Name: Tempura
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Japan
Ingredients: 12 large shrimp, peeled with tails on; 1 sweet potato, thinly sliced; 1 zucchini, cut in sticks; 1 cup ice-cold water; 1 egg yolk; 1 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting; Oil for deep frying; 1/2 cup dashi; 2 tablespoons soy sauce; Grated daikon for the dipping sauce

Where it comes from

Frying in batter reached Japan centuries ago and was refined into the delicate style now known as tempura. Skilled cooks aim for a thin, lacy coating that lets the ingredient taste of itself.

Explore the cuisine of Japan.

Recipe

Make Tempura at home

Serves 4Time 40 minutes

Ingredients

12 large shrimp, peeled with tails on
1 sweet potato, thinly sliced
1 zucchini, cut in sticks
1 cup ice-cold water
1 egg yolk
1 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
Oil for deep frying
1/2 cup dashi
2 tablespoons soy sauce
Grated daikon for the dipping sauce

How it's made

Make the dipping sauce by warming dashi with soy sauce and a teaspoon of sugar; keep warm.
Score the shrimp bellies and straighten them so they stay flat. Pat everything dry.
Heat oil to 340-350 F (170-175 C).
Whisk the egg yolk into the ice water, then add the flour and stir only a few strokes; leave lumps.
Dust each piece lightly with flour, dip into batter, and fry in small batches until pale golden, 2-3 minutes.
Drain on a rack and serve at once with the sauce and daikon.