The BEST Chicken Tempura | EASY Authentic Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the secret to perfect tempura? ›

Tips for Perfect Tempura

For crispy tempura—Use ice water instead of room temperature water or water directly from the tap. Use chopsticks—Instead of a whisk, use chopsticks to mix the tempura batter ingredients. This minimizes the amount of air in the batter and lessens the risk of overmixing.

As straightforward as the name implies, chicken tempura is tempura-style fried chicken. Chicken breast or thigh is cut into strips, marinated in soy sauce, garlic, and ginger mixture, coated in tempura batter, and deep-fried. The main difference between chicken tempura and regular tempura is the dipping sauce.

Most tempura batter is made with wheat flour. Cake flour has a lower protein content and therefore less gluten than all-purpose flour, making it a better choice for tempura—but both options will work. Rice flour is a gluten-free alternative to wheat flour that still yields a crispy coating.

Some chefs say the secret to crispy tempura is ensuring that the water you use is ice cold and to use chopsticks while mixing the batter. Using chopsticks to mix will prevent too much air from entering the batter and will result in a crispier fry.

To Make the Batter

While the oil is heating up, prepare the tempura batter. We'll use a 1-to-1 ratio (by volume) of flour to egg + water. Gather all the ingredients. Sift 1 cup all-purpose flour (plain flour) into a large bowl.

The batter consistency should be light and watery when it's ready. This is all you need to make the Tempura batter! Hint: You can adjust the batter thickness after a test fry, by adding a touch more flour (thicker coating) or water (thinner coating), just remember to keep it cold!

But what makes tempura different from other fried fare is its distinctive batter. It uses no bread crumbs and less grease than other frying methods. The batter is basically made from beaten egg, flour and cold water. Sometimes starch, oil or spices may be added.

As long as all parts of the chicken have reached a minimum internal temperature of 165°, it is safe to eat. Color does not indicate done-ness. Hemoglobin in the muscles can likewise react with air during cooking to give the meat a pinkish color.

Tempura uses no bread crumbs. Instead, it consists of flour, egg and cold water – spices and other forms of starch (i.e. corn starch) may be added. Tempura uses less oil for frying and results in a lighter and crispier coating. Oh, and a much more delicious one, at that.

Most tempura restaurants use untoasted sesame oil or their own special blend of oil. At home, you can also use a neutral-flavored oil such as vegetable or rice bran oil or canola oil, and simply add a touch of sesame oil for a deliciously nutty aroma. Use clean, new oil instead of used oil.

How to make tempura stay crispy? ›

It is impossible to make properly crispy tempura with all-purpose flour. You have to have a very low-protein flour, such as cake flour or pastry flour. You can up the crispness by adding a little bit of additional starch: potato starch cornstarch, fine rice flour (not glutinous rice flour!), whatever you like.

Ebi tempura (shrimp tempura)

This is one of the most popular types of tempura in Japan. It is made by coating whole shrimp in tempura batter and can be found atop udon or soba noodles. Ebi tempura is often confused with ebi furai, which is shrimp coated in a heavy panko batter and deep fried.

The secret of the lightness of the tempura is all in the thermal shock: the batter must be worked (a little) in a metal bowl placed in a larger bowl full of ice. A similar rule must be also applied to the vegetables or fish you want to fry: better keep them in the refrigerator until the moment before cooking.

Once the oil has reached the desired temperature (180°C for fish and meat and 170°C for vegetables), dust an ingredient that has previously been patted dry in rice flour, dip into the bowl of batter and add to the hot oil. Immediately sprinkle some additional batter into the oil to give the tempura an added crispiness.

Regardless of whether you decide to use a flour mix or to create your own batter, the key to nailing the perfect tempura batter is to use icy cold water. This slows down the formation of gluten to prevent the crust from absorbing too much oil and turning your tempura into heavy, fried food.

Setting the fried tempura on a rack will keep it crisp and it'll keep nicely hot in the oven while you cook the rest of the food. You can also prepare the tempura in advance (or keep leftovers) by letting it cool completely on the rack, then storing it in an airtight container in the fridge.

Regardless of whether you decide to use a flour mix or to create your own batter, the key to nailing the perfect tempura batter is to use icy cold water. This slows down the formation of gluten to prevent the crust from absorbing too much oil and turning your tempura into heavy, fried food.

The batter must also be kept as cold as possible.

The best way to do this is to place the batter bowl into a larger one that contains ice and water. As you're working close to the stove when making tempura, the batter can warm up very quickly and this could result in soggy tempura.

Turn the shrimp over, back side up, and using your fingertips, gently pinch while pressing down on the flesh, moving from tip to tail to straighten and lengthen it. Your shrimp is now ready for battering and frying, a process through which it will remain straight.