Homemade Japanese Vegetable Tempura with Mixed Mushrooms

I picked up a mixed pack of oriental mushrooms at the grocery store and thought… hmmm, what on earth am I going to do with these? ;D It’s honestly pretty amazing how the variety of mushrooms available at regular supermarkets has grown so much in recent years, which is perfect for anyone like me who loves experimenting with new flavors, especially in dishes like Japanese tempura.

Now, just so you know a little fun history, tempura is a classic Japanese dish with, of all things, Portuguese roots, brought over by missionaries and merchants back in the 16th century in the city of Nagasaki. The idea is simple but genius, vegetables, fish, or shellfish dipped in a light batter and fried until you get that crispy, airy texture that really lets the natural flavor of the ingredients shine through. Yeah, they’re basically a Japanese cousin of the beloved Portuguese “peixinhos da horta.” The versatility of tempura is fantastic too, you can use almost anything, as long as your ingredients aren’t too wet.

For this recipe, I used actual tempura flour, which is a bit different from what you’d use in the Portuguese version, and it makes the whole process so much easier. This special flour is a blend of wheat flour, yam flour, and seasonings that helps you nail that perfect texture we all associate with a great tempura batter. With ice-cold water and a couple of simple tricks, you can absolutely make a beautiful tempura right at home. OK, look, it’s not going to be quite the same as a dedicated tempura restaurant in Japan (that is mind blowing amazing heheheh), but it’s going to be seriously delicious all the same ;D Let’s get into it!

Homemade Japanese Vegetable Tempura with Mixed Mushrooms

Servings: 8
Time: 1hr 30mins
Difficulty: Normal
Rating: ★★★★★
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Nothing quite like a beautiful pile of tempura, this isn't an everyday recipe, but when you make it, it always feels like a special occasion heheheh. And trust me, the crunch is absolutely worth it!

Ingredients

Tempura Flour – 100g
Water – 160ml (Ice Cold)
Potato – 1 (Thin Slices)
Carrot – 1 (Julienne)
Onion – 1
Nameko Mushrooms – 100g
Shimeji Mushrooms – 100g
Brown Shimeji Mushrooms – 100g
King Oyster Mushrooms – 100g
Sunflower Oil – For Frying
Water – 240ml
Mirin – 60ml

Directions

Start by preparing everything: washing the vegetables and mushrooms, slicing the potato into very thin slices (almost transparent. Note that I wasn’t very consistent, so some slices were too thick and didn’t work as well in the tempura). For the carrot, cut it into very thin julienne strips, and you can also cut the onion into julienne strips (this is the most common in Japan, or open it like a flower), but I quartered it.

Clean the mushrooms gently with a damp cloth and separate them: leave the Nameko mushrooms whole, separate the Shimeji and Brown Shimeji mushrooms into small groups, and cut the King Oyster mushrooms into thin longitudinal slices.
Wipe all the ingredients on kitchen paper towels (or clean kitchen towels) to remove as much moisture as possible. The drier they are, the better the tempura will be, leave them on the paper towels until it’s time to dip them in the batter.
Now create the tempura batter, pour 100g of tempura flour into a bowl followed by 160ml of ice-cold water. Stir with chopsticks, you want the mixture slightly lumpy, not super smooth.
Pour the oil into a frying pan and let it heat up. You want the oil very hot, but not burning. If you’re unsure, drop a little of the batter into the oil, if it starts to sizzle and float, then it’s at the correct temperature. In my case, I use medium-high heat.
When the oil is at the right temperature, dip the potato pieces in the batter until completely coated and then transfer them to the oil. Repeat for the larger mushrooms (King Oyster). But don’t overcrowd the oil. After frying, transfer to kitchen paper or a rack to drain the excess oil.
For the smaller mushrooms and thinly sliced vegetables, pour the remaining batter over them, mix well until they are coated (you don’t want them submerged in batter, just coated). Next, using a tablespoon, take a spoonful of the mixture and drop it into the oil. You’re using the batter to keep the carrot or mushroom pieces together. Repeat until you run out of ingredients or batter.
For the sauce, add the water, mirin, soy sauce and fish sauce to a small saucepan. Heat it just enough to dissolve everything completely, it doesn’t need to boil. Remove from the heat and let it cool.
And it’s ready! Dip each tempura in the sauce, if you like, or choose other sauces and enjoy!

Notes & Tips: If you run out of batter partway through, just mix up a little more. As long as you stick to the same ratio of water to tempura flour, you’re totally fine.

If you can’t find tempura flour, you can make your own blend, combine 125g of all-purpose flour with 37g of cornstarch (maizena), one teaspoon of baking powder, and one teaspoon of salt, and use that instead! ;D

You don’t need to use these exact mushrooms. Use whatever mushrooms you can find, or mix things up with other vegetables or even shrimp and fish for a more traditional spread.

Make sure your oil is deep enough to let the tempura pieces float freely. If they’re resting on the bottom of the pan, the heat won’t distribute evenly and you’ll get a soggy result instead of that beautiful crunch.

When frying work in small batches. Overcrowding the oil drops the temperature fast, which is the number one enemy of crispy tempura.

Serve the tempura immediately after frying. Tempura is absolutely best the moment it comes out of the oil, and it doesn’t wait well. Have your dipping sauce ready and your guests gathered before you start frying.

For the batter, cold is everything. If your kitchen is warm, you can even nest your mixing bowl in a larger bowl filled with ice to keep the batter temperature down while you work. The temperature difference between the cold batter and the hot oil is what creates that signature light, shattered crunch from the tempura batter.

This recipe for Homemade Japanese Vegetable Tempura with Mixed Mushrooms was originally created on BakeAfter.com. Esta receita de Como Fazer Tempura Crocante Japonesa com Cogumelos e Legumes foi publicada em português no Iguaria.com.