Fried tuna belly in sweet and sour sauce

Ingredients:

Sweet and sour sauce

• 1 tbsp. pineapple juice
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup apple cider vinegar
• 5 cm fresh ginger root
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch

Tuna belly

• Salt and pepper
• 200 g tuna belly
• 1 cup tempura flour
• 1.5 cups of sparkling water
• 1 cup premium flour
• Vegetable oil for frying
• 1/4 cup finely chopped sweet pepper
• 1/4 cup pineapple cubes
• 15 g chopped green onions
• Furikake, for sprinkling
• Boiled rice for serving
• Special equipment: deep fryer

Preparation:

1. Sweet and sour sauceCombine pineapple juice, brown sugar, vinegar and ginger in a saucepan and cook until sugar dissolves.
   
   Strain and discard the ginger from the mixture. Return to the saucepan and simmer over low heat. Mix the cornstarch with 1/4 cup of water, then slowly whisk the cornstarch mixture into the sauce and cook until the sauce thickens.
2. Tuna belly: Salt and pepper the fish.
   
   Mix the tempura flour with a pinch of salt and black pepper, then add the sparkling water and stir until smooth. Dredge the fish in plain flour, then completely coat it in the batter.
3. Heat oil in a deep fryer to 175°C.
4. Fry the fish until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, sauté the bell pepper, pineapple, and green onions in a frying pan with a little oil.
5. Drizzle the fish with 0.5 cups of sweet and sour sauce and the pineapple mixture. Sprinkle with furikake, if using. Serve with rice.