Japanese cuisine · Dough, Pasta & Rice

Tendon

Crispy shrimp and eggplant tempura over steaming rice, drizzled with a sweet-savory soy sauce.

Ingredients · for 4 servings

• 300g sushi rice
• 400ml water
• 12 shrimp
• 1 small eggplant
• 100g flour
• 1 egg
• 200ml ice water
• 150ml dashi
• 4 tbsp soy sauce
• 3 tbsp mirin
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1L frying oil

Instructions

1. Wash the rice until the water runs clear, set it to cook with 400ml water, simmer for 12 minutes over low heat, and let it steam covered for 10 minutes.
2. Peel the shrimp, remove the vein, and make three shallow cuts along the belly so they stay straight while frying; cut the eggplant into 5mm thick slices.
3. Simmer the dashi, soy sauce, mirin, and sugar uncovered in a small pot for 3–4 minutes, until the sauce runs slightly syrupy off the spoon.
4. Whisk the egg with the ice water and stir in the flour only roughly – the batter should stay lumpy, or the tempura will turn chewy instead of light.
5. Heat the frying oil to 175°C, dip the shrimp and eggplant slices individually through the batter, and fry each for 2–3 minutes until pale golden; drain on paper towel.
6. Fill deep bowls with rice, layer the tempura on top, and pour the warm sauce over generously – eat right away, while the coating is still crisp.