Vegetable Tempura
What can I say? Veggies taste better deep-fried.
Vegetable Tempura
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 3 minutes per batch (total approximately 30 minutes)
Total time: 45 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
INGREDIENTS
For the Tempura
1 box tempura batter mix
Vegetable oil for frying
½ bunch asparagus
½ cup sliced sweet red pepper
½ a medium sized zucchini, cut into rounds
1 cup button mushrooms, left whole if small or halved if large
For Dipping Sauce
1 cup water
1 tablespoon dashi flavoured soup mix (we found this at the Asian supermarket)
¼ cup mirin
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
1 green onion, finely chopped
DIRECTIONS
Preheat 4 inches of vegetable oil over medium heat in a saucepan. The oil should be heated to 375F but if you don’t have a deep frying thermometer (which most of us don’t) a good way to check is to toss in a cube of bread. It should brown in approximately 2 minutes.
Follow directions on tempura batter box. You should be adding ice-cold water to the batter mix, ensuring you do not overbeat it (it’s okay if it’s lumpy)! We swapped out ice-cold water for ice-cold soda water for an extra light and crispy batter.
In a medium sized bowl combine all ingredients for the dipping sauce and set aside.
Dip the vegetables in the batter and fry 3-4 of them at a time until golden brown. This should take approximately 2-3 minutes for each batch. Set them on a paper towel to drain excess grease. Serve with dipping sauce and enjoy!