for all the curious people about the chef's finger. the reason he didn't get burned while dipping his fingers on the oil is because of the batter. it is the trick for them, they dip the tempura on the batter along with his fingers right ? the batter protects the finger from being fried so that's why he is not bothered by the hot oil. :)
@sannyasou1 I asked the Chef for you. He said the oil temp is pretty important (between 160C-170C). The fryer he uses has a temp control feature but most experts also use other methods to check the oil temp. For example if it is at the right level, a drop of batter into the oil will first start to sink and then rise to the top and bloom like a flower. Too hot and it won`t sink. Too cold and it won`t rise. Some use a wooden chopstick. Put the end in the oil and bubbles will form if right
If you look closely you will see that he joins the loose pieces of the cooked batter to the main pieces to add to the crispiness of the tempura. In Japanese, this technique is called "hanatsuke" - literally, the attaching of flowers.
I'm so happy finally to know the technique of frying the tempura with that technique. I have eaten a lot of tempura in Indonesia and Japan, and some of tempura were fried plain without that 'sprouts' which make it looks less appetite. Thanks for the video. Awesome!
Wow this is just wow....Never knew they are cooked like that to give those lovely textures the textures looked like they where dipped on Bread crumbs but they aren't! He basically splashed bits of batter to cook some of it off, then use the cooked batter as some kind of floating mechanism to rest the fish and vegetable on it then add more batter to get the already cooked batter to stick to the newly placed fish/vegetable and or add batter at the other side of the fish/vegetable. Very Educational video for cooking! and nice BGM :D
This video is super awesome. Can you use other types of flour for the batter or the dredge? What flours work better/are more traditional? Also, what kind of oil are you using?
Hi Kaiten, can you please ask the check for the exact and detailed batter recipe please? The technique is great! But I think the right batter mix plays a big role as much as the technique. Thank you very much.
@senditn0w I am sorry for the delay on the answer. I asked the chef for you. As MHMorpheus said, many places use premixed Tempura flour but it is possible to make your own. You need egg(s), water and plain flour. Use the same volume of water as the volume of your eggs. Add sifted plain flour to your egg and water mix until you get the right consistency. Altering the water amount will change the color of the tempura. Hope this helps.
You`re right. Mr Kikuchi is a very experienced chef and you should not try and put your fingers in hot oil at home. If you look closely you will note he has some batter on his fingers and the temp difference enables him to get away with it for a short time.
It seems like his fingers were coated with the batter mixture, which was supposedly very cold, and since he did it for less than a second each time, it was too short for his fingers to get burnt. But that's a professional skill.
@08khimpoy The chef in this video does not add any salt, pepper or any condiment to the batter mixture but he said to tell you that you could if you wanted.
For everyone asking how he put his hands in the oil, part batter, mostly experience as a chef. You build up a heat tolerance if you work with it long enough. I can handle dry heat very well to the point trays straight out of the oven no problem. Also knowing how to handle it is a big part.
The oil is probably maintained at a moderate temperate and the batter on his fingers plus the heat tolerance built up from years of experience helped too.
Those who are asking why this man used his finger frying those, it simply because he is already trained on that job and he can already handle that kind of temperature.
I have a meeting with the Chef in the next couple of weeks and I will try and get the "exact" details of the batter recipe for you. I am sorry for the delay. In the meantime have you read this response? As MHMorpheus said, many places use premixed Tempura flour but it is possible to make your own. You need egg(s), water and plain flour. Use the same volume of water as the volume of your eggs. Add sifted plain flour to your egg and water mix until you get the right consistency.
It's probably because 1. he's been doing it a long time. 2. the batter is mixed with ICE COLD water, and if you notice right after his fingers touch the hot oil, he immediately swabs them in batter again. But I dunno, maybe it's magic?
@sannyasou1 I think he is using an industrial eletric fryer. Those probably have some kind of temperature control. Using always the same temperature is not exactly necessary when you make it at home. But in a restaurant, it's handy, 'cause you can have a uniform product and estimate/calculate when doing multiple portions. P.S: I dunno if you meant it, but mazusou = looks bad! If you meant it looked good, then the word is umasou. ^^'
@senditn0w I think most people/restaurants in Japan just use "tempura flour", a pre-made mixture to make tempura (just add cold water). But this video is really useful: now we know how the restaurants make those extra crispy crust. Mine were always so thin. xD
@KaitenSushiTV This should probably be included in all Cooking Recipe Books as a means to explain concepts to common man's liking. Excellent advice. - ありがとう ~_~
there's something that looked like a beaver foot, the thing that's fanned out, what is it, I know two shrimp, a shitake, some fish and I guess squid too
Hey thanks for clearing that out. You know around 2008 I worked at a Japanese fastfood and cooked tempura too, I always do this hanatsuke technique *as you mentioned* but the management disagree with it. At that time I didnt know it was called hanatsuke, I just felt the way they want me to cook the tempura was lame and so I decided to fry it differently. But they disagree with it as it wasnt the management's standard. Now I feel special figuring this technique on my own.
Oil may be at 175c, if its colder then the tempura may become too oily. The batter usually in a very cold temperature but not freezing, this may numb the finger and insulates from getting burnt. That may be the traditional secret trade., and also the temperature difference between the batter which is cold and the hot oil may be a secret to make it crispy and delicious, oops its not secret anymore....
