Caribbean Tempura Recipes

HOW TO MAKE CRISPY TEMPURA AT HOME RECIPE BY TASTY

Steps:

• Make the tempura batter: Sift the flour into a large bowl. Set aside.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg and water until lightly frothy. Add the flour in 3 additions, stirring with chopsticks just to combine. Refrigerate until ready to use.
• Prepare the shrimp: Trim the tails, then use your knife to scrape the dirt and water from the remaining tail shell. Cut small incisions crosswise on both the top and bottom of the shrimp. This will prevent the shrimp from curling up as it cooks. Do not cut too deep, or the shrimp will fall apart. Pat the shrimp dry between paper towels, then refrigerate until ready to fry.
• Prepare the eggplant: Trim the stem, then cut in half lengthwise. Leaving the top ½ inch (1 ¼ cm) intact, cut 5-6 ½-inch (¼ cm) thick slices down the length of the eggplant.
• Fry the kabocha squash: Fill a medium pot about halfway with oil. Heat over medium heat until it reaches 320°F (160°C).
• Coat the kabocha wedges lightly with flour, dusting off any excess. Dip the wedges in the tempura batter. Fry in the hot oil for 4-5 minutes, or until tender. Let any excess oil drip off, then transfer to a wire rack set over a paper towel-lined baking sheet to drain.
• Fry the eggplant: Increase the oil temperature to 340°F (170°C).
• Coat the eggplant lightly with flour, dusting off any excess. Dip in the tempura batter. Fry in the hot oil for 2-3 minutes, or until tender. Transfer to the wire rack to drain.
• Fry the shrimp: Increase the oil temperature to 350°F (180°C).
• Lightly coat the shrimp with flour, dusting off any excess. Dip in the tempura batter. Add the shrimp to the hot oil. Dip your fingers into the tempura batter and drizzle over the shrimp. This will make them extra crunchy. Fry the shrimp for 3-4 minutes, or until cooked through. Transfer to the wire rack to drain.
• Serve the tempura immediately with dipping sauce or seasoned salt alongside.
• Enjoy!

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.

TEMPURA

Steps:

• Whisk the cake flour and rice flour together in a medium glass bowl and divide it in half. Set aside.
• Heat the vegetable oil in a 5-quart Dutch oven over high heat until it reaches 375 degrees F on a deep-fry thermometer.
• Once the temperature reaches 365 degrees F, whisk the egg, seltzer water and vodka, in a medium mixing bowl and divide it in half. Put half of the mixture in the refrigerator to reserve. Pour half of the liquid mixture into half of the dry mixture and whisk to combine, about 10 to 15 seconds. Some lumps may remain. Set the glass bowl in a larger bowl lined with ice.
• Dip the sweet potatoes into the batter using tongs, drain for 2 to 3 seconds over the bowl, and then add to the hot oil. Adjust the heat to maintain between 375 and 400 degrees F. Fry 6 to 8 pieces, at a time, until puffy and very light golden, about 1 to 2 minutes Remove to a cooling rack lined with 3 layers of paper towels set over a half sheet pan. Sprinkle with salt, if desired. Repeat the same dipping and frying procedure with the green beans and parsley leaves. Put the fried vegetables on a serving platter and serve the as an appetizer while preparing the seafood.
• Whisk together the remaining halves of dry and liquid batter ingredients as above and repeat dipping and frying with the shrimp and fish fillets. Sprinkle with salt, if desired, transfer the fish to a serving platter and serve immediately.

VEGETABLE TEMPURA

Steps:

• Whisk light soy sauce, mirin, and dashi granules together in a bowl for the sauce; set aside.
• Whisk water and egg yolks together in a bowl until well combined. Sift in flour and whisk until just combined; batter will be a bit lumpy.
• Heat vegetable oil in a wok or a deep saucepan until very hot, but not smoking.
• Dip sweet potato, onion, bell pepper, green beans, and shiitake mushrooms one by one into the batter and transfer immediately into the hot oil. Deep-fry tempura in batches, making sure to not overcrowd the wok, until batter is golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Remove from oil and transfer to a plate lined with paper towels to drain excess oil. Repeat until all vegetables have been used. Serve hot with dipping sauce.

CARIBBEAN CRAB SOUFFLE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Butter a 8 cup souffle dish.
• Toast coconut in a non-stick skillet over low heat.
• In a medium skillet, melt butter over low heat and add the celery, garlic, curry powder, thyme, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper - cook for 3 minutes. Stir in flour until smooth for about 1 minute. Pour in milk and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil and thickens. Set aside and cool slightly. Whisk the egg yolks one at a time into the sauce. Stir in coconut and crab meat.
• In medium bowl, beat egg whites and lemon juice with a mixer until stiff, but not dry. Stir 1/4 of the whites into crab mixture. Quickly and gently fold in the remaining whites. Do not deflate the volume. Transfer mixture to the souffle dish and place it on a rack at the bottom of the oven.
• Bake for 30 minutes or until golden, puffed and still moist inside.

BASIC TEMPURA

Steps:

• In a bowl, whisk in soda into the flour until a pancake batter consistency is achieved.
• Batter is then used for dipping vegetables and shrimp in prior to placing in 350-degree oil. Cook until they turn golden brown and float.

NOBU'S TEMPURA

Steps:

• Prepare the Sweet & Sour Ponzu Sauce; Stir together all ingredients in a small bowl; let stand overnight. Strain.
• In a Dutch-oven, heat 3 1/2 inches of oil to 355 degrees. Place flour in a pie plate; set aside.
• Prepare Tempura Batter; Combine egg and iced water in a medium bowl; gradually add flour, whisking gently until just combined. Batter will be lumpy.
• Prepare Traditional Dipping Sauce; Combine dashi, soy sauce, and mirin in a small saucepan; heat until just before boiling point. Remove from heat; let cool slightly. Pour into a small serving bowl; add about 1 tablespoon each daikon and ginger.
• In small batches, lightly dredge pieces of seafood and vegetables in flour, dip in batter, and using tongs, fry in the hot oil, being careful not to overcrowd the pot, until lightly golden and cooked through. (Leave enoki and shiitake mushroom caps plain, battering just stems.) Transfer to a paper towel-lined baking sheet to drain. Allow oil to reheat between batches. Repeat with remaining ingredients.
• Transfer vegetable and shrimp tempura to a serving platter; serve with traditional dipping sauce. Place sea urchin tempura on a small serving plate; serve with salt, pepper, lemon juice, and shi chi mi on the side for dipping. Arrange king crab tempura on a serving platter, and garnish with red onion, cilantro, and jalapeno; pour Sweet & Sour Ponzu Sauce over. Serve immediately.

CARIBBEAN TEMPURA

Steps:

• Peel sweet potato and cut into round slices. Cut red pepper into strips. Cut red onion into wide rings.
• Prepare batter by whisking cold water into egg yolks. Add 1 1/2 cups of flour and coconut in all at once and stir just to mix.
• Prepare dipping sauce by combining rum, beef stock, ginger, salt, brown sugar and minced garlic clove. Bring to a low boil. Add 2 tablespoons of flour and whisk until thickened to desired consistency. Turn heat down to lowest setting to keep warm.
• Dip vegetables into batter and fry in hot oil either in a fry pan on the stove or in deep fryer till outside is crispy. Note: the sweet potatoes take a little longer to fry through so that they are soft. Test with a fork to determine if they are done.
• Serve with sauce and enjoy.