Small Fish and Corn Tempura
小魚とコーンの天ぷら · Kozakana to Kōn no Tempura
By Aoi, licensed nutritionist · From a Japanese preschool lunch menu
These bite-sized fritters are a kakiage-style tempura: sweet corn, carrot, and green peas are folded into an eggy batter with chirimen jako (dried baby sardines) and sakura shrimp, then spooned into hot oil. Tiny dried fish like these are eaten whole, bones and all, which is why they show up so often in Japanese school lunches as an easy, natural source of calcium. A pinch of baking powder puffs the batter so the fritters fry up light and crunchy, and the sweetness of the corn helps even fish-shy children reach for seconds.
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Ingredients
Amounts for 1 child (1 serving). An adult counts as 2 servings.
One serving here is 1.5× the portion served to a child in a Japanese preschool, sized for Western appetites. An adult counts as two servings. Tap an ingredient to check it off.
Ingredients
- 19.5 gcarrot
- 7.5 gcanned corn
- 7.5 gfrozen green peas
- 7.5 gchirimen jako (dried baby sardines)Tiny boiled and dried baby sardines, salty and rich in calcium, sprinkled over rice or mixed into vegetables. Substitute: No close substitute - look for it at a Japanese or Asian grocery, or leave it out and add a little flaked canned sardine.
- 0.8 gsakura shrimp (dried)Tiny pink dried shrimp from Japan, used to add umami and color. Substitute: Small dried shrimp from an Asian grocery (contains shellfish).
- 18 gegg
- 13.5 gflour
Seasonings
- 0.8 gbaking powder
- 9 gvegetable oil
About the Japanese ingredients in this recipe
- chirimen jako (dried baby sardines) (じゃこ)
- Tiny boiled and dried baby sardines, salty and rich in calcium, sprinkled over rice or mixed into vegetables. Substitute: No close substitute - look for it at a Japanese or Asian grocery, or leave it out and add a little flaked canned sardine.
- sakura shrimp (dried) (さくらえび)
- Tiny pink dried shrimp from Japan, used to add umami and color. Substitute: Small dried shrimp from an Asian grocery (contains shellfish).
Directions
- 1
Cut the carrot into short, thin matchsticks, drain the canned corn, and thaw the frozen green peas.
- 2
Beat the egg, add the flour and baking powder, and mix lightly, just until combined.
- 3
Combine the vegetables from step 1 and the batter from step 2 with the chirimen jako and sakura shrimp.
- 4
Scoop up spoonfuls of the mixture from step 3, gently drop them into oil heated to 170°C (340°F), and deep-fry for about 5 minutes.
Pour a little oil into a small container and dip your spoon in it before scooping each fritter. The batter is much less likely to stick to an oiled spoon, so the fritters slide off cleanly into the oil.
Nutrition
| Per | 1 serving | 1 adult serving | Your total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 189 kcal | 378 kcal | 189 kcal |
| Protein | 7.7 g | 15.3 g | 7.7 g |
| Fat | 11.6 g | 23.1 g | 11.6 g |
| Carbohydrates | 15.2 g | 30.3 g | 15.2 g |
| Salt equivalent | 0.8 g | 1.5 g | 0.8 g |
| Calcium | 90 mg | 180 mg | 90 mg |
| Iron | 0.6 mg | 1.2 mg | 0.6 mg |
| Energy | Protein | Fat | Carbs | Salt equiv. | Calcium | Iron | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 serving | 189 kcal | 7.7 g | 11.6 g | 15.2 g | 0.8 g | 90 mg | 0.6 mg |
| 1 adult serving | 378 kcal | 15.3 g | 23.1 g | 30.3 g | 1.5 g | 180 mg | 1.2 mg |
Values are per serving (1.5× the Japanese preschool portion); an adult serving is double. They were calculated by a licensed Japanese nutritionist using the Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan. "Salt equivalent" is sodium × 2.54, the standard Japanese measure. Allergen flags cover egg, milk and wheat only and come from the nutritionist's records. Soy sauce and miso are made with wheat but are usually allowed on Japanese wheat-free school menus, so check with your doctor.
