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Making vegetable tempura is easier than you think. Getting perfectly crisp, crunchy, golden brown, tempura vegetables can be achieved with a few simple tricks.
When I go to any Japanese restaurant, my order is a bowl of miso soup and a plate of vegetable tempura. My love affair with tempura goes way back to my travels to Tokyo and walking past a street vendor frying up a mixture of vegetables, shrimp, or an assortment of things I didn’t recognize. The smells were incredible and the paper cone of vegetables was insanely good. I was addicted to the light, crispy coating, and the perfectly tender vegetable inside. I couldn’t get enough.
This recipe is an homage to my love affair with vegetable tempura. As Prue Leith from Great British Bake-off says, “This is worth the calories!”
Tempura was introduced to Japan by Portuguese missionaries through their fritter-frying techniques in the 1600s. It was often a cooking method that was utilized for meatless Friday meals by the Catholic missionaries.
Tempura is a dish that is usually made with seafood, sometimes a bit of meat, and vegetables that are battered and deep-fried. Although the tempura is fried, the final product should be light, crispy, and not at all greasy.
Making vegetable tempura is easier than you think. Getting perfectly crisp, crunchy, golden brown, tempura vegetables can be achieved with a few simple tricks.
2 ½ cups assorted vegetables (I used thinly sliced sweet potatoes, zucchini, yellow squash, green beans, cauliflower, and broccoli florets)
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons potato starch
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 large egg
1 cup ice-cold club soda
2 cups oil, for frying (I used peanut oil)
Prepare all of your vegetables prior to starting the recipe.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, potato starch, and baking soda. Set aside.
In a large bowl, stir together the egg and club soda.
Stir the flour mixture gradually into the egg mixture just until combined. Don’t overmix. It’s okay to have a few lumps. The mixture should be pretty thin,
In a large, heavy bottom pot or Dutch oven, heat the oil to 350 degrees.
Once the oil reaches 350 degrees, dip the vegetables into the batter, shaking off any excess batter back into the bowl.
Carefully drop them, a few at a time, into the hot oil. Don’t add too many at one time or the oil temperature will drop and the tempura will be oily instead of crisp.
Cook for 2 ½ minutes, then flip, and cook another 2 ½ minutes until golden brown.
Use a wire spider or slotted spoon to remove the vegetables from the oil. Allow the vegetables to drain for a few seconds, before placing them on a paper towel-lined plate.
Repeat with the remaining vegetables and batter.