Maitake Tempura with Dashi Dipping Sauce
Dancing-mushroom in delicate batter, with the classic kombu-katsuobushi dipping sauce.
- Total time
- 40 min
- Hands-on
- 30 min
- Servings
- 4
- Difficulty
- medium
Maitake (Grifola frondosa) is the mushroom most natural to tempura. Its frilly hen-of-the-woods structure separates into perfect tempura-sized pieces with no knife work needed; the irregular surface holds batter beautifully; the natural earthy sweetness pairs with the lacy crisp of properly-cooked tempura batter. The two technical challenges in tempura are batter temperature (must be ice cold) and oil temperature (must be tightly held in the 340-360°F range). Cold batter hitting hot oil is what produces the iconic open lacy texture; warm batter produces dense crusts. The whole preparation is fast — under 30 minutes once you have the maitake and ingredients staged. Dashi is the universal Japanese stock made from kombu (kelp) and katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes). For tempura dipping you reduce dashi with soy and mirin to create tentsuyu, the standard tempura sauce. A version with shiitake-only dashi works for a vegetarian variant; the umami profile shifts but is still excellent.
Method
- 1
Make the tentsuyu (dipping sauce) first — it benefits from sitting. In a small saucepan, combine the dashi, soy sauce, and mirin. Bring to a simmer; cook 3-4 minutes to meld. Off heat. Set aside; it can be served warm or at room temperature.
- 2
Stage the frying station. Heat the neutral oil in a heavy deep pot or Dutch oven to 350°F. Use a probe thermometer; tempura's open lacy texture depends on tight temperature control.
- 3
Set up two stations beside the oil: a small bowl of dredge flour, and a larger bowl that will hold the batter (don't make the batter yet).
- 4
Just before the oil reaches temperature, make the batter. In the larger bowl, whisk the egg yolk with the ice-cold sparkling water. Add the flour; stir gently with chopsticks or a fork — DO NOT WHISK SMOOTH. The batter should be lumpy with visible flour streaks. Overmixing develops gluten; tempura batter must be undermixed.
- 5
Working in small batches, dredge maitake clusters lightly in the dry flour (this gives the batter something to grip). Shake off excess flour. Dip immediately into the cold lumpy batter, letting excess drip off.
- 6
Lower battered maitake into the 350°F oil. Don't crowd — 3-4 pieces at a time max. Fry 2-3 minutes, turning once, until the batter is golden and lacy. The pieces should bob on the surface and the bubbles around them should be small and persistent.
- 7
Remove with a spider or slotted spoon to a wire rack (NOT paper towels — paper towels steam the bottom). Salt very lightly with kosher salt while still hot.
- 8
Continue with remaining maitake. Between batches, let the oil come back to 350°F and skim any loose batter bits with the spider — those bits burn and impart bitter notes if left.
- 9
To plate: stack tempura on a plate or wooden board. Serve with a small dish of the warm tentsuyu, a small mound of grated daikon and ginger if using, and scallion sprinkles. Diners dip the tempura into the sauce piece by piece.
Notes + variations
- •Cold batter is critical. The temperature differential between batter and oil is what creates the open lacy crust. Some traditional cooks add a few ice cubes directly to the batter to keep it cold; remove them before dipping.
- •Don't make all the batter at once; make it in 1/2-batch increments so it stays cold. Once the bowl warms to room temperature, the batter loses its tempura character.
- •Quick dashi: bring 4 cups water + 1 piece kombu (4-inch square) to a near-simmer; remove kombu at first sign of bubbling. Add 1 cup loosely packed katsuobushi; let steep off heat 5 minutes; strain. Use 2 cups for this recipe.
- •Vegetarian dashi: substitute dried shiitake for the katsuobushi. Soak 4-6 dried shiitake caps in cold water for 4 hours OR overnight in the refrigerator. Use the soaking liquid as the dashi base.
- •Don't fry in olive oil — its smoke point is too low. Vegetable, peanut, or rice bran are correct.
- •Daikon + ginger garnish is more than decorative — both are digestive aids, traditionally served alongside fried foods to ease the heaviness.
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Cooking workflow
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