the tempura experiment

I apologize for the long lapse in blogging. August was busy with a friend's wedding, a family vacation and my first trip to Barrow with my job (pictures to follow, I promise). I did find some time in all of that to try something new in the kitchen, though.


A few weeks ago I found myself with a fridge full of fresh vegetables and some fresh halibut from the market. Hmmm, I thought, I've always been curious about tempura. Maybe now is the time to try. After some internet research, I plunged in. I found the process to be very simple, very messy and a lot of fun. Here's what I did:

First, I prepped all the veggies. I decided to do green beans, zucchini and sugar snap peas. I washed everything, strung the peas, snapped the ends off the beans and sliced the zucchini into medium thick slices. Then I set up my tempura-making station: one plate of flour, one bowl with two eggs beaten with a tablespoon or two of water (egg wash), and a plate of panko. I heated a few inches of canola oil in a deep frying pan. When a pinch of flour spattered nicely in the oil, I began putting the veggies through the assembly line. Flour bath, egg bath, panko bath, then onto a plate by the hot oil. Then into the fryer until golden brown, turned occasionally to ensure even cooking. Everything came out wonderfully, although the green beans and zucchini were better than the sugar snaps. I would have done sweet potato slices if I had them around. I cut the halibut into medium-sized chunks and fried that last. Somewhere in there I made a dipping sauce in my food processor. I made the sauce up completely, but it turned out well--how could it not, though, when composed of tamari sauce, sesame oil, fresh cilantro, grated ginger root and fresh garlic? I added a little water to thin everything out nicely. I think next time I might add some peanut butter.

I think this would make a great meal for a party. It should be eaten fresh (although mine did stay amazingly crispy in a 350 degree oven until my husband got back from work). The prep is so simple that everyone can pick out the veggies they want and go through the assembly line themselves. I did, of course, feel that greasy heaviness after consuming just this for dinner. That's why it would be great as an appetizer, or along with a bunch of fresh fruit or a big green salad.