Crispy and Yummy Tempura Batter Recipe

One of the most popular Japanese snacks is tempura. It is crispy on the outside and soft in the inside. To enjoy this food, you don’t need to go to a Japanese restaurant. You can try my tempura batter recipe at home and enjoy this snack. This recipe promises you with crispy, light, and airy tempura.

Tempura: What is it?

Tempura is very popular in Japan. You can find it in fancy restaurants, fast food restaurants, and Japanese’s homes. Compared to teriyaki and sushi, tempura is considered newer. The method to cook this particular snack is the deep frying technique, which is very different from other Japanese snacks.

Many theories said that Portuguese or Spanish traders and missionaries introduced this technique to the Japanese in the 16th century. Therefore, this snack is not originally from Japan, but the Japanese modified it from those traders and missionaries.

Long time ago, the Japanese ate tempura only as snacks in between meals. Today, they usually serve it with soba noodles or a rice bowl. Sometimes, they serve it as an appetizer along with its dipping sauce. Moreover, you can also dip the tempura slightly in salt before eating it.

The ingredients of the tempura sauce are mirin or sweet red rice wine, dashi stock (Japanese stock made of seaweed or fish), and soy sauce. The ratio of the three ingredients is 1:3:1. Mix the ingredients and boil the mix.

Varieties of Tempura

People love tempura because it is crunchy and tender at the same time. Most people outside Japan usually only familiar with shrimp tempura since it is the most common tempura’s ingredient. However, there are other varieties of tempura.

Squids

This ingredient is probably second in popularity after the shrimp tempura. Both of them often served together. The squid tempura has lighter taste compared to the shrimp ones.

Vegetables

If you are concern with your dietary fiber intake, you must try to make vegetable tempura. Various vegetables are great for this snack. Some of them are eggplants, green beans, sweet potatoes, asparagus, shiitake mushroom, pumpkin, and renkon.

Kakiage

It consists of carrots, shrimp, onions, and burdock. The mix of the ingredients is dipped in the tempura batter and deep-fried. Kakiage is common in Japan, but it is quite rare in other countries. However, you can make it easily at home.

White Fish

White fish tempura is delicious. The combination of mild flavor batter and bland white fish create a perfect taste.

Soft-Boiled Eggs

If you love soft-boiled eggs, you can try to make them into tempura. From this snack, you will get crunchy tempura with runny egg yolk in the inside.

Chicken

This particular tempura is almost similar to karage. However, chicken tempura is not marinated with flour. You only need to dip the chicken meat cuts in the batter and then deep fry them.

Tempura Batter Ingredients

The key to create a perfect tempura is the tempura batter. The best batter will give you crunchy and airy tempura. To make this batter, you need:

Egg yolk
Corn flour or rice flour
Flour
Water
Baking powder
Salt
Oil

Tips in Cooking Tempura

To have crunchy tempura, you must remember these tips:

The batter must be fluffier and lighter.
It is important not to over mix the batter. Over mixed the batter will activate the gluten. As a result, your tempura will be chewy.
It is better for you to use ice water in mixing the batter ingredients.
Dip the shrimp and vegetables lightly in the batter; don’t cover them with too much batter.
Fry main ingredients a few at a time. Frying too much of them will cause the temperature of the oil to change. Therefore, your tempura will not be crispy.
Keep the oil temperature between 160^oC and 180^o

More about Tempura

Most people consider fried snacks are not healthy. What about tempura? Well, you don’t need to worry much about it. These facts will help you to understand more about the Japanese snacks.

Is Tempura Healthy?

Tempura will not cause any health problems if you eat it in moderation. This Japanese snack is high in protein and dietary fibre. However, it is slightly higher in fat. Therefore, you need to pair it with lean protein and low fat dish.

Calories in One Serving of Tempura

The amount of calories in one serving of tempura is about 133 calories. It is quite low in calories so that it is safe to eat it a couple of times in a week.

Do the nutrients remain in the seafood and vegetables?

Seafood and vegetables are high in vitamins and minerals. These nutrients will remain in them when you cook the tempura. It is because tempura is only lightly fried. Therefore, you will still get the best nutrients from the Japanese snacks.

Tempura Recipe

My tempura recipe is very easy to try. I always use the recipe every time I make tempura and the result is always crunchy, airy, and light.

Course              : Side dish
Cuisine             : Japanese
Keyword           : Tempura
Prep Time         : 10 minutes
Cook Time        : 20 minutes
Total Time         : 30 minutes
Servings           : 4
Calories            : 133/serving

Ingredients:

Shrimp
Vegetables you like

Tempura Batter:

1 egg yolk
½ cup of rice flour or corn flour
½ cup of flour
2/3 cup of ice water
½ teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of baking powder
Vegetable oil for frying the tempura

Instructions:

Mix the rice/corn flour, flour, salt, and baking powder. Sift them and set aside.
Slightly beat the egg yolk in a medium-size bowl and pour the ice water in it. Mix the egg and water.
Add the mix flour into the bowl. Stir the dry and wet ingredients until they are mixed. You must stop stirring it when the mixture is slightly lumpy.
Meanwhile, pour the vegetable oil in a pan or wok and heat it.
Dip the shrimp and vegetables into the batter.
Deep-fry the main ingredients until they are golden brown.
Put them on a plate layered with paper towels and serve them immediately when it is still crispy and airy.

This Japanese snack is very easy to make, isn’t it? With my tempura batter recipe, you will surely be successful in cooking tempura. Therefore, you will have crunchy and airy tempura to accompany your rice bowl, soba, or udon. If you don’t have those main dish, you can simply serve the tempura with the dipping sauce and eat them for a snack.

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