PHOTOGRAPHS MAJA SMEND FOOD STYLING EMILY JONZEN STYLING WEI TANG
RECIPE TOM SHINGLER
When done right, tempura is a delight. Lighter and crispier than the batter on fried fish (and far less greasy), tempura batter is delicate and lacy with a translucence that allows the colours of the food encased within to shine through.
Unlike other elements of Japanese cooking, tempura is simple once you have the know-how, so join us on our deep dive into this incredible dish, then follow our tips and foolproof recipe for top-tier tempura.
Great batter
The basics of tempura are simple: flour is mixed with enough liquid (often water) to create a batter with the consistency of double cream, in which ingredients are dunked, then cooked in hot oil.
However, the key to great tempura is its extremely light yet crunchy texture; it shouldn’t be greasy or claggy, and the food inside the batter should be perfectly cooked. To achieve this, there are some tricks and techniques to follow.
• THE FLOUR Batter requires flour, but using a mix of plain flour and cornflour (or rice flour) achieves the crispest texture. Cornflour helps stop the gluten in the plain flour from forming bonds as it’s mixed with water, which can turn fried batter chewy.