Shrimp Tempura Recipe

Clean and butterfly

Rinse shrimp and pat dry thoroughly with paper towels. Make 3 shallow slits along the underside of each shrimp (from head end toward tail) to help straighten when cooking; gently press to flatten so shrimp lay straight. Leave the tail intact for presentation.

Season and dust

Lightly season both sides of the shrimp with kosher salt and black pepper. Toss or brush each shrimp with the potato starch/cornstarch so they have a thin, even dusting; shake off excess. Place dusted shrimp on a plate and keep chilled in the refrigerator until ready to batter.

Prepare ingredients

Keep the sparkling water very cold (you can place the measuring cup in the freezer for a few minutes). Crack the egg into a medium bowl and lightly beat it just until combined.

Mix batter

Into the beaten egg, pour the ice-cold sparkling water. Add the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt. Using chopsticks or a fork, stir the mixture quickly with a few light strokes until just combined — the batter should be lumpy with some small dry streaks; do not overmix (overworking warms the batter and develops gluten). Keep the batter chilled by placing the bowl over a larger bowl with ice or returning it briefly to the refrigerator if your kitchen is warm.

Pour oil into a deep pot or a deep fryer to a depth of 2–3 inches (about 3–4 cups depending on your cookware). Attach a thermometer and heat to 350–360°F (175–182°C). If you don't have a thermometer, test by dropping a small bit of batter: it should sizzle and rise to the surface gently and brown in about 1–1.5 minutes.

Batter shrimp

Working in small batches (3–4 shrimp at a time), remove batter from the cold source and quickly dip each dusted shrimp into the batter, coating evenly. Hold shrimp by the tail and allow excess batter to drip back into the bowl so coating is thin. If you prefer a lighter, flakier crust, you can spoon batter over the shrimp rather than fully submerging.

Fry

Carefully lower the battered shrimp into the hot oil, a few at a time to avoid crowding. Fry until batter is pale golden and crisp, about 2–3 minutes depending on shrimp size and oil temperature. Turn if needed for even browning. Avoid leaving shrimp too long — shrimp cook quickly and will become rubbery if overcooked.

Drain

Using a spider/skimmer, transfer fried shrimp to a wire rack set over a sheet pan or to paper towels to drain for 1–2 minutes. Keep finished shrimp warm in a low oven (200°F / 95°C) on the rack if frying remaining batches.

Arrange shrimp on a platter. Serve immediately with tempura dipping sauce (tentsuyu) or soy sauce, grated daikon if using, and lemon wedges. For best texture, serve hot and crisp; do not cover or stack shrimp as steam will soften the batter.