Tempura

I’ve been doing tempura, day in, day out, for about ten years, from five to twenty times a night, and they’re all different. It is a simple dish with few ingredients and no technique required. There are some crucial conditions, but the most important is the cook’s understanding of what he or she is aiming for, and the ability to make small adjustments to get it. Practice is everything. A (near) perfect tempura will have a thin, almost transparent coating of lightly browned, crisp batter, pe