Zucchini Tempura Food

VEGETABLE TEMPURA

Steps:

• Add all the flour to a bowl. With the handle of a spoon, or a chopstick, mix, and stir in the ice-cold water until the mixture is slightly thicker than buttermilk consistency. Make a point of not mixing thoroughly, as tempura is renowned for lumps of flour.
• Dip sliced vegetables (zucchini, onions, eggplants, carrots, bell peppers, sweet potatoes, string beans, broccoli, wild mushrooms, fresh herbs, and bok choy) any vegetables will work but these are the most commonly used) into the batter mixture and shake off any excess.
• Deep fry vegetables in a wok or deep fat fryer (you can use a frying pan if you do not have anything else, you just need about 7cm/3 inches of clean oil) at 200C/400F/Gas 6 until the batter is light golden in color and crisp. (Any large amounts of hot oil in a kitchen, especially in woks which are not always that sturdy, scare me, please be careful and do not leave the pan unattended.) Turn the vegetables at intervals to ensure that both sides are cooked equally and then fish them out with a slotted spoon, shaking off any excess oil. Place them on kitchen paper towels and eat as soon as possible. The reason that I keep going on about eating them so quickly is because as your hot cooked vegetables cool down inside the batter they begin to steam, making them less crisp as time goes on. Good tempura should be crispy and is one of those things that should be made and cooked quickly and eaten straight away.
• Pour the rice wine vinegar into a small bowl. Add the sugar and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Taste for sweetness. Add cilantro, chile, and garlic and mix well. Season with salt and pepper and allow to sit for 10 minutes to 1 hour, for flavors to combine.;

TEMPURA BATTER

Steps:

• Combine all ingredients. Use as batter for meats and vegetables.

TEMPURA BATTER

Steps:

• Beat egg whites in a bowl until frothy. Fold flour and cold water into egg whites until batter is just barely mixed.

ZUCCHINI TEMPURA

Steps:

• 1. ZUCCHINI - Slice the zucchini into strips about 2 inches long and 1/2 inch wide. Note: thinner zucchini strips cook faster than thicker ones; think French fries rather than potato wedges.
• 2. DIPPING SAUCE - In a small bowl whisk together the soy sauce, ginger, sugar, garlic and chili sauce. Adjust seasoning to taste. Set aside.
• 3. TEMPURA - Thoroughly whisk flour, cornstarch, baking powder and salt. When the oil reaches 350°F , whisk in enough cold seltzer water (or cold tap water) to make the batter the consistency of heavy cream. NOTE: If you don't have a candy thermometer, heat the oil until it starts to move. Dip a wooden chopstick into the oil. If it bubbles, the oil is hot enough.
• 4. Dip the zucchini in the tempura batter and gently add to the oil. Fry until golden and cooked through, about 5 and 7 minutes but will vary with thickness of the zucchini slice and oil temperature. The oil's temperature will drop when you add the battered vegetables, so allow the oil to heat back up between batches. As soon as the zucchini slices are golden, remove them from the oil with a slotted spoon. Place on several layers of paper towel layers to drain.
• 5. They're best served while still hot. Serve with the dipping sauce.

JAPANESE TEMPURA

Steps:

• Wash and chop your fresh vegetables into 1/4 inch thick slices (they look prettier if you cut them at an angle.) Potatoes, cabbage, onions and carrots should be shredded, not sliced. Set aside.
• Slice the fish into pieces about 1/4" x 1" x 2", set aside.
• Pour about 1 1/2 to 2 inches of oil into a wide pot or frying pan, heat on medium.
• Meanwhile, mix flour, salt and enough water to form a thin batter. (The consistency should be between that of pancakes and crepes.).
• Once the oil is warm enough, toss a handful of veggies into the batter. Fish out individual pieces (unless it's shredded, then pull out palm sized clumps) with chopsticks (or tongs) making sure they are thoroughly coated. Carefully drop into the oil. Turn after a minute or two, depending on what you are cooking, to brown both sides. They are done when a chopstick can easily pierce through to the other side.
• Set aside onto a serving plate; continue to coat and fry the remaining veggies and then the fish. Serve hot with tempura sauce.

TEMPURA ZUCCHINI

Steps:

• If the zucchini is large, remove the seeds with a spoon or melon baller before slicing. Slice the zucchini into fingers about 2 inches long and 1/2 inch wide. Note: thinner fingers cook faster than thick ones, so think French fries more than potato wedges.
• In a small bowl whisk together the soy, ginger, sugar, garlic and chili sauce (if using). Adjust seasoning to taste. Set aside.
• Mix flour, corn starch, baking powder and salt together with a whisk to blend thoroughly. When the oil reaches 350°F (see note below if you don't have a candy thermometer), whisk in enough cold seltzer water or cold plain tap water to make the batter the consistency of heavy cream.
• Dip the zucchini in the tempura batter and gently add to the oil. Fry until golden and cooked all the way through. This takes between 5 and 7 minutes, but will vary with thickness of the zucchini slice and how hot the oil is. The oil's temperature will drop when you add the battered vegetables, so allow the oil to come back up to heat between batches. As soon as the zucchini slices are golden and cooked, remove them from the oil with a slotted spoon or spider. Place on several layers of paper towel to drain.
• Eat while still hot. Serve with dipping sauce.

TEMPURA

Steps:

• Combine the dashi, soy sauce, mirin, and sugar in a small saucepan and bring it to a boil. Then, lower the heat and let it simmer until the sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from the heat and set aside.
• Follow these instructions to straighten the shrimp, so it looks gorgeous. Pat the shrimp dry and make sure the moisture is completely removed from the shrimp.
• Cut all the vegetables (except the eggplant) ¼-inch thick. For the eggplant, cut off and discard the stem and calyx, then cut it in half lengthwise. With the cut side flat on the cutting board, cut the eggplant lengthwise into very thin slices (about ⅛ inch or 3 mm), being careful to leave the bottom tip intact by 1 inch (2.5 cm) so the slices stay connected. Then, gently press down on the slices to fan them out. Repeat with the other eggplant half.
• In a medium-sized pot, heat 1½ inches to 2 inches (3-5 cm) of the oil to 350°F (180°C).
• While the oil is heating up, start preparing the tempura batter. Add the egg and the iced water into a 2-cup measuring cup (or any bowl). Whisk the egg mixture vigorously and discard the foam on the surface.
• Sift the flour into a large bowl. Slowly pour the egg mixture into the flour. Mix the batter, but do not overmix; it's okay to leave some lumps in the batter. Keep the batter cold at all times (store it in the refrigerator if needed). Make the batter right before deep-frying to avoid activating the wheat gluten.
• Check the oil temperature with a thermometer to make sure the oil is 350°F (180°C). You can also use wooden chopsticks to check; when you dip your chopsticks in the oil and see small bubbles forming, it's ready for deep-frying. Please note that sweet potatoes and kabocha require a lower cooking temperature (320ºF/160℃). If you want to read more deep-frying tips, please read this post.
• Deep-fry starting with the cleaner and less astringent ingredients. For example, the cooking order would be shiso first, followed by the mushrooms, eggplant, shrimp, sweet potatoes, and kabocha. Make sure your ingredients are dry before dipping them in the batter; if they're wet, dry them with a paper towel first. While the tempura is frying, the moisture from the ingredients will evaporate and the tempura will become crispy. However, if the ingredients have extra moisture, the tempura will become soggy after deep-frying.
• When the oil reaches the right temperature, dip one piece of vegetable or shrimp in the batter, let the excess drip off for a second or two, and very gently place it into the hot oil. Continue dipping and adding one piece at a time. For the shrimp, sprinkle some flour or potato starch (or cornstarch) over it before dipping to help the tempura batter adhere. For the shiso leaves, sprinkle a bit of sifted flour on the back of the leaf, dip only the back of the leaf into the batter, and deep-fry for 15 seconds. The flour acts as a glue and the batter tends to stay on the ingredients better.
• Deep-fry the ingredients until golden brown. Do not crowd the pot because the oil temperature will drop quickly. Remember, your ingredients should take up no more than about half of the oil surface area at any one time. Here's the rough cooking time for each of the ingredients: Shiso (350ºF/180ºC, 20-30 seconds), mushrooms (350ºF/180ºC, 1 min), eggplant (350ºF/180ºC, 1 min), shrimp (350ºF/180ºC, 2 minutes), sweet potatoes (320ºF/160℃, 3 mins), and kabocha (320ºF/160℃, 2-3 mins). Note that sweet potatoes and kabocha require a lower cooking temperature than the rest of the tempura ingredients.
• Transfer the tempura to a wire rack or a plate lined with a paper towel to drain the excess oil.
• Between batches, clean the oil by scooping up the crumbs (called tenkasu), which will burn and turn the oil darker if left in the pot.
• Grate the daikon and squeeze the liquid out. Prepare 3-4 Tbsp of warm tentsuyu in individual small bowls and serve the grated daikon on the side.
• Put 1 Tbsp of the grated daikon in the sauce and dip the tempura in the sauce to enjoy.
• You can keep any leftovers in an airtight container and store them in the refrigerator for up to 2 days and in the freezer for 2 weeks. Reheat the tempura at 350ºF (180ºC) in the oven until warm and crisp.

AIR FRYER TEMPURA

Steps:

• Peel sweet potato (or other vegetable) and slice into rounds NO THICKER than 1/4 inch.
• Soak root veggies in water while you prep other foods to wash off excess starch.
• Optional step for shrimp: make shallow slices crosswise along the underside of the shrimp. Using your fingers, stretch out the shrimp so that it lies straight, instead of curled. Traditional shrimp tempura is always straight, but you can skip this step if you don't care for it. The taste will be the same.
• Optional step 2 for shrimp: Soak prepped shrimp in sake while you make the batter to remove fishy smells prior to cooking.
• In a bowl, mix water, mayonnaise, and 1/2 cup of the flour.
• Mix salt and remaining 1/2 cup flour in separate bowl.
• While you preheat your air fryer to 350 degrees F, dip your fillings into the wet batter.
• Take your battered shrimp or vegetables and dip them into the dry flour/salt mix. Add more flour as necessary to lightly coat the outside of your tempura. The flour coating helps prevent the battered food from sticking to each other or to the air fryer basket. A thicker, dryer batter also prevents it from completely flying off the food when you air fry.
• Place tempura into the preheated air fryer basket, taking care to not overcrowd the basket. You will probably need to do this in batches.
• Spray with canola oil spray and air fry at 350 degrees. Shrimp tempura takes 8 minutes. Root vegetables take 10.
• Serve hot with tempura dipping sauce (can be purchased or homemade) and rice, or as a side to noodle dishes and bentos.

ZUCCHINI CHEESE TEMPURA

Steps:

• 1. Cut zucchini into 1/4 inch thick slices.
• 2. In a bowl, combine flour, parmesan cheese and milk. Mix well.
• 3. Coat each sliced zucchini with tempura batter and deep-fry (350 degrees F)until golden brown.