August Tempura

I realize this isn’t the healthiest way to eat your vegetables, but if you would like to see two teenage boys devour a basket of okra in 3 minutes and ask for more, try it! Keep okra and green beans whole (cut long beans into reasonable size pieces!). Sweet potatoes, squash and peppers can be cut into planks, about 1″ wide and a centimeter thick.

Ingredients

Tempura Batter:

1 egg, beaten

1 cup ice cold water

1 cup all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

• Beat the egg until thoroughly combined, add the water and mix. Sift the flour, then sift it with the baking powder, then add to the egg/water mixture all at once. Stir, but don’t make it smooth; it should have some lumps. The texture to aim for is pancake batter; it should coat the vegetables but the excess should drip off readily.

Directions

Have all vegetables washed and thoroughly dried. Heat ½ inch of canola or peanut oil in a skillet until it just begins to smoke. Dip vegetables into the batter, let excess drip off, then put into hot oil. When browned on the first side, turn over. The goal is to have the vegetable crisp-cooked before the batter burns. Drain them well on a rack set over a paper towel, season with salt and pepper if you like, and pop into a warm oven, or just cook a batch at a time to be devoured by the hordes of family members who have discovered a previously latent love for vegetables.

Tempura Dipping Sauce:

2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce

1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar

1 tablespoon mirin, or other white wine

½ teaspoon sesame oil

Mix together in a small bowl and enjoy.

Submitted by Lorraine Glazar, Tucson CSA