Rock Shrimp Tempura

This Rock Shrimp Tempura is made with fresh shrimp, flour, vegetable oil, egg, panko crumbs, cold water, and served with a spicy mayo. 

One of my favorite appetizers has always been Nobu's Rock Shrimp Tempura. The Nobu Creamy Spicy sauce actually has an egg yolk in it. I wanted to recreated it without an egg - my recipe's sauce only has mayonnaise and Sriracha. You will be deep frying the shrimp into a pot of vegetable or canola oil, so its important to use a small pot so you don't have to use too much oil.

Feel free to check out my Sticky Honey Garlic Shrimp and my Shrimp Scampi.

Jump to:

• Ingredients
• Instructions
• Substitutions
• Variations
• Equipment
• Storage
• Top tip
• Rock Shrimp Tempura
• Food safety

Ingredients

• Shrimp, cleaned and deveined
• Vegetable oil
• Panko crumbs
• Egg
• Water
• Flour
• Mayonnaise
• Sriracha

See recipe card for quantities.

Instructions

1. Start by placing a small pot full of oil on low heat, until heat reaches 375°F on a candy thermometer. It is super important to use a candy thermometer when deep frying. 
2. Make the batter. In a bowl, mix the egg, cold water, and flour. 
3. In another bowl, add the panko crumbs. 
4. Dip the shrimp into the batter and then toss into the panko crumbs. Repeat with the rest of the shrimp.
5. When the oil is hot enough (around 375°F), deep fry the shrimp until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes. You may need to do this in batches. 
6. In a bowl, add the mayonnaise and sriracha and serve on the side. 
7. Garnish with chopped scallions or chives.

Hint: Make sure to use a candy thermometer to control the temperature.

Substitutions

• Shrimp: To make your life easier, buy the shrimp cleaned, peeled and deveined. Go to your local fish market for the freshest fish they may have.
• Panko Crumbs: The panko crumbs add an amazing texture to the shrimp. I get my panko crumbs from Trader Joe's.
• Oil: You can use vegetable or canola oil for deep frying.
• Scallions: I love garnishing with scallions, green onion or chives.
• Egg: For best quality tempura, use cage free, organic eggs from your local supermarket.
• Flour: I used plain all purpose flour to make the batter.
• Mayonnaise: This mayonnaise is used to make the spicy mayo. You can use store spicy mayo, but I love making my own with sriracha. Feel free to add lemon wedges as well.

Variations

Cooking is a chance to be creative! Have fun with it and feel free to make your own variation.

• Spicy - add add extra sriracha or red pepper flakes into the dipping sauce.
• Deluxe - add chives or chopped cilantro for garnish.
• Kid friendly - Kids love anything fried and breaded!

Check out this Shrimp Sausage and Rice Recipe dish too!

Equipment

Equipment can have a big impact on how a recipe turns out. Stone bakeware takes longer to heat up than metal pans, and also retain heat for longer, which could make the recipe more watery, or burnt on the outsides.

I love using my Caraway pots, pans and baking sheets for best quality. Get yourself a discount by clicking here!

Storage

This will be good in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.

These ingredients don't stand up well to freezing.

Top tip

USE A CANDY THERMOMETER. This is super essential to keep track of the temperature of the oil.

Print

Food safety

• Cook to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
• Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
• Wash hands after touching raw meat
• Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
• Never leave cooking food unattended
• Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
• Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove

See more guidelines at USDA.gov.