Vegetable Tempura
Delicious Vegetable Tempura has a light, crisp outer coating that isn't overly greasy. This classic Japanese dish can be made at home with restaurant-quality results. It makes a great appetizer or side dish!
Servings: 24 pieces
Calories: 27kcal
Ingredients
Tempura Dipping Sauce
- ¾ cup chicken broth
- 3 Tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 Tablespoons mirin
- 2 teaspoons sugar granulated or brown sugar
Vegetables (about 24 pieces)
- sweet potato peeled and sliced into ¼-inch discs
- broccoli florets
- asparagus
- onion sliced into wedges
- Japanese eggplant sliced into discs
- oyster mushrooms
- bell pepper strips
Tempura Batter
- 1 egg
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup ice water
- Vegetable or canola oil for frying (about 4 cups)
Instructions
Tempura Sauce
- Make the tempura sauce by combining the broth, soy sauce, mirin, and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil and simmer for 3-4 minutes until the sugar is dissolved. Cool to room temperature.
Prepare the Vegetables
- If using sweet potatoes, peel and slice, then soak them in a bowl filled with cold water for 15 minutes to remove some of the starch before battering and frying.
- Slice any vegetables as needed. If the broccoli florets are particularly large, you may want to cut them in half.
Make the Tempura Batter
- Heat 2 inches of oil in a cast iron skillet or dutch oven over medium-high heat until it reaches 325-350 degrees F. It helps to have a thermometer handy to monitor the oil temperature.
- Combine 1 cup of ice with 1 cup of water in a bowl and let this sit for a minute or so until the water is very cold. Measure your water from this to get 1 full cup for use in the recipe.
- Add the flour to a large bowl. Beat the egg in another bowl, then add the egg and cold water to the flour. Stir in a figure-8 motion using chopsticks to gently combine the ingredients into a batter. It's okay if there are some lumps. Keep the batter cold by sticking it in the fridge when you aren't using it. Or stick the bowl of tempura batter in a larger bowl filled with an ice water bath to keep the batter completely cold.
- Dry any veggies before dipping, especially the sweet potatoes, by patting them with paper towels so the batter will stick.
- Dip each vegetable in the batter, then shake off excess and add them to the hot oil. Fry the root vegetables like sweet potatoes first since they take a little bit longer. Don't over crowd the pan or the oil temperature will drop quite a bit.
- Fry the sweet potatoes for 3-4 minutes, flipping halfway through. For other vegetables like broccoli, onion, and bell pepper, they will only need to fry for 1-2 minutes typically.
- Transfer the vegetable tempura to a wire rack over a baking sheet as they finish so they can drain without becoming soggy on paper towels. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, if desired, to season. Serve with dipping sauce.
Nutrition
Calories: 27kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 7mg | Sodium: 167mg | Potassium: 19mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 10IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 3mg | Iron: 1mg