Equipment
Ingredients
Tentsuyu (Dipping Sauce)
- 120 ml kombu dashi
- 30 ml soy sauce
- 30 ml mirin
Vegetables
- 150 g sweet potato, peeled and sliced into 5mm rounds
- 150 g eggplant, sliced into small fans or batons
- 100 g shiitake mushrooms, stems removed, caps left whole
- 100 g asparagus, woody ends trimmed, cut in half
Tempura Batter
- 120 g cake flour, sifted
- 200 ml ice water, extremely cold
- 1 egg yolk
Frying & Garnish
- 1000 ml neutral oil
- 50 g daikon radish, finely grated and lightly squeezed of excess water
- 10 g fresh ginger, finely grated
Nutrition (per serving)
Method
Combine the kombu dashi, soy sauce, and mirin in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a gentle simmer, then remove from heat and keep warm.
Prepare all vegetables as indicated, ensuring they are thoroughly dried with a paper towel. Moisture on the vegetables can cause the oil to splatter and make the batter soggy.
Pour the neutral oil into a heavy-bottomed pot to a depth of at least 5cm. Heat the oil to precisely 170°C/340°F, monitoring with a deep frying thermometer.
In a chilled mixing bowl, lightly beat the egg yolk and ice water together. Add the sifted cake flour and use chopsticks to gently stab and fold the mixture in a figure-eight motion. Stop while there are still prominent lumps of dry flour floating on top.
Working in small batches to avoid dropping the oil temperature, dip the prepared vegetables into the batter, allowing excess to drip back into the bowl. Carefully lower them into the 170°C/340°F oil.
Use a spider skimmer or chopsticks to transfer the fried vegetables to a wire cooling rack set over a baking sheet. Skim any loose bits of batter (tenkasu) from the oil before frying the next batch.
Serve the tempura immediately while piping hot. Portion the warm dipping sauce into individual bowls and add a mound of grated daikon and ginger to each.
Chef's Notes
- Temperature control is paramount. If you crowd the pot with too many cold vegetables, the oil temperature will plummet, causing the batter to absorb oil rather than crisp up.
- Keep your batter ingredients as cold as possible. You can even place the mixing bowl inside a larger bowl filled with ice water while you work.
- Skimming the oil between batches is not optional. Leftover batter bits will burn, imparting a bitter flavor and dark color to subsequent batches.
- Use cake flour instead of all-purpose flour. Its lower protein content significantly reduces gluten formation, which is the key to an ethereal, shattering crust.
