Soft Shell Crab Tempura Recipe

Delicious Soft Shell Crab Tempura Recipe with Step-by-Step Instructions

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Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Japanese

Keyword: Soft Shell Crab Tempura

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 5

Total Time: 20

Servings:

Calories: 185kcal

Before beginning, make sure you thaw your crab if frozen. The best way to do this is in the fridge overnight. However, if you are short on time, you can place in a plastic bag and soak in cold water until thawed.
When you are ready to begin, heat vegetable oil in a sauce pan on medium heat to 350 degrees.
Next, make sure your soft shell crabs are cleaned. Most often they will come cleaned if you purchase from a seafood vendor. If not, you can clean by cutting the face off, removing the gills from under both sides of the crab, and removing the flap from the underside of the crab.
Blot your soft shell crabs with a paper towel to dry them off. If they are too wet they will pop during frying.

To prepare the tempura batter you will first need to assemble the ingredients and chill the water. You may need to add ice if you don’t have access to very cold water. However, make sure to remove ice cubes before combining with egg.
Next, crack the egg into a small mixing bowl and beat until the yolk and white are combined.
Once the egg is combined, add cold water to the egg and mix well. I use ice water to assure the water is cold enough. I then strain the ice cubes when adding the water to the egg.
Once the egg and water are mixed, sift one cup of flour into the egg and water combination.
Using a spoon or chopstick, lightly mix making sure not to over stir. The batter should be mixed but a little lumpy.

Once the tempura batter is prepared, place one cup of flour into a bowl or onto a plate. Then dip the crabs into the flour making sure to cover both sides of the crab along with the legs.
Dip the flour coated crabs into the tempura batter ensuring the entire crab is coated with batter.
Next, place the tempura coated crab into the hot oil and cook for 4 minutes.
After four minutes, remove from the oil and place the crabs onto a paper towel-lined plate.
Serve and enjoy!