Japanese tempura *anything* might be one of my favorite dishes on the planet. The shatteringly explosive crunch and crisp, the not too greasy and rich batter. It’s a truly iconic dish when done right. This SeaPak product hopes to help you replicate that at home.
Eight frozen tempura battered shrimp come inside the cardboard box. They’re bagged ups againin plastic packaging that’s non-resealable. Here are a few snaps of the cooked product:
From top to bottom them, a few ways I cooked them:
- Plain with a mayo-siracha dip (just a 75/25 mix)
- As a spin on fish tacos with lots of guac and Wild Coyote cilantro-ranch sauce
- Covered in thick Maruso Soy Sauce and served with House Foods Kokumaro curry and rice
The verdict? Well, they’re no match for a quality restaurant that’s for sure. But for something out of the freezer I was actually really quite surprised. The exterior batter crisps up tremendously. I used my air fryer and was shocked by how good the batter was. Again, it’s not restaurant “hot from the fryer” good, but if you want crunch, crunch you shall have!
The flipside of that is the batter is very thick and dominant. The shrimp’s flavor wilts away and is lost against the batter. It’s like trying to listen to classical music at a rock concert.
I think I’d but this one again if I was in the mood for that tempura crunch, maybe not so much if I was craving shrimp flavors per se.
SeaPak Tempura Shrimp ingredients, nutrition, cooking
Are SeaPak Tempura Shrimp any good?
The batter is fantastically crisp and crunchy. The shrimp is timidly mild though. If you’re looking more for tempura texture than shrimp flavors, this might be worth a look in.
Hi, I’m Stuart, nice to meet you! I’m the founder, writer and wrangler at Gastronomic SLC – Utah’s biggest and oldest online food magazine; I’m also a former restaurant critic of more than five years, working for the Salt Lake Tribune. I’ve worked extensively with multiple local publications from Visit Salt Lake to Salt Lake Magazine, not least helped to consult on national TV shows.
I’m a multiple-award winning journalist and have covered the Utah dining scene for the better part of fifteen years. I’m largely fueled by a critical obsession with rice, alliteration and the use of big words I don’t understand. I started Shop Smart to catalogue my adventures in the grocery store and kitchen. Follow along on Instagram too!