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Shrimp Tempura

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Learn how to make light, airy, and perfectly crunchy shrimp tempura in your own kitchen with this easy to follow tutorial. 

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 12 large shrimp
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 cup ice cold water
  • Ice cubes
  • 1 cup self rising flour
  • Cornstarch, for dusting
  • Vegetable oil or other neutral oil with a high smoke point such as canola or safflower
Serve with tempura dipping sauce (tentsuyu)

Instructions

  1. Devein and peel the body of each shrimp, leaving the tail on. Then slice a few shallow cuts across the back of each shrimp (about 1/4-inch deep) and flatten the shrimp on a cutting board, or other flat surface.
  2. Whisk the egg and ice water in a bowl. Keep whisking until the egg is completely mixed with the water. Add 2-3 ice cubes to the mixture and set aside.
  3. In a separate bowl, add the self rising flour. Set aside.
  4. In a deep skillet or medium size pot, add about 1.5 inches of oil and turn the heat on. Bring the temperature of the oil to 360ºF. Use a kitchen thermometer to check the temperature of the oil.
  5. While the oil is heating up, prepare your work station – place the shrimp, cornstarch (to dust the shrimp), flour, and egg mixture next to where you will be deep frying.
  6. Cover a plate or tray with paper towel and place it next to your ingredients. You will also need chopstick or tongs to hold the shrimp tempura.
  7. Take out the ice cubes and dump the flour in the wet mixture in one shot. DO NOT STIR. Stirring activates the gluten which is not what we want! Instead, poke it with chopsticks for about 20 seconds, until the batter is the consistency of cream. It’s okay if it’s lumpy. This step should be done right before you are ready to deep fry. The batter shouldn’t be left sitting for long.
  8. Dust the shrimp with cornstarch. Take one shrimp, lightly dip it in batter and carefully slide it in the oil. Repeat this step with 3 or 4 more shrimp and add them to the skillet. It’s important not to overcrowd the skillet so the oil temperature doesn’t drop. Deep fry for about 3 minutes, until the shrimp are golden.
  9. Take them out using chopstick or tongs, and place them on the plate covered with paper towel to remove excess oil.
  10. Repeat until all the shrimp have been used.
  11. Serve with tempura dipping sauce.

Notes

Shrimp tempura taste best when consumed immediately. I don’t recommend saving the leftovers for later but if you would like to, keep the shrimp refrigerated in an airtight storage container. They will keep for 1 day.

Nutrition

Find it online: https://pickledplum.com/shrimp-tempura/

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