Fried Shrimp-Vegetable Balls with Rice Flour
These robust fried seafood and vegetable balls are a variation of Yasaiten or Satsuma-Age in Japan. In this recipe, shrimp and vegetables are dredged in the healthy tofu and rice flour batter, then deep fried. It is served with teriyaki sauce. Enjoy this delicate, moist dish!
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Tofu and rice flour in the batter make this dish particularly soft.
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Japanese ingredients such as dashi, mirin, and tofu can be purchased online or at Asian grocery stores.
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All rice flour is naturally gluten-free. Make this dish completely gluten-free by using gluten-free substitutes for other ingredients as needed.
4 servings
Ingredients
| 4 (60g) | shiitake mushrooms, finely chopped (about ½ cup) |
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| 1 (60g) | carrot, finely chopped (about ¼ cup) |
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| 2.7oz/76g | shrimp, deveined and tail-off, chopped |
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| ¾ cup (200ml) | water |
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| 1 tablespoon (16ml) | soy sauce |
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| 1 tablespoon (18ml) | mirin |
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| ½ teaspoon (1.5g) | dashi powder |
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For the batter
| ⅔ cup (100g) | rice flour |
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| 5oz/140g | soft tofu (about ⅔ cup) |
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| 1 | egg |
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For the sauce
| ¾ cup (200ml) | water |
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| 1 tablespoon (16ml) | soy sauce |
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| 2 teaspoons (9g) | sugar |
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| 1 tablespoon (12g) | potato starch |
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| 1 tablespoon (15ml) | water to mix with potato starch |
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| Vegetable oil for deep frying | |
| Shiso perilla leaves or leafy lettuce for garnish | |
Directions
In a pot, combine the mushrooms, carrots, shrimp, water, soy sauce, mirin, and dashi powder. Cook over medium heat until liquid has evaporated.
In a bowl, combine rice flour, tofu and egg with a whisk. When smooth, add the shrimp mixture and blend well.
Heat the oil in a deep skillet over low heat. Add a spoonful of the batter and deep fry until golden brown. Drain the excess oil on a plate lined with paper towels. Repeat.
Make teriyaki sauce by heating water, soy sauce, and sugar in a saucepan. Combine potato starch and water in a small bowl and add into the sauce. Simmer until the sauce thickens slightly.
Garnish the plate with shiso leaves, and serve the shrimp balls with the sauce.
- This recipe uses US customary units. Measurement equivalents include: 1 teaspoon = 5ml, 1 tablespoon = 15ml, and 1 US cup = 237ml or 8fl oz. (1 metric cup = 250ml or 8.5fl oz.)
- The cooking time using microwave oven in this recipe is based on 1,000W in the US.
- The temperature and baking time may be different depending on the oven used. Please adjust accordingly.
- All rice flour is naturally gluten-free. Make this dish completely gluten-free by using gluten-free substitutes for other ingredients as needed.