Crispy Tempura 3 Kinds | Umami Insider

Ingredients:
- 1 cup Tempura Powder
- ¾ cup Water
- 3 Black Tiger or Gulf Shrimp
- 3 Shiitake Mushroom
- 3 Asparagus
- 3 Tbsp Tempura Powder, for shrimp
- Oil, for frying
- Salt, for eating

Tempura Sauce:
- 5 Tbsp Mentsuyu
- 1 Tbsp Mirin
- 1 Tbsp Sake
- 6 Tbsp Water

Instructions:
1. Peel and devein shrimps.
2. Cut the triangle part of the tail to remove water.
3. Make 3 to 4 cut marks on the belly, and stretch on the cutting board until you hear a little popping sound (Otherwise your shrimp tempura will be curly, not straight).
4. Pat dry with paper towels and lightly powder on tempura powder.
5. Cut off the end of the asparagus and cut it in half.
6. Remove any dirt off from shiitake mushrooms with a paper towel (do not wash). Remove the stem.
7. Mix together the tempura sauce ingredients in a microwavable container. Microwave it for 2 minutes. Mix and set it aside.
8. Pour water into a medium bowl. Then add the tempura powder.
9. Mix about 30-40 times with hand mixer.
10. Check the thickness of the batter by scooping with a spoon. Tempura batter is perfect if the batter falls in small drops. If it’s too smooth, add tempura powder. If it’s too thick, add water.
11. Add frying oil up to 60-80% of the pot. Fill up to at least around 1inch if using a frying pan.
12. Heat the oil. The best temperature is 320-356F. (Pour a bit of the batter in the pot. If it sinks to the bottom and rises immediately it’s around 320F. If it sinks halfway and rises immediately, it’s around 356F. If the batter immediately floats, the oil is too hot.)
13. Dip shrimps/ vegetables to the tempura batter and carefully place in the pot.
14. Add ingredients so it only takes up about half the surface. More than that will decrease the temperature of the oil. Once the ingredients are in, adjust the heat.
15. When the bubbles start to become smaller, it’s done. Make sure to remove excess oil when taking the fried ingredient out. 1-2 minutes is the desired frying time.
16. Place the tempura on a cooling rack, making sure they don’t overlap.
17. Enjoy with a pinch of salt of dip tempura in tempura sauce!