Shrimp Tempura is the perfect Japanese appetizer made with a light batter made and fried super crisp in just 15 minutes.
Easy quick Asian appetizers are a fun addition to your favorite takeout copycat meals including Crab Rangoon and Panda Express Cream Cheese Rangoon, dipping them in Sweet and Sour Sauce.
Shrimp Tempura
Shrimp Tempura is one of the Japanese recipes that can seem really intimidating because it needs to be so light and crispy to be enjoyed. The idea of frying food in generally can be scary, but using a cold batter that isn’t heavy?
YES, this tempura recipe is so easy I promise you it won’t scare you away. We use regular flour in addition to corn starch to make the tempura batter. Some people add ice water to the mixture but I use club soda to create a lighter texture.
Looking for a good dipping sauce for your tempura? I don’t like dipping tempura in soy sauce, the flavor is too strong.
Homemade Tempura Dipping Sauce:
- 1 cup dashi soup stock
- 1/4 cup mirin
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- Bring the ingredients to a boil in a saucepan then allow to cool.
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Tips for making Shrimp Tempura:
- Make sure the club soda is VERY cold (or even put the mixture over a bowl of ice).
- Do not mix the batter a lot, just until the dry ingredients are combined.
- You’re going to deep fry the shrimp so use at least 3 inches of oil in your pot.
- Do NOT remove the shrimp to a plate with paper towels. The paper towels will create steam which will lose the crispy texture you’ve worked so hard for.
- How long do you fry Tempura Shrimp? Make sure the oil temperature is right even if you have to use a thermometer. We’re looking for 375 degrees for just 2-3 minutes
- How do I make shrimp Batter? We use an easy mixture of regular flour, corn starch and baking powder mixed with club soda, salt and pepper. Not a single ingredient that is difficult to find.
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How to make Vegetable Tempura:
Depending on the vegetable you need to cook it before frying.
- Broccoli Florets: Steam for 2 minutes.
- Carrot Slices: Steam for 3-4 minutes.
- Sweet Potato slices: boil until fork tender but not falling apart.
- Onions: Can be used raw, but I boil for 20 seconds.
- Acorn Squash: Steam until fork tender.
- Mushrooms: Can be fried raw.
- Zucchini: Steam for 2 minutes.
Once you’ve cooked and cooled your vegetables, dredge them in the dry tempura mixture. Add in the club soda, dip the vegetables in the batter and let excess batter drip away before frying until golden brown.
The time you spend frying vegetables once covered in batter is only to cook the batter, not the vegetables.
Shrimp Tempura
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 3/4 cup cornstarch
- 1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 cups cold club soda
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
- canola oil for frying
- 1 pound shrimp deveined and shells removed (21-25 count)
Instructions
- Set a pot of oil (3 inches deep) on medium high until it reaches 375 degrees.
- Whisk the flour, cornstarch baking powder, kosher salt and white pepper in a bowl together.
Dredge the shrimp lightly in the mixture and set aside.
Add in the club soda and whisk, then dip the shrimp in the batter before carefully frying in the oil for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown.
This recipe is outstanding! Made with gluten free flour and cold seltzer water, also; sifted dry ingredients before adding the seltzer water. Made one and a half times the batter which was perfect for 2 lbs of shrimp and one and a half sliced yellow squash. Family could not stop complimenting the dinner, said it was “restaurant quality” and I completely agree. Thank You Sabrina for posting! I highly recommend your recipe and will be making again. Side note: made Creamy Honey Dipping Sauce since I did not have ingredients for typical tempura dipping sauce. It was a wonderful choice, will use as my new “go to” dressing.
Thanks for the feedback, Lori.
Everything was wonderful. Thank you so much. I love your recipes and everyone else will too. God Bless.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Susan. You’re too kind.
Sabrina,
So easy to make, so crispy and golden and very delicious. My husband and l were impressed. I will be making this again and including it in my keepers recipe book.
Now I am dedicating the rest of my night to investigating your website
Many thanks from Kelly inCanada.
I’m so honored to be considered a “keeper recipe”. Thank you so much for coming back to let me know.
Batter turned out perfect, used some left-over honey dip from your Chinese Honey Chicken recipe which was fantastic with the shrimp.
Also fried some Tilapia in the same batter and that turned out awesome as well, with Garlic Aioli for dipping.
So overall, easily the best tempura batter I’ve tried and very versatile for different types of meat.
Thanks for coming back to let me know, Mike. I appreciate the 5 star rating.
This is the BEST Tempura Shrimp ever! I’ve been trying for more years than I care to share to find a recipe like the one my Aunt Jane used to make. Thank you – this is it!! It is crisp and light, and the tips you provided were very helpful. I prepared a Japanese Tare sauce for dipping and it was amazing.
Thanks for the 5 stars, Theresa.
Excellent, nice and crispy, great flavor, i made a dipping sauce and used pineapple, terrific,.
I had been craving shrimp tempura for days now and found this recipe. This recipe is great! The shrimp tempura came out deliciously crispy! It was easy so make, although I didn’t have club soda so I used ice cold water and still came out great! Thank you! Hit the spot!
Perfect! So glad you enjoyed it, Mary Ann.
can I use peanut oil for frying the shimp?
Sure 🙂
Do the large shrimp cook that quickly?
Yep 🙂
Can this batter be used on chicken?
Yes though you may need to make a few adjustments. I would suggest cutting your chicken into thin strips. You may need to increase the cook time to 4-5 minutes as well. Hope this helps!
What a great batter, so light and crispy. This is a little thicker than I think of for tempura batter, but it was great nonetheless . I tried it on chicken strips and I’d definitely use it for fish tacos where this would be perfect. I also did 1/2 inch coins of a small tempura without cooking first and it was just right.
I made this recipe came out perfect!!! Thank you.
You’re welcome, Keisha.
These shrimp tempura turned out awesome! Great recipe… I didn’t have club soda, so I used really cold beer. Delicious, crispy, and light! I had extra batter, so I made sweet potatoes, carrots, and green beans as well. Perfect! (They also reheat well in the airfryer.)
Sounds amazing! Thanks for the 5 stars.
I made this and it was good. I also did 1″ Swai squares and pre-steamed veggies, also good! All cooked about the same amount of time.
So glad you enjoyed it, Patti!
Easy and the shrimp came out light and airy! Thank you for another terrific and EASY recipe!
You’re welcome! Thanks for the 5 star rating.
Can you use this recipe for fish?
I haven’t tried it but I don’t see why not. If you decide to try, I’d love to know how it turns out.
My kiddos love shrimp, I need to give these a try! They look delish!
I hope you enjoy it!
These look so perfectly crisp and that batter is so simple to prepare.
Thanks Abeer!
Oh I love tempura so much! I can’t wait to try the shrimp recipe!
I hope you enjoy it!
They are so perfectly battered! Amazing.
Thanks Carolyn!
To make it ketogenic, can I use almond or paleo flour instead of white flour?
I’m not familiar with adjustments for that specific diet. Sorry.
Im curious did you try a keto version?
Yum! This looks so crispy and delicious!
Thank you!
This is the best way to enjoy fried shrimp.
It’s so good!