Tempura?

Quoted message said:

Hello!
Can someone explain how to fry using that batter so that the batter
stays on after frying?

I think it is called, Tempura. No? Can I also ask for a recipe for
the batter?

Thanks, from a guy now baching.

Mike

Generally, in any kind of coating, whether it be tempura or some other
sort, the surface of the food has to be prepped to allow for the
adherence of the coating. Otherwise, the coating will come off before or
during frying.

A common mistake with batter type coatings is to have the food surface
wet. Dip it in the coating and into the fryer. The wet surface turns to
steam under the coating and the coating falls off.

Depends upon what it is that you're frying, food surface texture, flavor
and all, but use a slight dredging of flour or cornstarch first to give
a dry surface for the batter to cling to. This is also where you'd want
certain seasonings, like paprika. Applied on the outside, they'll burn
from direct contact with the oil. But under the coating, they'll be great.

There are any number of recipes floating around on the web. Also check
the Asian foods section of your mega-mart. They normally have several
different kinds of batter mix.

Quoted message said:

Hello!
Can someone explain how to fry using that batter so that the batter
stays on after frying?

A bit of background music...

A true tempura batter doesn't completely cover the food. It makes a
crisp, lacy network around the food with the food peering through in
places. European and American batters are intended to cover completely.

For all non-tempura batters, the rule is dry wet foods, wet dry foods.
So fish, chicken, shrimp, etc. get dredged in flour to make a dry
surface for the batter to adhere to. Veggies that are dry get a fast
coating of egg.

With tempura, that pre-prep isn't necessary, but other details make a
significant difference.

Quoted message said:

I think it is called, Tempura. No? Can I also ask for a recipe for
the batter?

<http://japanesefood.about.com/library/weekly/aa031801a.htm>

This one has photos, but the description is badly translated.
<http://www.japan-guide.com/r/e106.html>

A little history and another viewpoint.
<http://www.mynippon.com/cooking/tempura.htm>

Happy tempura.

Pastorio

On 17 Dec 2005 said:

Hello!
Can someone explain how to fry using that batter so that the batter
stays on after frying?

I think it is called, Tempura. No? Can I also ask for a recipe for
the batter?

Thanks, from a guy now baching.

Mike

Batter of any kind for frying should be thick. Your oil must be hot enough
to set the batter, but not burn it. And the oil should be deep enough so
the food item can "float" - not touching the bottom of the pan.

I don't have an authenic tempura batter. I like "poufy" batter, so I make
one out of flour and beer.

The ingredients are: flour and beer.

Put some flour (I use self-rising, so if you don't, add the levening) in a
big, oversized bowl.

Whisk in the beer until you have a batter consistency and it is smooth.
*Do NOT ever stir again*.

Set bowl aside for an hour or so and let rise. It will "pouf" up about
twice or so its original size. Do not stir (do not bend, fold, staple, or
mutilate).

I do shrimp, so...

Make sure shrimp (or another item) is dry. Dredge in a light coating of
flour, dip into batter - allowing excess to drain off - drop in hot oil
and fry for 3 to 4 minutes (for shrimp). Drain on paper towels.

If you want to add spices, add them to the flour before you pour in the
beer and mix well. Add whatever flavors you like - hot, sweet, sour,
tangy. I would think dry spices, such as onion powder or garlic powder or
salt, would be better for this combo than using fresh. But I don't know,
I've never used fresh. You could use hot sauce if you wanted or you could
add a little sugar. This would also be the time to add salt and pepper, if
you wanted those.

Elaine, too

<[email hidden]> ha scritto nel messaggio
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hello!
Can someone explain how to fry using that batter so that the batter
stays on after frying?

I think it is called, Tempura. No? Can I also ask for a recipe for
the batter?

Thanks, from a guy now baching.

Mike

I know that to make a very light original tempura dough, you must put inside
the eggs white lightly beaten.
Cheers
Pandora

Quoted message said:

"Pandora" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I know that to make a very light original tempura dough, you must put

inside

Quoted message said:

the eggs white lightly beaten.

Hi, Pandora -

I've never tried it with just the whites, although I can certainly
see how that would give you a light batter - the recipe I
always use for tempura is from Shizuo Tsuji's "Japanese
Cooking: A Simple Art" (a book I can't possibly recommend
too highly, by the way - excellent on all manner of authentic
Japanese recipes and techniques), and is just:

2 cups flour
2 egg yoks
2 cups ice water

A couple of things about traditional tempura batter - first,
it is never mixed well; you just fold the ingredients together
loosely, and that's it. It SHOULD be lumpy. (Make it with
chopsticks - they're lousy mixing tools, and therefore
just what you want!) Making the batter with ice water, and
keeping the batter cold (in tempura restaurants in Japan, the
batter is often kept in a bowl which is then itself in a larger bowl
of ice water) is the other important traditional bit. Also,
tempura batter is never made in advance; ideally, you mix it
up JUST before dipping the ingredients and frying them. A
Japanese tempura chef will keep mixing up fresh batches of
batter, a little bit at a time, as needed throughout the evening.

Also, all ingredients need to be completely dry, and dredged
very lightly in flour before being dipped into the batter.

Bob M.

Quoted message said:

Hello!
Can someone explain how to fry using that batter so that the batter
stays on after frying?

I think it is called, Tempura. No? Can I also ask for a recipe for
the batter?

Thanks, from a guy now baching.

If this is your first try at tempura, forget making the batter from
scratch. That's just one more thing to stress over. Instead, buy a
box of batter mix and follow the package instructions. It will
probably say, 'don't overmix' and that's good advice--a few small lumps
are okay. It may or may not say to have the water ice cold. It should
be.

Use a wok or deep sided pot that will safely contain several inches of
neutral-tasting oil. High heat. A thermometer to read between 350°F
and 375°F, or the green top of a scallion that will brown fairly
quickly when the right temp is reached. Have all the food you're going
to cook sliced and ready to go. Into the batter and immediately into
the oil. Don't overcrowd, so as not to bring the oil temp down too
much. Done when a light golden color--don't wait for a dark brown.

Use your imagination as to what to cook. Meats, fish, shellfish,
veggies, flowers and their leaves -- it's all good. A slice of sweet
onion. Shrimp, of course. Squash blossoms. Have fun. -aem

Quoted message said:

Hello!
Can someone explain how to fry using that batter so that the batter
stays on after frying?

I think it is called, Tempura. No? Can I also ask for a recipe for
the batter?

Thanks, from a guy now baching.

Mike

Dip the vegetables or whatever you are frying in flour first, then in
the tempura batter. The batter shouldn't be really thick. Can also
purchase tempura mix at any Asian shop.

Here is one batter that works:

1 extra large egg beaten
200g or 2 cups plain flour sifted
ice water
ice cubes

Add ice water to the beaten egg to make 150 ml or 2/3 cup. Pour into a
large bowl. Add the flour and mix roughly with chopsticks. Don't beat;
batter should be lumpy. Add ice cubes as dipping progresses to keep mix
cool.

"Bob Myers" <[email hidden]> ha scritto nel messaggio
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Pandora" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I know that to make a very light original tempura dough, you must put

inside

Quoted message said:

the eggs white lightly beaten.

Hi, Pandora -

I've never tried it with just the whites, although I can certainly
see how that would give you a light batter - the recipe I
always use for tempura is from Shizuo Tsuji's "Japanese
Cooking: A Simple Art" (a book I can't possibly recommend
too highly, by the way - excellent on all manner of authentic
Japanese recipes and techniques), and is just:

2 cups flour
2 egg yoks
2 cups ice water

I don't know why they use the egg yolks. I use egg yolks (and sometime
yeast) when I want to do a very dense and covering dough (for example when
you fry fruit, such as bananas or cherries).
Perhaps I have the recipe of Italian tempura ...🙂))

Quoted message said:

A couple of things about traditional tempura batter - first,
it is never mixed well; you just fold the ingredients together
loosely, and that's it. It SHOULD be lumpy. (Make it with
chopsticks - they're lousy mixing tools, and therefore
just what you want!) Making the batter with ice water, and
keeping the batter cold (in tempura restaurants in Japan, the
batter is often kept in a bowl which is then itself in a larger bowl
of ice water) is the other important traditional bit.

Yes I knew this thing of icing water: it is used to avoid that oil become
cold!

Also,

Quoted message said:

tempura batter is never made in advance; ideally, you mix it
up JUST before dipping the ingredients and frying them. A
Japanese tempura chef will keep mixing up fresh batches of
batter, a little bit at a time, as needed throughout the evening.

I didn't know this. Why?

Quoted message said:

Also, all ingredients need to be completely dry, and dredged
very lightly in flour before being dipped into the batter.

I didn't know this thing of flour . It's a japanese tip. I imagine.
I want to try next time. Thank you for this recipe.
pandora

Quoted message said:

Bob M.

Quoted message said:

On 17 Dec 2005 said:

Hello!
Can someone explain how to fry using that batter so that the batter
stays on after frying?

I think it is called, Tempura. No? Can I also ask for a recipe for
the batter?

Have you found this site, Francisco?
http://japanesefood.about.com/library/weekly/aa031801a.htm

"PastaLover" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:zLVof.54$_L5.51@fed1read06...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Hello!
Can someone explain how to fry using that batter so that the batter
stays on after frying?

I think it is called, Tempura. No? Can I also ask for a recipe for
the batter?

Thanks, from a guy now baching.

Mike

Generally, in any kind of coating, whether it be tempura or some other
sort, the surface of the food has to be prepped to allow for the
adherence of the coating. Otherwise, the coating will come off before or
during frying.

A common mistake with batter type coatings is to have the food surface
wet. Dip it in the coating and into the fryer. The wet surface turns to
steam under the coating and the coating falls off.

Depends upon what it is that you're frying, food surface texture, flavor
and all, but use a slight dredging of flour or cornstarch first to give
a dry surface for the batter to cling to. This is also where you'd want
certain seasonings, like paprika. Applied on the outside, they'll burn
from direct contact with the oil. But under the coating, they'll be great.

There are any number of recipes floating around on the web. Also check
the Asian foods section of your mega-mart. They normally have several
different kinds of batter mix.

I use a tempura style-ish batter for things like calamari - dredge the
pieces in flour first as you suggest (I use a mixture, the same as I do for
the batter more or less). The batter I make is usually around 70% corn
starch 30% SR wheat flour (roughly - I've never measured - just dump in what
looks about right), and I use beer or soda water, ice cold, dump it in and
mix it up roughly/unevenly leaving it lumpy and relatively thin too and
never leave it standing for this kind of batter - use it almost as soon as
it is mixed up. Always comes out great (light and crispy, and not oil soaked
like a deep fried sponge!), and not like I've had much practice at this
either - only been making batter for a couple years, infrequently.

Shaun aRe

"Elaine Parrish" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On 17 Dec 2005 said:

Hello!
Can someone explain how to fry using that batter so that the batter
stays on after frying?

I think it is called, Tempura. No? Can I also ask for a recipe for
the batter?

Thanks, from a guy now baching.

Mike

Batter of any kind for frying should be thick.

Not a tmpura batter - it should be quite thin compared to the frying batters
the west is more used to. As (IIRC) Bob (this one) said - it isn't suppsed
to be a thick even coating for tempura, but a thin, light, crispy one and
you can see the food through it in places.

Quoted message said:

I don't have an authenic tempura batter. I like "poufy" batter, so I make
one out of flour and beer.

The ingredients are: flour and beer.

Put some flour (I use self-rising, so if you don't, add the levening) in a
big, oversized bowl.

Whisk in the beer until you have a batter consistency and it is smooth.
*Do NOT ever stir again*.

Quoted message said:

Set bowl aside for an hour or so and let rise.

I would suggest a mix for the flours, the greater of the mix being a light
flour such as corn starch. Beer or soda water can help as the liquid part.

Tempura batter should be used almost as soon as it is mixed up from all that
I have read, seen or been told, and I would never whisk it - a little lumpy
can help (it helps with some cripiness). I just dump the liquid in in glugs
while stiring with a fork until it looks like there's enough liquid then
stop adding, give one last stir around.

I don't have any authentic recipes for the batter, but plenty of authentic
'how it should turn out' and how to prep it adviceseseses (Yes that's a word
damnit!)

Shaun aRe