Tempura

Tempura - one of the few dishes that came in the original Japanese cuisine from abroad. And how! From the most distant of Portugal, missionaries and traders from which the Japanese have learned to cook vegetables and seafood dipped in batter. The word tempura is derived from the Latin tempora, which the Portuguese and Spanish missionaries denotes the period of fasting, when a decent Christian should abstain from meat.

You will enjoy this quick and easy way to build a supper or snacks for a party, but do not forget about moderation: according to legend, the shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu so loved the meat overseas, that once he died, re tempura. Do not repeat his mistakes!
Tempura vegetables and shrimp, 2 servings:

    * 6.8 prawns;
    * 1 / 2 bell pepper;
    * 2.1 stalk celery;
    * 1 small carrot;
    * 4 pen green onions;
    * 4 shiitake mushrooms or mushroom;
    * 500 grams of vegetable oil for deep-frying.
For the batter:

    * 100 grams of flour;
    * 200 grams of ice water;
    * 1 egg;
    * 1 / 2 tsp salt.
Wash all the vegetables, clean and slice into thin strips, cut the green part of onion and half an inch higher than the white ends, and save for other dishes and prawns, wash and remove the vein. For the batter whisk egg, add water, sifted flour and salt and stir. Do not set goals perevzbit batter, let them be small lumps - they, along with ice cold water, are responsible for the unique texture of dough, which distinguishes it from similar tempura dishes.
This list of ingredients - not a dogma, nor even a guide to action. You can take the broccoli, eggplant or beans, parsley, lettuce or Chinese cabbage, squid, scallops, crabs and more, depending on what is found in your refrigerator and where stretches your imagination.
Be careful when handling hot oil. Do not leave it unattended during the heating, beware of splashing, and even close to the kitchen Keep small children.
How should heat the oil for deep-frying, and when it reaches the desired temperature of us (cast into it a piece of bread should immediately zashkvorchat fun and turn brown after a minute or two), immerse the vegetables and shrimp in batter and fry in oil for a few pieces at a time. Cooking time for various different ingredients - lettuce or greens need to pull out after a few seconds, as soon as "clutch" batter and shrimp should be given one and a half to two minutes, so be careful and use common sense. Allow to drain oil from the finished tempura - for this will fit grille or paper towel - and serve until the batter is not softened. Tempura is combined with the usual soy sauce, but if you want something more exciting - take care of this in advance.