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–+ servings
Chikuwa isobeage on a bamboo tray with tempura paper and a shiso leaf

Chikuwa Isobe-Age (Fishcake Tempura with Aonori Batter)

Prep Time8 minutes
Cook Time2 minutes
Total Time10 minutes
Author Yuto Omura
Servings 4 Servings

Ingredients 
 

Instructions 

  • Start heating a pot of cooking oil to 180 °C (356 °F). While you wait, cut 4 chikuwa fishcake in half lengthways, then cut in half again diagonally crosswise.
    Chikuwa (Japanese fish cakes) diagonally cut crosswise
  • Take a large bowl and add the 2 tbsp unbleached cake flour, 2 tbsp potato starch (katakuriko) and 1 tbsp aonori (dried green seaweed powder). Crush 1 tsp bonito flakes (katsuobushi) in your hand to make a fine powder and sprinkle it into the bowl. Mix until all the ingredients are evenly distributed.
    Cake flour, starch and aonori mixed in a bowl
  • Pour 4 tbsp carbonated water into the dry ingredients and gently stir until combined.
    Isobeage batter mixed in a bowl
  • Add the chikuwa to the bowl and mix until evenly coated.
    Chikuwa in a bowl of isobeage batter
  • Once the oil is hot, add the battered chikuwa in batches, leaving space between the pieces, and fry for 1 minute on each side.
    Chukawa isobeage deep-frying in oil in a Japanese style frying pot
  • Transfer to a wire rack and rest for a few minutes to drain any excess oil.
    Chikuwa isobeage draining on a wire rack
  • Serve and enjoy!
    Chikuwa isobeage on a bamboo tray with tempura paper and a shiso leaf

Notes

Chikuwa only needs warming: Chikuwa is fully cooked at the factory and ready to eat straight from the pack. You fry it to crisp the batter and warm the fish cake through.
Fry the batter as soon as it's mixed: Once the sparkling water goes in, a flour batter fries less crisp the longer it sits. The dry ingredients alone can be combined ahead of time.
Keep the stirring brief: Every extra stir makes the batter stickier, and a sticky batter fries up heavy and dense.
Wipe off frost and surface water: Frost or moisture on the chikuwa spatters the moment it meets hot oil. The batter also slips off wet spots more easily, so dry it if it's not already dry.
Don't refry leftovers: Cold pieces dropped back into the oil scorch the aonori easily. Reheat them in a toaster oven or a dry frying pan. Thaw frozen pieces briefly in the microwave first.
Buying chikuwa in the US: Check the freezer case at a Japanese or other Asian grocer. Pick the hollow tube with a hole through the middle. The flat Korean fish cake sheets (eomuk) are another food entirely.