National Tempura Day is January 7th in the United States. Tempura is a Japanese dish which is usually seafood or vegetables that has been battered and fried. Traditionally, the batter is made of cold water, flour, eggs, baking soda and seasoning. This batter is gently stirred with chopsticks for a few seconds, leaving some lumps in it to create the flaky, crisp tempura structure that we know. This process of a wet batter was acquired from the Spanish and Portuguese merchants who resided in Nagasaki. Today, Tempura is popular around the world and chefs are exploring new ways to fry traditional items.

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