I haven’t experimented a lot, if at all, with aquafaba. If you haven’t heard of aquafaba, it’s simply the brine left behind when you drain a can of chickpeas. Or garbanzo beans. Whatever you want to call them.
The liquid has a consistency that performs similarly to egg whites. Not sure who figured that one out, but … thank you! I decided to make an attempt Tempura Green Beans and I am almost embarrassed to admit, there were none left after this photo shoot 🙂
To the brine, I added just a pinch (1/16 of a teaspoon) to my chickpea brine which whips it into soft peaks in about half the time. It works as a stabilizer. Soft peaks will still happen without it however – after about 6 minutes or so.
Most cans of chickpeas will yield about 3/4 cup. My favorite brand of chickpeas is S&W (not sponsored, but if you can find them, choose them). The brine is thick and the chickpeas are pristine, but any brand you can find will certainly do.
Is Cream of Tartar vegan?
Tartaric acid is an organic acid that is in no way derived from animals or animal products, making it a vegan-friendly baking ingredient. Other names for “cream of tartar” are potassium bitartrate or potassium hydrogen tartrate. That’s your science lesson for the day!
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As I mentioned, we are whipping to soft peaks, so don’t over whip the brine. It should be nice and foamy at this point.
To that, we’ll be adding all purpose flour and something fizzy like sparkling or seltzer water (a vegan beer would have been the best choice). The more carbonation, the lighter the batter will be.
This required a bit of experimentation so use my measurements as a guide, but adjust accordingly. I found that as I continued cooking in batches, the latter batches did better perhaps because the batter had time to sit and thicken.
So due to that finding, make the batter first and then move on to cleaning and trimming your fresh green beans.
Look at all of those bubbles! That is what we are looking for. Again, a really fizzy and foamy beer would have probably performed even better.
Give them a good coating and then, with a slotted spoon or my very favorite kitchen spider {*affiliate link}, drain of some of the excess.
One by one, leaving space in between so they don’t stick, add them to hot oil in a pan. Now, if you have a deep fryer – lucky you! I don’t and I hate cooking in lots of oil so this fry pan worked just fine for my needs.
Don’t flip until they move easily on their own or you will lose that light coating of tempura. You just want a light golden color. The beans still retain some of their fresh bite. Oh my gosh…so good!
Simple Sriracha Mayonnaise…
I decided to keep the dip simple, so this is just vegan mayonnaise and sriracha. I am not a big spice person, but feel free to go wild with the sriracha if you like things spicy. I envy you.
Aren’t these just so pretty and delicate? As mentioned, not one remained from this photo shoot. I will definitely be making these again and again. Already wondering what I will cook with tempura next. Any suggestions? Requests?
In the printable recipe, I am doubling the sriracha mayonnaise because … double-dipping 😉
Did you make this recipe for Tempura Fried Green Beans with Sriracha Mayonnaise Dip? Leave me a comment below and let me know what you thought!
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Tempura Fried Green Beans with Sriracha Mayonnaise Dip {VEGAN}
Ingredients
- 1 pound Green Beans washed and trimmed
FOR THE AQUAFABA MIXTURE:
- 3/4 c Aquafaba (Brine from one can of drained chickpeas) amount is approximate
- 1/16 tsp Cream of Tartar optional
TO COMPLETE THE BATTER:
- 1 c All Purpose Flour just about any flour should work in this recipe
- 1 c Sparkling or Seltzer Water beer would work even better!
FOR THE SRIRACHA MAYONNAISE:
- 1 c Vegan Mayonnaise
- Sriracha Sauce to taste
FOR SERVING:
- Salt
- Parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Drain a can of chickpeas, reserving all of the brine. You can use the chickpeas in a salad or for a variety of recipes on my site. Just type "chickpeas" in the search bar 🙂
- Using an electric or hand mixer, start beating the brine and add 1/16 tsp of cream of tartar (if desired). You want to form soft peaks. Do not OVER beat.
- Slowly add in the flour, alternating with the carbonated beverage of choice. You want a thin pancake batter consistency. I recommend testing the first batch of beans and if needed, thin with more of the liquid or to thicken, more of the flour.
- Wash and trim the green beans adding a few at a time to the batter. Using a slotted spoon or spider, remove any excess.
- Add a few at a time to a hot pan with neutral flavored oil for frying leaving space so they don't touch.
- Don't attempt to flip until they move freely on their own when you move the pan around and are golden on the first side. Flip and repeat.
- Remove to paper towels to drain off any excess oil and immediately season with salt. You only have seconds to get that to stick.
- Meanwhile combine the mayonnaise and sriracha to taste.
- Serve immediately.
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