Liz's Cooking Demo: Portugal

IT'S A TEMPURA PARTY! with

Liz Miu

• Mentsuyu (Soup Base)

• Kakiage-Style Tempura

• Tempura Vegetables

• Corn and Avocado Tofu Pockets

NOTES & INFO

MENTSUYU

Full of umami

You can make it ahead and freeze in blocks

Not traditionally vegan but super duper easy to veganise

Multitude of uses (udon, zaru soba (cold dipping soba), dipping sauce for tempura, agedashi tofu)

This is a concentrated stock so you can and will need to water it down for certain uses.

MENTSUYU

There are two traditional Japanese foods that were introduced by the Portuguese!!!

Tempura is one Called ‘Peixinhos da Horta’ in Portuguese The other is Konpeito in Japanese (Confeito in Portuguese)

Tempura said to come from the name ‘Tempora’ which are days Catholics would refrain from eating meat and eat fish instead, and they noticed the fish would typically be battered and fried in oil, then the Japanese created their own version and they are quite different today.

Japanese Tempura have now developed and mastered their own methods. It should be light and crispy. There are now chefs that train just to become Tempura chefs, and they dedicate their lives to cooking and serving the lightest and crispiest tempura. Portuguese is often crumbed, more spiced and full flavour. Japanese is lighter, less flavour in the actual tempura but served with a simple but flavourful ‘tentsuyu’ dipping sauce.

Okinawa Japan (a blue zone region - where people are known to live the longest) have their own style of Tempura, thicker batter for their Okinawanstyle tempura.

I believe fried foods, eaten in moderation, can and DEFINITELY should be enjoyed to the fullest! Savour every bite, every crisp to the fullest!

INARI SUSHI

Inari Sushi is named after the Japanese deity Inari (popular in Shinto and Buddhist beliefs). Inari is strongly associated with rice and foxes! Foxes (kitsune) are the spirits associated with Inari, and rice and sake (rice wine) are popular offerings to Inari.

Fushimi-Inari Shrine in Kyoto is covered in foxes, at the train station they sell this sushi. 2 are vegan!

Inari Sushi is a popular offering to Inari.

a few INGREDIENTS

MIRIN KOMBU

A staple cooking rice wine in Japanese cooking. Like sake but less alcohol and sweeter than sake. In good quality mirin, no sugars are added and they form naturally as part of the fermentation process.

Edible kelp used in Japanese cooking. Also known as dashima 다시 마 (Korean) or haidai 海带 (Chinese)

SAKE

Japanese rice wine made from rice that has been polished to remove the bran. Cooking sake has a stronger flavour, less alcohol and sometimes salt is added (and shouldn't be drunk!).

a few INGREDIENTS

SHIITAKE POWDER

Adds natural 'umami' as dried shiitake mushrooms contain high levels of naturally occurring glutamates (1060mg/100g dried shiitake vs 180mg/100g glutamates in white button mushrooms).

tempura flour

Lower in gluten than all-purpose flour. Resulting in a crispier, lighter batter!

INARI POCKETS

Marinated tofu pockets! Not all brands are vegan (this one is!) but most Japanese brands are. Korean brands tend not to be vegan.

MENTSUYU

the multi-use Japanese soup base!!!

SOME uses:

UDON DIPPING SAUCE

zaru SOBA (COLD dipping NOODLES)

VEGAN AGADASHI TOFU

INGREDIENTS

soy sauce

sake

MIRIN

KOMBU & SHIITAKE

MUSHROOM BOUILLON

MUSHROOM WATER

vegan fish sauce

MENTSUYU

MENTSUYU (SOUP BASE)

1-2 pieces kombu

6 piece dried Shiitake mushrooms

1 cup Soy Sauce

1/2 cup Sake

1 cup Mirin

1 tbsp vegan fish sauce, optional

1/3 cup mushroom water (from soaking mushrooms)

2 tsp Mushroom Seasoning (sub for vegetable broth)

METHOD

Rehydrate shiitake mushrooms overnight or in hot water for a few hours. Add sake to saucepan and bring to booil. Add all other ingredients. Simmer on low for 5 minutes. Strain and store in a jar. Ready to make soup! Also works as Tempura dipping sauce.

3 STEPS TO TEMPURA UDON

STEP 1. Make Mentsuyu (Japanese Soup Base)

STEP 2. Fry KAKIAGE AND Tempura VEGGIES

STEP 3. ASSEMBLE DISH

kakiage style TEMPURA

TEMPURA KAKIAGE

KAKIAGE STYLE

100g cup tempura flour

1 Sliced onion (180g)

1 medium sized sweet potato (250g)

1 small carrot (80g)

1 stalk spring onion, green part, sliced 3/4-1 cup sparkling water oil, for deep frying!

METHOD

Cut all vegetables into thin matchsticks (I used julienne grater). Place in bowl with sliced spring onion and sprinkle flour over. Toss to coat.

Heat oil to 170ºC. Once hot, add just enough sparkling water to vegetable mix and mix until just combined - the batter should be thin but not watery.

Scoop or use your hands to pinch small handfuls of the vegetable mix into the oil - the vegetables will stick together. Fry for 2-3 minutes one side then flip and fry 1-2 minutes on the other.

TEMPURA VEGETABLES

VEGETABLE TEMPURA

TEMPURA VEGETABLES

Mix of vegetables (pumpkin, zucchini, asparagus, green beans, capsicum, eggplant, sweet potato, mushrooms are all great)

1 1/2 cup cold sparkling water

1/2 tsp salt

180g tempura flour extra flour, for dusting oil, for frying

METHOD

Cut large veggies into slices. Coat all with flour and set side. In a bowl add your tempura flour and salt and mix to combine.

Heat oil to 170ºC. Once hot, add sparkling water to batter and mix until just combined - the batter shouldn't be too thick. Add more water as needed. Dip vegetables into the batter and straight into the hot oil. Fry 1-2 minutes depending on the thickness of the vegetable.

Drain on some paper towel

tempura udon

UDON ASSEMBLY

UDON BROTH (for 2)

1L water

1/2 cup mentsuyu

2 x 230g portions frozen or prepackaged udon Spring onions, to garnish toasted sesame seeds, to garnish

METHOD

Place water and mentsuyu into a pot and heat through. In a separate pot bring a pot of water to the boil, Cook noodles separately for 1-2 minutes then place into bowls. Cover with udon broth and top with spring onions and toasted sesame seeds.

Serve with tempura and extra mentsuyu on side for dipping!

inari SUSHI

INARI SUSHI

SUSHIRICE

1cupsuncookedsushi(koshikari) rice(shortgrain)

1.5tbsptoastedsesameseeds

2tbspricevinegar

1tspsalt

1tbspsugar

FILLING

1cancornkernels,drained

1/4redcapsicum,dicedoptional

1persiancucumber,deseededand finelydiced avocado,diced

1/3cupveganmayonnaise salt,peppertotaste

springonions,sliced,togarnish 16inaripockets/cases

Cookrice.Whilericeiscooking,mix ricevinegar,sugarandsalt ingredientstogether.Oncecooked, placeintoalargebowlanddrizzle withseasoningandmixlightlyuntil fullycombined.Addsesameandmix. Allowtocool.

In a bowl add corn kernels, diced avocado, capsicum. Add vegan mayo and toss lightly to coat. Gently open all inari pockets.

Wet your hands and make small rice balls (30g). Fill each pocket and top with corn mixture then extra sesame and spring onions.

INARI SUSHI

FORMRICEBALLS

FILLPOCKETS

COOKANDSEASONRICE

MIXVEGETABLES