1/2-inch piece fresh ginger root, peeled and finely grated
• 2 large egg yolks
• 2 cups cold water
• 1/4 cup ice cubes
• 2 cups cake flour

Details

Servings 4
Adapted from washingtonpost.com

Preparation

Step 1

Among the key steps: Barely mix the batter; prepare it just before frying. Maintain the right oil temperature. Drain the just-fried vegetables thoroughly. The most surprising tip: to barely (and I mean barely) mix the tempura batter, leaving lots of lumps and unblended flour in it, and to mix it up immediately before coating and frying. The goal, the authors write, is to keep the gluten from forming; it’s the same theory as trying not to overwork, say, biscuits or pie crust. The batter’s uneven consistency adds to its laciness upon frying, and keeping it cold with ice cubes makes it more viscous — and therefore more likely to adhere to the vegetables.

When you scale a recipe, keep in mind that cooking times and temperatures, pan sizes and seasonings may be affected, so adjust accordingly. Also, amounts listed in the directions will not reflect the changes made to ingredient amounts.

Directions

Pour the vegetable oil and sesame oil into a large, deep cast-iron skillet or Dutch oven set over high heat. Bring the oil mixture to 360 degrees (slightly lower than the standard 375 degrees for frying, because tempura cooks so quickly).

Meanwhile, prepare the separate wet and dry parts of the batter: Combine the yolks and water in a bowl, mixing until well incorporated, then add the ice cubes. Place the 2 cups of cake flour in another bowl.

When you're ready to fry, finish the batter: Quickly add the 2 cups of cake flour to the liquid, all at once. Hold 4 chopsticks together, the tips pointed down, like you're grabbing a bottle. Stab at the batter with the chopsticks, mashing down repeatedly to combine the dry and wet parts. Do not stir; you barely want to mix the batter. (The chopsticks are much less efficient than a spoon or spatula -- which is exactly the point.) Mix for only about 30 seconds or until the batter becomes loose and liquid, with the consistency of heavy cream. It should be lumpy, with visible globs of dry flour floating in it and with unmixed flour sticking to the sides of the bowl. That's preferred; you don't want to over-mix.

Serve the tempura immediately, with a dish of dipping sauce and a small mound of daikon topped with ginger on the side, for each portion. (To eat, add the daikon and ginger to the dipping sauce right before dunking in the first piece of tempura.)

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How to make frying easy | Food Hacks

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