Tempura

I love tempura, it's not healthy, it's not good for you (all that frying) but after a morning run, what could be better for Friday?  Let's make it Fry-day this week!  This can either be a great fish dish or vegan depending on your preferences.  Both are great.

Tempura - serves 1

Ingredients

Approx 10 Large Raw Prawns (exclude if preferring a vegan option), defrosted if frozen
Vegetables of your choice, I used slices of red pepper and some tender stem broccoli

Batter:
30g, 1oz plain flour
30g, 1oz cornflour
80ml, 2.8 fl oz soda water or sparkling water from a new, cold bottle

Vegetable oil for frying

Dip:
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp sweet chilli sauce

Method

Weigh out the flours into a bowl.

Prepare the vegetables by slicing into thick slices.

Prepare the prawns by cutting down the back and removing the intestine (this is often referred to as a 'vein').  This makes the prawns butterfly as they cook but also makes them taste better.

When you're ready to cook, heat up a couple of inches (5cm or so) of oil in a saucepan or a deep fat fryer until a cube of bread browns in 30 seconds.  Have a warm plate lined with kitchen roll ready.

As close to cooking as possible, pour the soda water onto the flours and mix.  You don't have to mix it completely, little lumps of flour are not just fine but preferable.  Now, you do need to work quickly.

Dip each piece of vegetable or prawn into the batter and fry for 1-2 minutes or until the batter is starting to colour slightly and they are cooked through and crisp.  Put on the kitchen roll to drain as you cook the rest.

Serve with either the soy dipping sauce (just mix the sauce ingredients together).

Linked up to recipe of the week.