I finally treated myself to a deep fat fryer as I have wanted one for a while. Tempura was one f the recipes I really wanted to try. Courgette’s are right in season at the moment so I thought they would work well and believe me they did! Crispy outside and soft in the center. The other ingredient I wanted to use was prawns and again they did not disappoint. Both tasted delicious being dipped in the chill, soy and citrus dipping sauce. I served ours with a noodle salad.

Ingredients

For the noodle salad

•  nest of rice noodles, soaked in boiling water for 5 mins then rinsed. Once rinsed add 1/2 tsp sesame oil to stop them stocking together.
•  1 carrot, grated (I used pickled carrots)
• 3 spring onions, finely sliced
• 2 tbsp mint, coriander and basil leaves, roughly shred
• 1 small garlic clove, peeled and minced
• 1/2 long red chilli, deseeded and sliced
• 1 celery stick, sliced
• 2 tbsp nasi goreng sauce (or kecap manis)
• juice of a lime

For the tempura

• 75g plain flour (extra for dusting)
• 50g cornflour
• pinch of sea salt
• 120ml iced sparkling water (I put mine in the freezer for 30 min)
• 1-2 courgettes, cut into 1cm strips
• 10 peeled, king prawns

For the dipping sauce

• 1 tbsp light soy sauce
• 2 tbsp dark soy sauce
• 2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp kecap manis (optional)
• 1 tsp palm sugar (or brown)
• 1/2 long red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
• juice of a lime
• 1 spring onion, finely sliced
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• thumbnail piece of ginger, peeled and finely chopped

Directions

For the noodle salad

1. Add all of the ingredients to a bowl and toss to combine. Set aside.

For the tempura

1. Defrost the prawns and pat dry.
2. Make sure that your sparkling water is very cold.
3. Heat some oil in a deep fryer or in a large saucepan (needs to be one-third full of oil) to 190 deg – or until a cube of bread – starts to brown in 30 seconds.
4. Mix the two flours together and the salt – add the cold sparkling water till you have a nice thick batter. In another bowl add some extra flour dust each courgette and prawn before coating with the batter – fry quickly in the oil for 3/4 mins (add while the basket is down so they don’t stick) – until brown and crisp – drain on a cooling rack.

For the dipping sauce

1. Add all of the ingredients to a jar or bowl and shake or whisk to combine. Enjoy.