Marinated Tempura Mushrooms with Wasabi Mayo

June 02, 2016

Mushrooms. They're often described as the meatiest of non-meat items, so they're great when you want to eat something substantial and hearty, but fresh. This dish is great for vegetarians, and a good option for meat-free Mondays. 

In Japan the people eat a lot of vegetables and fish instead of red meats, compared to our British diets, and many believe this contributes to their long lifespan. But as we all know, it can be tricky to find a vegetable based dish which isn't boring. These marinated tempura mushrooms are the very opposite of boring - the mushrooms absorb all the flavours of the marinade with vigour and create a juicy, delicious centre inside the tempura crust. 

The mushrooms are quite spicy and hot fresh from the fryer, so we've paired them with a lemony wasabi mayo, which is refreshing and addictive!

You will need:

• 100g Portobello Mushrooms
• 100g Shiitake Mushrooms
• 500ml Buttermilk
• 1 Chopped Fresh Chili
• 1 Tsp Crushed Garlic
• 1 Tbsp Soy Sauce
• Tempura Batter Mix
• 1 Cup Beer (Try Asahi or Kirin)
• Vegetable Oil
• 1/2 Cup Japanese Mayonnaise
• 1 Tsp Wasabi
• 3 Tsp Yuzu Juice

Recipe

• In a ziploc bag, mix together the buttermilk, chili, garlic and soy sauce. Now chop the mushrooms into long, thin strips and add them to the buttermilk mix. shake up to coat well, then place the sealed bag in the fridge for 1-2 hours.
• Heat up the vegetable oil in a pan, or turn on the deep fat fryer.
• Now prepare the tempura batter. The mix will vary depending on which brand of tempura batter you buy, but in this case we'll be substituting the water for beer. It should be around 1 cup to each packet of batter, but make sure you check. Whisk up until just combined and try not to knock the bubbles out of the mix.
• Pour your marinated mushrooms out into a whisk over a sink, let the excess marinade drain away, but leave them a little coated.
• Place each mushroom piece into the tempura batter then into the hot oil, fry between 8-10 pieces at a time to avoid the oil temperature dropping.
• When cooked, sit the tempura mushrooms on a piece of kitchen roll whilst the excess oil is soaked up. 
• Make the yuzu mayonnaise by mixing together the Japanese mayonnaise, wasabi and yuzu juice.
• Serve hot.