Here's how to achieve lacy, light, and crisp tempura without fail.
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Tempura-style batters were originally brought to Japan by Portuguese missionaries in the 16th century.* Since then, tempura has been perfected to a near art form by Japanese chefs. At the best tempura houses in Japan, all of your courses will be cooked by a single tempura chef who spent years in apprenticeship before ever being allowed to touch the batter or fry oil.
*The word tempura itself comes from the Portuguese, as do many other Japanese words. According to Harold McGee's, tempora means"period of time" and refers to the fasting seasons during which fried fish was consumed in place of meat. These days, the word refers to any battered and fried item cooked in the manner of tempura fish, much like Americans have their"chicken-fried steak"—steak cooked in the manner of fried chicken.
Tempura chefs are sort of like the Jedi of the cooking world: They must deftly perform with the utmost skill and precision, using extremely dangerous tools, all while maintaining a calm, serene demeanor. It is an elegant technique, from a more civilized time. The bad news is that you, I, and the vast majority of people in the world are never going to become as great as the masters who spend their entire lives training.
The key characteristics of a tempura-style batter are extreme lightness of color and texture: Good tempura should be pale blond with an extraordinarily lacy, light, and crisp coating. To achieve this takes just a little more care than other types of batter. Traditional tempura batter is made by combining flour with eggs and ice-cold water. The batter is mixed untilso that plenty of pockets of dry flour remain and virtually no gluten development occurs.
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