12967 Serves 6 Wed Aug 06 08:14:20 -0700 2008 Wed Feb 04 04:12:06 -0800 2009 Licensed http://www.chow.com/recipes/12967 Wed, 04 Feb 2009 12:12:06 GMT The Portuguese first introduced the technique of batter-frying to Japan in the seventeenth century. The Japanese have perfected the batter over the years to produce a very light coating that seals the food while cooking, leaving the interior juicy and perfectly cooked. Tempura should be served as soon as possible after frying.

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For the dipping sauce, heat the mirin until it ignites. Cook until the alcohol has burned off, then add the dashi stock, soy sauce, and sansho powder. Keep warm until service or reheat just before service. (The dipping sauce can be made 1 day in advance.)

Mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl.

In a separate bowl, combine the egg white and the sparkling water. Add this liquid to the dry mixture, stirring only enough to incorporate the liquid. The batter should be lumpy and undermixed.

Place the bowl containing the batter in an ice bath to keep it very cold. Ideally, the batter should be made just before serving. If the batter gets too smooth, sprinkle in more flour and stir lightly. If you like a thinner coating, add a bit more seltzer.

Trim the noodles to lengths of ½ inch [1 cm]. The easiest way to do this is to pound the noodles in a heavy plastic bag, using a kitchen mallet, until the desired length is attained.

Mix the sake, mirin, ginger, scallions, and sansho powder together.

Make 3 small diagonal slits on the underside of the shrimp tails to prevent curling while frying. Marinate the shrimp for 30 minutes in the sake mixture.

Mix the flour, salt, and sansho powder together and reserve.

Mix the scallop purée, dashi stock, soy sauce, mirin, sake, and arrowroot together well. Stuff this mixture into the mushroom caps. Cover with plastic film until needed.

For the misty-fried shrimp, roll the shrimp in the dry flour mixture, then dip into the egg white mixture. Drain briefly, then roll the shrimp in the broken noodles to coat completely. (The shrimp can be prepared up to 2 hours in advance, covered with paper towels, and refrigerated.)

Fry at 360°F [180°C] for 1½ to 2 minutes, turning halfway through cooking. Drain on paper towels and keep warm.

For the stuffed mushrooms, dust lightly in flour and dip into the tempura batter. Gently lower into the oil, stuffed side up. Fry for 4 to 5 minutes, or until the mushrooms float and are crisp and lightly golden. Drain on paper towels and keep warm.

For the eggplant, make several slices along the length of the eggplant, from the stem end all the way down to the bottom, so that the eggplant slices may be fanned out. Dust lightly with flour and dip into the tempura batter. Hold the eggplant by the stem end for a few seconds as it drains, to maintain a fan shape. Fry 2 to 3 minutes, or until crisp and lightly golden. Drain on paper towels and keep warm.

For the mustard greens, dust lightly with flour and dip into the tempura batter. Dip the leaf part into the hot oil first (to set the shape), then lower the entire green into the oil to submerge. Fry for 1½ to 2 minutes. Drain on paper towels and keep warm.

Serve 1 shrimp, 2 stuffed mushrooms, 1 eggplant fan, and 1 mustard bunch per person, with a scant ½ cup [120 mL] of the warmed dipping sauce in a small bowl.

]]> http://www.chow.com Arthur L. Meyer 50 Main ½ cup [120 mL] mirin

]]> 2 cups [480 mL] dashi stock (see page 216)

]]> ¾ cup [120 mL] “lite” soy sauce

]]> 1 teaspoon [5 mL] sansho powder (see page 584)

]]> 1 cup [240 mL] tempura flour (tempura-ko) or cake flour

]]> ¼ cup [60 mL] cornstarch

]]> ½ teaspoon [3 mL] baking powder

]]> ½ teaspoon [3 mL] salt

]]> 1 large egg white

]]> About 1¼ cups [300 mL] ice-cold sparkling water or seltzer

]]> 1 ounce [30 g] dried harusame (spring rain) noodles

]]> 1 tablespoon [15 mL] sake

]]> 1 tablespoon [15 mL] mirin

]]> 1 teaspoon [5 mL] ginger, grated

]]> 1 teaspoon [5 mL] scallions, sliced fine

]]> ½ teaspoon [3 mL] sansho powder

]]> 6 large shrimp, peeled with tails attached

]]> ¼ cup [60 mL] all-purpose flour

]]> ½ teaspoon [3 mL] salt

]]> ¼ teaspoon [1 mL] sansho powder

]]> 8 ounces [225 g] scallops, coarsely puréed

]]> ½ teaspoon [3 mL] dashi stock

]]> ¼ teaspoon [1 mL] Japanese soy sauce (shoyu)

]]> ¼ teaspoon [1 mL] mirin

]]> ¼ teaspoon [1 mL] sake

]]> ½ teaspoon [3 mL] arrowroot

]]> 12 fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems removed, brushed clean, star-shape cuts on the caps

]]> 1 egg white, lightly beaten with ¼ teaspoon [1 mL] dashi stock Vegetable oil, for deep-frying

]]> 6 to 12 small Japanese eggplants, depending on size

]]> 6 bunches of young red giant Chinese mustard or 12 sprigs of watercress

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