I don’t think I know anyone who doesn’t cave at tempura squid, and this punchy dipping sauce is the perfect accompaniment. I could eat endless amounts of it. If you find you feel the same way, I’d double my already generous recipe, just to make sure you’re not left short.
Ingredients
- Sunflower oil for deep-frying
- 1 lb 5 oz (600 g) squid, scored and cut into 5–6 strips, including tentacles
- lemon wedges, to serve
Batter
- 4¼ oz (120 g) plain (all-purpose) flour
- 4¼ oz (120 g) cornflour (cornstarch)
- 5 egg whites
- 10½ fl oz (300 ml) cold sparkling water
- small sprinkle of finely chopped coriander (cilantro)
Dipping sauce
- generous glug of sesame oil
- 3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- 3 tablespoons light soy sauce
- 1 red chilli, thinly sliced
- small pinch of finely chopped coriander (cilantro)
- 2 teaspoons finely chopped pickled ginger
- 1 teaspoon palm sugar or caster (superfine) sugar
- ½ spring onion (scallion), finely chopped
How to Make It
- In a large bowl, whisk together all the batter ingredients until smooth, seasoning with salt and pepper.
- Make the dipping sauce by combining all the ingredients in a small serving bowl. Taste it to make sure the sugar is fully dissolved and that you’ve got the sweet versus tangy balance just right.
- Pour the sunflower oil into a deep-fryer or large heavy-based saucepan and heat to 190°C (375°F) or until a drop of the batter added to the oil sizzles and floats to the top straightaway.
- Working in small batches, dip the squid strips into the batter and deep-fry for 1–2 minutes or until golden and cooked through. Drain on paper towel, then serve with lemon wedges and the dipping sauce.
