Fry

Kale Tempura

by:
November 11, 2011
4
1 Ratings
  • Serves 3-4
Author Notes

This was a surprise side effect of a side effect.. Lets see, I'd made some potato filling for Aloo paratha & converted the excess filling into vada's for an afternoon snack of vada Pao (http://www.food52.com/recipes...). & then there was some extra batter left over which i did not have the heart to throw away. So out came a couple of leaves of my current vegetable obsession, viz Kale (for which I owe Food52 a BIG thank you, -- prior to seeing recipes on this site, I had not even paid attention to kale, leave alone ever sampled it.), washed & cut into a rough chiffonade, tossed into the batter & dropped into hot oil. mmm, the perfect antidote for a chilly fall evening with a cup of spiced tea. .. And those vadas? oh yeah they've been bagged, tagged & tossed into the freezer. —Panfusine

Continue After Advertisement
Ingredients
  • 1/2 cup Chickpea flour (Besan)
  • 2 cups shredded kale, loosely packed
  • 1/4 cup rice flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon powdered coriander
  • 1/2 teaspoon Powdered cumin
  • 1/4-1/2 teaspoons Paprika powder (optional)
  • Salt to taste
  • 1/2 - 1 cups plain seltzer water
  • 2 cups Canola oil for deep frying
Directions
  1. In a mixing bowl, combine the chickpea flour, rice flour, salt & chile powder. Add enough seltzer to make a batter with the consistency of pancake batter. Add the shredded kale and combine so that all the batter coats the leaves well
  2. Heat the oil in a pan. test the temperature by dropping a drop of batter. if it sizzles & rises to the top, Add the battered kale by the spoonful into the hot oil. Allow to fry till the tempura crisps up. remove with a slotted spoon onto a plate lined with kitchen towels to absorb oil.

See what other Food52ers are saying.

A biomedical engineer/ neuroscientist by training, currently a mommy blogger on a quest for all things food - Indian Palate, Global perspective!

4 Reviews

Bevi November 13, 2011
This sounds wonderful..
Panfusine November 11, 2011
I'm sure it would work great. I found kale to be more suitable than spinach ( which is the traditional ingredient used in India, I've yet to see kale in Indian markets. ), and the frilly shape of the leaf is perfect for holding the batter in evenly.
inpatskitchen November 11, 2011
The collards are much sturdier than spinach although not as frilly.. I think I may give it a try..Thanks for sharing!
inpatskitchen November 11, 2011
This sounds wonderful! Do you think that the last of my collards in my garden would work here? They're more bitter than the kale, but could be interesting...