← Nouns Cooking · Japanese

Ingredients

• 500 g sweet potatoes (Japanese satsumaimo if you can find them)
• 500 ml neutral oil, for shallow-frying
• 4 tbsp Sugar
• 2 tbsp Mirin
• 1 tbsp Water
• 2 tsp Honey
• 1 tsp Soy sauce
• 1 tbsp black sesame seeds

Method

1. Scrub the sweet potatoes, leaving the skin on, and cut into chunky wedges by rolling the potato a quarter turn between each cut. Soak in cold water for 10 min, then drain and pat completely dry.
2. Pour the oil into a frying pan and add the potatoes while the oil is still cold. Turn the heat to medium and fry for 10–12 min, turning now and then, until golden and a skewer slides in easily.
3. Raise the heat for the last minute to crisp them up, then lift onto a rack. Pour the oil out of the pan and wipe it clean.
4. Add the sugar, mirin, water, honey and soy sauce to the pan and bubble over medium heat for 1–2 min, until the syrup thickens and big bubbles form.
5. Tip in the potatoes and toss quickly to coat. Sprinkle with sesame, then spread on baking paper to cool for a few minutes so the glaze sets.

Tips

• Starting in cold oil cooks the inside through before the outside burns.
• Honey makes this non-vegan; use all sugar instead. Soy sauce contains wheat.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

RecipeTin Japan Japanese Cooking 101 Chopstick Chronicles