Food Wars: Tavern

In most people's minds, fried foods are often associated with junk food!

Whether it's the globally popular American-style hamburgers or the street-side snacks and fried skewers, many people see them as high-oil and high-calorie foods.

But in the realm of culinary delights, the tempura in the neon country of Neonova is an exception.

Although some still consider it "fried junk food," those who truly understand know that tempura might seem simple but is not easy to fry.

From the freshness of the ingredients to the choice of cooking utensils, the precision in handling seasoning and controlling the temperature is essential!

Therefore, well-made tempura is crispy and doesn't feel oily when eaten.

It's incomparable to street-side snacks or even the fried foods at McDonald's and KFC.

Chomp! Crunch! When Yuki bit into the tempura, her mouth made crunching sounds.

"Wow, it's really crispy!"

"As soon as it enters the mouth, the crispy batter makes a delightful sound between the lips and tongue."

"The overall taste is crunchy on the outside, tender inside, fragrant but not greasy, and the oysters even have a hint of sweetness."

"Upon careful tasting, you can feel a natural, full flavor of the ingredients in the mouth!"

With evident satisfaction, Yuno picked up another piece of tempura with her chopsticks and continued to savor it.

"This standard has truly exceeded my expectations!"

Similarly, Satoshi, who was also eating tempura, was surprised.

High-quality tempura should not have a thick batter but a thin layer.

This is because the batter quickly forms in hot oil, enveloping the ingredients and steaming them within the batter, preserving the moisture of the ingredients.

No matter what ingredients are used, the batter and the ingredients must achieve a perfect balance of oil and water, sweetness and freshness, texture, and flavor.

In this respect, the owner Zane had done an excellent job.

The tempura he made had an exceptionally thin batter, highlighting the natural flavors of the ingredients and creating a simple yet delicious style, a skill that even Satoshi couldn't master.

"Strange, isn't this just an ordinary tavern?"

"Why is the chef's culinary skill so good that even I can't figure it out?"

Staring at Zane in astonishment, Satoshi couldn't help but be briefly lost in thought, his expression becoming increasingly complex.

Sometimes, a dish can truly reflect a chef's skill!

From this tempura, it was evident that Chef Zane had fully expressed the original flavors of various ingredients and, using scientific techniques and excellent temperature control, had achieved a delicious tempura with a crispy exterior and a moist, rich taste.

Not an exaggeration to say that the tempura in the tavern.

Certainly belonged to the most delicious tempura Satoshi had ever eaten in his life!

In his eyes, just this tempura alone made Chef Zane superior to all top ten chefs at the Totsuki Culinary Academy.

But this exceptional chef turned out to be the owner of a small tavern!

Could it be that nowadays the strong prefer to hide in plain sight?

Firstly, choose fresh wild salmon.

After washing the salmon, pat it dry with kitchen paper towels.

Then evenly apply a moderate amount of salt to the fish and leave it to rest for 15 minutes, allowing the salt to penetrate the meat.

Next, place the fish on a grill and grill it over medium heat for 8 minutes, turning the fish constantly to prevent burning.

Finally, take out the grilled salmon, place it on a plate, let it cool for a moment, and then serve it to Satoshi and the others.

"Chef, can I trouble you for a moment?"

"I would like to ask you about the relationship between the smoke point of oil and the perfect control of the temperature when grilling tempura."

Unexpectedly, as Chef Zane was about to go back to the cooking station after putting down the plate, he was called back by Satoshi, who then asked a very professional question.

The smoke point of oil refers to the temperature at which the oil begins to produce smoke during the heating process.

When the temperature of the oil exceeds the smoke point, the oil will start to oxidize, decompose, and polymerize.

Therefore, experienced chefs usually use the smoke point of oil to cook various ingredients!

"To achieve a crispy and tender texture in tempura, you need to control the temperature between 150 and 180 degrees Celsius."

"So, you should use an oil with a smoke point above this temperature, but not too high."

"After all, only at this temperature and time can you ensure that the batter is evenly fried but still has a tender inside, while also avoiding issues caused by the smoke point of oil."

"If you use oil with a high smoke point, experienced chefs can control it properly, but for many inexperienced chefs, they may not even realize when the temperature has reached the highest limit of the smoke point."

"The end result is that the tempura will end up fried like a KFC meal."

At this point, everyone in the room looked shocked, except for Satoshi, who remained calm.

They never thought that the smoke point of oil could be used when making tempura.

Of course, this amazing method definitely requires the chef to understand the smoke point of different oils and it's somewhat difficult to execute.

"Well, um..."

"What are the smoke points of various oils, and which oil is best for frying tempura?"

Later, in a quiet atmosphere, curious Megumi couldn't help but gather the courage to ask softly.

"Rapeseed oil is 104-116 degrees Celsius, corn oil is 160 degrees Celsius, walnut oil is 160 degrees Celsius, white sesame oil's smoke point is generally around 210 degrees Celsius, olive oil is 188 degrees Celsius, soybean oil is 110-116 degrees Celsius…"

"As for which oil is needed for frying tempura, there are actually many choices."

"Sesame oil."

"Cottonseed oil."

"Sunflower seed oil."

"These oils can all be used for frying tempura."

"You can also use camellia oil, corn oil, and soybean oil, and different pressing methods and refinement levels will naturally bring different qualities to the tempura."