Spiced Green Beans and Baby Broccoli Tempura

By Martha Rose Shulman

Spiced Green Beans and Baby Broccoli Tempura
Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times
Total Time
About 30 minutes
Rating
4(25)
Comments
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Deep-frying is not something I do often, but after I’ve eaten well-executed tempura at a restaurant and can’t shake the memory of delicious batter-fried vegetables, I get out my wok. I turn on the hood fan, open the window and start heating up oil.

I like to play around with different batters and coatings. This spicy, delicate batter is somewhere between a puffy beignet-type coating and a simpler egg, flour and bread-crumb dusting. It’s mostly cornstarch, with a small amount of cornmeal and whole wheat flour — just enough to hold the batter together. I add dukkah, cilantro and cumin for flavor and texture. Ice-cold sparkling water helps keep the batter light; it fries up crispy rather than bready because there’s very little gluten to toughen it.

You can use this batter with all sorts of vegetables, but I particularly love green beans and baby broccoli. The batter wraps itself nicely around the smooth beans and nestles in among the spindly flowers at the end of a baby broccoli stem, resulting in lacy, extra-crispy tempura.

A wok is ideal for deep-frying. It can accommodate a lot of vegetables at one time without crowding, and it holds heat well. The oil should hover between 350 and 375 degrees so that the vegetables cook quickly and crisp up without absorbing too much oil. Be sure to let the oil come back up to temperature between batches, and use a thermometer. You will be amazed to find a green bean tender and hot inside its crispy coating in two minutes or less.

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Ingredients

Yield:6 to 8 servings
  • ½cup plus 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 2tablespoons fine polenta or cornmeal
  • 3tablespoons whole wheat flour
  • ¼teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
  • ½teaspoon ground cumin
  • ⅔cup cold sparkling water
  • ¼cup finely chopped cilantro
  • 2tablespoons dukkah (see recipe)
  • ½pound green beans
  • ½pound baby broccoli
  • Canola oil or grapeseed oil for frying
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)

210 calories; 16 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 10 grams monounsaturated fat; 4 grams polyunsaturated fat; 17 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 2 grams sugars; 2 grams protein; 88 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Make the batter: In a medium bowl, whisk together cornstarch, polenta or cornmeal, whole wheat flour, salt and cumin. Whisk in sparkling water. Stir in cilantro and dukkah.

  2. Step 2

    Top and tail beans. Cut long stems off broccoli; cut broccoli tops into smaller florets or leave intact.

  3. Step 3

    Pour oil to a depth of 3 inches into a wok or wide saucepan and heat over medium-high heat to 350 to 375 degrees. Set up a sheet pan with a rack on it next to pan and cover rack with layers of paper towels. Have a deep-fry skimmer handy for removing vegetables from the oil onto the rack.

  4. Step 4

    Using tongs, dip vegetables into the batter a few at a time, making sure to coat thoroughly. Transfer to hot oil and fry until golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Flip over with skimmer to make sure coating is evenly fried. Do not crowd pan. Let oil come back up to temperature between batches.

  5. Step 5

    Using skimmer, remove vegetables from oil, allowing excess oil to drip back into pan, and drain on towel-covered rack. Sprinkle with salt right away if desired. Cool slightly and serve.

Tip
  • To make dukkah, lightly toast ½ cup unsalted peanuts, almonds or hazelnuts; finely chop. Mix with ¼ cup sesame seeds. In a dry skillet, lightly toast 2 tablespoons coriander seeds until just fragrant; immediately transfer to spice mill and let cool. In the skillet, toast 1 tablespoon cumin seeds until just fragrant and transfer to spice mill; cool. Grind and add mixture to nuts and sesame seeds. Add 2 teaspoons nigella seeds, 1 teaspoon ground sumac and ½ teaspoon kosher or coarse sea salt; toss. Makes ½ cup.

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Comments

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BLC

This was a very nice tempura, even though I subbed the dukkah with just coriander, cumin and za'atar. Really liked the finely chopped cilantro in the batter, as well as the polenta. Will be trying the batter with a variety of veggies.

Sally

Needing to make this totally gluten free, I substituted an equal mixture of rice flour and gram (garbanzo flour). Za'atar was in the cupboard, so I used that, rather than making a new spice mixture. Last, I added an egg to the batter, which helped it really coat the veggies.

Liz

Any suggestions on a new wok? My current one is a non-stick and I'm afraid to crank the heat too high.

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