Crispy fried vegetables and seafood, Tempura is one of the most popular Japanese foods. Regrettably, people with celiac disease can’t enjoy it because tempura batter is usually made of wheat flour which contains gluten. After receiving many requests for a Gluten-Free Tempura recipe from my readers, I decided to test it out so they will get to enjoy tempura at home. Today I am thrilled to share this perfectly made gluten-free tempura recipe with you after some testing in the kitchen with a surprisingly great result. Coated with a thinner layer of batter, the tempura with gluten-free batter turns out to be much lighter and crispier than regular tempura. Whether your diet is gluten-free or not, I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as my family does.
What is Gluten-Free Tempura Batter Made of?
Gluten-free tempura batter is made of just three simple ingredients: rice flour, egg, and water. I’ve tested different ratios for each ingredient, and the ratio I am sharing in the recipe resulted in the best texture and flavor. Unlike regular tempura, batter made from rice flour is thinner. You could add potato starch or corn starch to thicken the batter, but I actually prefer just simple rice flour. The rice flour that I use is Organic White Rice Flour from Bob’s Red Mill.
Gluten-Free Tempura Cooking Tips
I want to share a few tips that will help you make successful tempura:
Tempura Batter
As I mentioned earlier, this gluten-free batter is very thin. As you bite into it, it won’t feel like you’re eating regular tempura batter. Instead, you can taste the ingredient (whether it’s vegetable or shrimp) that is lightly coated with a thin layer of crispy batter. Since the batter does not contain any gluten, you won’t need to worry about “over-mixing” the batter (and you can make it ahead of time). In fact, I recommend whisking the batter each time you are about to coat the ingredients. The bubbles or foams created from the whisking motion will stay on the ingredients as they are dunked into the hot oil, which yields a crispy layer of tempura batter. Also, the fine grain of rice flour tends to deposit on the bottom of the bowl, so you have to whisk the batter quite often so the consistency of the batter is optimal.
The Oil
The oil temperature has to be between 340-350°F (170-180°C) depending on how long it takes to cook through the particular ingredients. If it takes a long time to cook, then deep fry at a lower temperature because high temperature will cook the batter too fast and the inside might not be done.
Technique
It’s very important to control the temperature of the oil when it comes to deep-frying tempura. A thermometer will be very helpful if you’re new to deep-frying or making tempura. Do not overcrowd the deep frying pot with ingredients: just half of the oil surface should be covered with ingredients. When you put too many ingredients in at once, the oil temperature will drop too quickly, and the tempura will absorb too much oil and you’ll end up with soggy tempura. On the contrary, when oil gets too hot, add a bit of extra oil or add more ingredients to cool down the temperature. Make sure to pick up crumbs in the oil between batches. The burnt crumb will attach to your new tempura if you don’t pick them up. Once the crumbs become burnt, it will leave a bad flavor in the oil and the color becomes darker.
Gluten-Free Tempura Dipping Sauce (Tentsuyu)
The gluten-free tempura isn’t complete without gluten-free tempura dipping sauce! Tentsuyu (天つゆ) or tempura dipping sauce is made of dashi, soy sauce, and mirin. Regular soy sauce contains wheat, therefore you will need to use gluten-free soy sauce for this recipe. I used the Kikkoman Gluten-Free Soy Sauce. If you want to know more about this product, click here. If you’re not gluten intolerant, you can use regular Japanese soy sauce to make the dipping sauce.
Similar Recipes on Just One Cookbook
With this, I hope you enjoy making this Gluten-Free Tempura recipe at home. Do you have any requests for gluten-free Japanese food? Let me know in the comment below.
Eggplant Agebitashi (gluten-free recipe) Vegetable Tempura
Wish to learn more about Japanese cooking? Sign up for our free newsletter to receive cooking tips & recipe updates! And stay in touch with me on Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, and Instagram.
