Yachae Twigim (Fried Vegetable Tempura) | 야채튀김
Pronounced: Yaeh-Chae Twee-Gim
What: Fried Veggie Tempura in a special batter my Mom uses!
Taste: Crispy, airy, fried veggie tempura consisting of potatoes, carrots, brown onion, and green onions. The batter used in this dish creates a tempura texture that is best served with my Mom’s soy onion sauce dip!
How It’s Made: Heat oil. Make batter. Refrigerate batter. Slice veggies. Coat veggies in batter. Fry.
What to Serve it With:
The Soy Sauce Onion Dip (recipe included in this post)!
Picked Yellow Daikon Radish (purchased from Korean Grocery Store).
We eat this as a snack. We don’t eat this with rice and have this as a banchan (side dish), but aint no one stopping you if you want that!
Notes & Tips (important!!):
You must use Korean Frying Mix. Our favorite brand is Beksul Korean Frying Mix. You can find it at Korean Grocery Stores.
Something about this mix makes the food so much crispier and tastes A LOT better than flour. My mom never uses flour to fry. It’s not as good for Korean dishes.
You must be quick! The batter has to be ice cold in order to get that thin, airy, crispy texture when fried.
If you have extra batter leftover, fry other stuff in it! We fried up Korean sweet potatoes (sliced into small discs). So delicious in this batter.
Yachae Twigim (Fried Vegetable Tempura) | 야채튀김
Ingredients:
- 2 cups oil (enough oil to deep fry)
- 1½ cups Korean Frying Mix (150g)
- ½ cup COLD water + 3 ice cubes (the batter needs to be very COLD)
- 2 small potatoes, peeled (keep it submerged in water until it’s ready to be dunked in the batter, otherwise it’ll brown)
- 1 medium carrot
- 1 brown onion (save 2 Tbsp of chopped onions for the dip)
- 4-5 green onions (save 1.5 Tbsp of chopped green onions for the dip)
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp vinegar
- 2 Tbsp brown onion, chopped
- 1.5 Tbsp green onion, chopped
Instructions:
How to cook Yachae Twigim (Fried Vegetable Tempura) | 야채튀김
- Heat 2 cups of oil in a shallow pot over medium-high heat.
- Meanwhile, prepare everything else. Let’s make the batter first. In a medium bowl, whisk together the following: 1½ cups Korean Frying Mix (150g), ½ cup COLD water + 3 ice cubes (the batter needs to be very COLD at all times!) Whisk until you get a a runny texture that is not too thin nor too thick. Refrigerate, as we slice up the vegetables next (10 minutes).
- Chop and slice the following vegetables into strips: 2 small potatoes, peeled (keep it submerged in water until it’s ready to be dunked in the batter, otherwise it’ll brown), 1 medium carrot, 1 brown onion (save 2 Tbsp of chopped onions for the dip), 4-5 green onions (save 1.5 Tbsp of chopped green onions for the dip)
- Take the batter out of the refrigerator. Strain your sliced potatoes out of the water. Add your sliced vegetables to the batter (not all at once), and thoroughly mix and add more until all vegetables are all coated in the batter. Do this by handfuls— you want to make sure there is enough batter to cover all vegetables. Add in ½ tsp white sugar and salt. Mix.
- - Pinch of salt Fry it up now! Using a tong, pick up a variety of all the veggies you sliced. Carefully drop it into the oil. Don’t overcrowd your frying pot. We added 3-4 bunches at a time, but it varies on how big your pot is. Let it fry for 3-4 minutes, giving it a flip when it turns just golden and crispy on one side. Once crispy on both sides, let the oils drain a bit on a cooling rack with a paper towel underneath.
- In a small bowl, add the following: 2 Tbsp soy sauce, 1 Tbsp vinegar (if you are not crazy about vinegar, use ½ Tbsp, but vinegar is key), 2 Tbsp brown onion, chopped, and 1.5 Tbsp green onion, chopped
- Serve immediately and enjoy!
STEPS WITH VISUALS
Heat 2 cups of oil in a shallow pot over medium-high heat.
Meanwhile, prepare everything else. Let’s make the batter first. In a medium bowl, whisk together the following:
1½ cups Korean Frying Mix (150g)
½ cup COLD water + 3 ice cubes (the batter needs to be very COLD!)
Whisk until you get a a runny texture that is not too thin nor too thick, seen below. Refrigerate, as we slices up the vegetables next (10 minutes). The batter needs to be ice cold at all times! Keep this in mind!
Chop and slice the following vegetables into strips, pictured below:
2 small potatoes, peeled (keep it submerged in water until it’s ready to be dunked in the batter, otherwise it’ll brown)
1 medium carrot
1 brown onion (save 2 Tbsp of chopped onions for the dip)
4-5 green onions (save 1.5 Tbsp of chopped green onions for the dip)
Take the batter out of the refrigerator. Strain your sliced potatoes out of the water. Add your sliced vegetables to the batter (not all at once), and thoroughly mix and add more until all vegetables are all coated in the batter. Do this by handfuls (do not add ALL your vegetable at once)— you want to make sure there is enough batter to cover all vegetables. Mix in 1/2 tsp sugar and salt.
Fry it up now! The oil should be ready. You can test a piece out if you would like. It should fry up immediately.
Using a tong, pick up a variety of all the veggies you sliced. Carefully drop it into the oil. Don’t overcrowd your frying pot. We added 3-4 at a time, but it varies on how big your pot is. Let it fry for 3-4 minutes, giving it a flip when it turns a bit golden and crispy on one side.
Once crispy on both sides, let the oils drain a bit on a cooling rack with a paper towel underneath.
TIP: If you have extra batter leftover, fry other stuff in it! We fried up Korean sweet potatoes (sliced into small discs). So delicious in this batter.
Make the soy sauce onion dip! The onions in the soy sauce help filter the oils of the fried vegetables. Trust me, it makes the dish taste AMAZING.
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp white, apple, or rice vinegar (if you are not crazy about vinegar, use ½ Tbsp, but vinegar is key)
2 Tbsp brown onion, chopped
1.5 Tbsp green onion, chopped
Serve immediately. Use a spoon for the dip and grab up the onions with a bit of the soy sauce. Place it over the fried veggies, and enjoy!
Definitely give these fried vegetables a try. Again, the Korean Frying Mix makes the biggest difference. Make sure it’s ice cold, and serve it with the soy sauce onion dip that has onions in it to help balance the dish (plus it’s much more tasty!).
Hope you enjoy it. It’s always a hit with family and friends.
Eat Well,
Sarah