Tempura Salt And Pepper Potatoes With Mirin Dressing - cooking recipe

Ingredients

None None FOR THE ROASTED SALT AND PEPPER SPICE
1 tbsp sea salt flakes
2 None cinnamon sticks
4 None star anise
1/2 tsp Japanese pepper
None None FOR THE POTATOES
1 cup rice flour
2 cups cornstarch
1 1/4 cups chilled club soda
1 lb Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled
None None Vegetable oil, for deep-frying
None None FOR THE MIRIN DRESSING
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 piece (1 1/2 inches) fresh ginger, finely chopped
2 None fresh small red Thai chili peppers, thinly sliced
1/4 cup Japanese soy sauce
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup mirin
1 1/2 tbsp rice wine vinegar

Preparation

For the roasted salt and pepper spice, preheat the oven to 300\u00b0F. Roast the salt, cinnamon and star anise on a baking pan for 1 hour. Blend, process or grind spices with pepper until powdered. Push the spice mixture through a fine sieve into a small bowl.
For the potatoes, place the rice flour and 1 cup of the cornstarch in a large bowl. Stir in the club soda until just combined (the batter should be lumpy). Cover and let stand for 30 mins.
For the mirin dressing, bring all ingredients and 1/2 cup water to a boil in a small saucepan. Reduce the heat to low; simmer, uncovered, for 5 mins.
Using a sharp knife, mandolin or V-slicer, slice the potato thinly and pat dry with paper towels.
Heat the oil in a large saucepan on medium-high heat. Dust potato slices, one at a time, with the remaining cornstarch then dip the in the batter. Deep-fry the potato, in batches, until golden and tender. Drain on paper towels.
Sprinkle the potatoes with roasted salt and pepper spice. Serve with mirin dressing.