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Shrimp Tempura Donburi

Name: Shrimp Tempura Donburi
Prep time: 32 min
Total time: 42 min
Cuisine: Japanese
Ingredients: steamed rice — 177 g; water — 296 g; soybean soy sauce — 118 g; mirin — 59 g; granulated sugar — 25 g; broth dashi — 5 g; shrimp — 454 g; all-purpose flour — 121 g; egg — 100 g; cold water — 237 g; vegetable oil — 871 g; salt — 5 g; scallions — 200 g

Shrimp Tempura Donburi reads umami 7.3, salinity 6.0 and sweetness 5.2 on Palate's 0–10 flavor X-ray — a Japanese main, about 42 min. Measured from the recipe itself: ingredients and technique.

The flavor X-ray — six axes, 0–10

Umami & Savory — 8.6 / 10
Sweet & Fruity — 5.2 / 10
Sour & Bright — 0.7 / 10
Bitter & Earthy — 0.9 / 10
Rich & Fat — 4.2 / 10
Aromatic & Spice — 2.2 / 10

The measured notes (of 18)

Umami 7.3 · Salinity 6.0 · Sweetness 5.2 · Richness 4.0 · Marine & Briny 3.8 · Funk & Ferment 3.0 · Herbaceous 2.1 · Allium 1.7 · Nutty 0.9 · Earthy 0.8 · Bitterness 0.7 · Sourness 0.7

What's in it (13)

steamed rice — 177 g
water — 296 g
soybean soy sauce — 118 g
mirin — 59 g
granulated sugar — 25 g
broth dashi — 5 g
shrimp — 454 g
all-purpose flour — 121 g
egg — 100 g
cold water — 237 g
vegetable oil — 871 g
salt — 5 g
scallions — 200 g

Time & effort: about 42 min (32 min active) · effort: involved

Nutrition (per 100 g, engine-estimated): 123.6 kcal, 6 g protein, 6.5 g fat, 10.8 g carbs

Dietary: Contains meat · Contains seafood · Contains egg — engine-derived; double-check anything allergy-critical.

How it's cooked (7 steps)

Combine the rinsed rice and 1 1/4 cups water in a small saucepan; bring to a boil over high heat, then cover, reduce heat to low, and cook until the water is absorbed, 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand, covered, 10 minutes, then fluff with a fork.
In a small saucepan, whisk together the soy sauce, mirin, sugar, and dashi granules; bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook until the sugar dissolves and the sauce thickens slightly, 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
Pat the shrimp completely dry with paper towels, then season lightly with the salt. Toss the shrimp in 2 tablespoons of the flour to coat lightly, shaking off the excess — this thin dusting helps the batter cling.
In a medium bowl, whisk the egg into the ice-cold water just until combined. Add the remaining flour all at once and stir with chopsticks or a fork just 3 to 4 strokes, until barely combined and still lumpy — a few dry streaks of flour are fine and keep the coating light and shattering-crisp.
Pour the vegetable oil into a heavy pot or Dutch oven to a depth of 2 inches and heat over medium-high heat to 350°F.
Dip each shrimp by the tail into the batter, letting the excess drip off, then lower it gently into the hot oil. Fry in batches of 5 to 6 shrimp to avoid crowding (3-4 batches to fry all the shrimp), until the coating is pale golden and crisp and the shrimp is opaque throughout, 2 to 3 minutes per batch. Transfer to a wire rack to drain.
Divide the rice between two bowls and arrange the fried shrimp on top. Drizzle with the warm tentsuyu sauce and scatter with the scallions. Serve immediately, while the shrimp is at its crispest.

Dishes with a similar flavor shape

Pissaladière — French · Provence
Shrimp Tempura with Dipping Sauce — Japanese
Pad See Ew — Thai
Takoyaki (たこ焼き) — Japanese
Pad See Ew with Chicken — Thai

Keep reading: what umami, salinity, sweetness mean in the flavor lexicon · the world's cuisines, by flavor.

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Every number above is Palate's engine-measured estimate, computed from this recipe's ingredients and techniques — not human-tasted ratings or reviews.