Masa Tempura Batter by Alex Stupak

This masa tempura batter is the key to Empellón’s fried fish taco, but can be used on just about any host, from fish and shrimp to vegetables and tofu.

This is one of three featured recipes from Masa: Techniques, Recipes, and Reflections on a Timeless Staple by this week’s guest, Jorge Gaviria. Paid subscribers can also enjoy recipes for Blue Masa Sourdough Bread by Karlo Evaristo and Jorge’s Table Tortilla Masa. You can also hear our conversation with Jorge here.

Photo: Graydon Herriott

Excerpted with permission from Masa: Techniques, Recipes, and Reflections on a Timeless Staple by Jorge Gaviria:

This masa tempura batter is the key to Empellón’s fried fish taco, one of the restaurant’s most popular dishes. The batter can be used on just about any host, from fish and shrimpvegetables and tofu. Alex Stupak’s secret to getting an even, flaky consistency from this masa batter is to run it through a cream whipper. Cream whippers work by using compressed nitrous oxide to aerate the liquid inside through a nozzle at the top. If you don’t have one of these lying around, you can get pretty close by whisking or blending the batter for a bit longer, as you might to whip cream, for 2 to 3 minutes, until smooth and even.