Dining with the Chef

Summer Tempura & Clam Miso Soup (2012x26)

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Today's theme is tempura, the king of "Washoku". Master chef Saito will teach you how to fry tempura professionally! Using seasonal vegetables will make tempura so summery! Let's deep-fry it so it is very dry and crispy. Summer Tempura [Ingredients] *Serves 2 6 jumbo shrimp, thawed if frozen 4 shiitake mushrooms 60 - 80g sweet potato 4 shiso leaves 2 sprigs basil leaves Flour, for coating Vegetable oil, for deep-frying [For the batter] 1 egg yolk 1 cup / 200ml cold water 1 1/4cup / 250ml flour [For the dipping sauce] 200ml dashi stock 50ml mirin 50ml soy sauce Grated daikon radish, to taste [Method] 1. Peel the shrimp, and rinse in salted water to remove the fishy odor. Carefully wipe off moisture or it will splatter in the hot oil. Make a cut on the back, and devein. Cut off the tip of the tail, on a diagonal, to draw out the water, remaining in the tail. 2. Make several cuts on the belly side. Pound the back with a knife, flattening the muscle fibers, to straighten. 3. De-stem the shiitake mushrooms, and make cuts on each cap. Remove the stem from the shiso leaves and pick the basil leaves. Cut the sweet potato into 5 mm thick slices, soak in water, and pat dry. 4. Bread the all ingredients, with flour, using a brush. 5. For the batter, combine egg yolks and cold water, and lightly mix with sifted flour. 6. Pour 3 cm of oil into a pan, and heat to about 175 degrees Celsius. 7. Dip the shrimp in the batter, and add to the hot oil, one by one. You might want to fry 1 to 2 minutes at first, and when the ingredients feel lighter when lifted, they are done. 8. Dip the potato slices in the batter, and deep-fry. Dip only the top of the cap of the shiitake, and deep-fry. 9. For the shiso leaves, only dip one side. For the basil, you can dip the entire leaf. When they are a light gold colour, they are done! 10. For the tempura dipping sauce, bring the