Kabocha Tempura (Japanese pumpkin in tempura batter)

Japanese kabocha pumpkin in light tempura batter with dipping sauce

Origin: Japan

Tempura is one of the great ironies of Japanese culinary history: one of the most quintessentially Japanese techniques was introduced by Portuguese Jesuit missionaries in the 16th century. The word tempura itself derives from the Latin quatuor anni tempora: the four seasons of prayer during which Catholics abstained from meat. The Portuguese coated vegetables in a light flour-and-water batter and fried them as a Lenten food; Japanese cooks in Nagasaki transformed this technique into one of the foundations of their own cuisine. Kabocha is among the finest tempura vegetables: its dense, sweet flesh holds its shape under the hot oil while softening to a silky, almost fluffy interior, and its natural sugar caramelises slightly behind the thin, shattering batter crust. The key to tempura is the batter; it must be barely mixed, full of lumps, made with ice-cold water, used immediately. Over-mixing develops gluten, which creates a thick, doughy coat rather than the paper-thin, translucent shell that is tempura at its finest.

Ingredients

Main

400 g kabocha squash, cut into 7mm slices (skin on)

Batter

100 g plain flour (or tempura flour)
150 ml ice-cold sparkling water (the bubbles add lightness)
1 whole egg yolk

Frying

1 litre neutral oil for deep frying (vegetable or rice bran)

Dipping Sauce

200 ml dashi stock
3 tbsp soy sauce
3 tbsp mirin

Garnish

2 tbsp finely grated daikon radish, for serving
1 tsp finely grated fresh ginger, for serving

Method

Make the dipping sauce (tentsuyu): combine dashi, soy sauce, and mirin in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer, stir, and remove from heat. Cool to room temperature.
Heat the frying oil to 170°C (340°F); slightly lower than most deep-frying, as the kabocha needs time to cook through before the batter colours.
Make the batter just before frying: briefly mix egg yolk with the ice-cold sparkling water. Add flour all at once. Mix with chopsticks or a fork in no more than 10–12 strokes. The batter must be lumpy and thin. This is correct; do not smooth it out.
Dip kabocha slices in the batter, shake off excess, and lower gently into the hot oil. Fry in small batches; do not crowd the pan. Fry for 2–3 minutes per side until the batter is pale golden and very lightly set. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on a rack, not paper towels.
Serve immediately. Place grated daikon and ginger in the dipping sauce just before eating. Dip each piece briefly before eating.

Notes

The cold sparkling water in the batter is essential for lightness: the temperature inhibits gluten formation and the CO2 bubbles create internal aeration. In a professional tempura restaurant (tenpura-ya) the chef fries and serves each piece individually to order. This is the ideal but impractical at home; fry in rapid succession and serve in waves.

The Gastrographer

Name: Kabocha Tempura (Japanese pumpkin in tempura batter)
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Japan
Ingredients: 400 g kabocha squash, cut into 7mm slices (skin on); 100 g plain flour (or tempura flour); 150 ml ice-cold sparkling water (the bubbles add lightness); 1 whole egg yolk; 1 litre neutral oil for deep frying (vegetable or rice bran); 200 ml dashi stock; 3 tbsp soy sauce; 3 tbsp mirin; 2 tbsp finely grated daikon radish, for serving; 1 tsp finely grated fresh ginger, for serving

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