Seafood and Vegetable Tempura

Ingredients

10 medium-sized prawns
300g fish fillet
200g lotus roots
6 pieces young corn shoots

Batter:
1 egg
1 cup ice water

Sift:
Pinch of bicarbonate of soda
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
50g plain flour
50g corn flour

Sauce:
2 tbsp mirin
2 tbsp Japanese soy sauce
3/4 cup dashi
Pinch of salt

Method

Shell prawns, leaving tails intact. Remove the vein. Wash and pat-dry prawns with absorbent kitchen paper. Slice fish fillet thinly. Cut lotus roots cross-wise into thin slices. Arrange prawns, fish fillet and vegetables in a plastic container and refrigerate until serving time.

Break egg into a bowl of ice-cold water. Beat lightly until frothy. Add sifted bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, plain flour and corn flour. Beat until well combined (do not overbeat) and batter is smooth. Batter should be thin. If it is thick, add a few drops of ice water. Stand the bowl of batter in a larger bowl with ice-cubes.

Heat oil in wok and add one tablespoon of sesame oil. (This gives the fried ingredients a more distinctive flavour.) Dip items in batter one at a time and place in hot oil. Do not overcrowd the wok. This is to ensure that the oil is kept at a moderately high temperature for best results.

Serve deep-fried fritters while still crisp and hot. Dip fritters in tempura sauce.

To make the sauce: heat mirin in a small saucepan. Add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a rapid boil. Set aside to cool before serving.

Note
1) Mirin is sweet japanese sake used for cooking.
2) Dashi is dried soup stock made from poultry or fish.

From Kuali.com