Peixinhos da Horta or ‘Little Fish from the Garden’ are a delicious Portuguese snack made with blanched green beans, covered in a light batter and deep fried. They are a hit in petisqueiras across the country and although they indeed resemble little fried fish, they are one of the few Portuguese snacks that are naturally vegetarian. Keep on reading to learn how to make these authentic Portuguese deep fried green beans.
Peixinhos da Horta – Little Fish from the Garden
Peixinhos da Horta are my favourite Portuguese petisco. From the adorable name meaning ‘little garden fish’ to the crispy texture and taste, I just love everything about them! That’s why whenever I have friends visiting me in Lisbon, I always make sure they try this simple but absolutely delicious snack. Especially if they are vegetarian. I also love telling people how peixinhos da horta inspired the Japanese tempura.
The Connection Between Peixinhos da Horta and Tempura
If you’ve tried peixinhos before you probably noticed the similarity to Japanese tempura – bite size pieces of veg or seafood battered and deep fried. What many people don’t know is that this Portuguese snack is in fact its predecessor. When the Portuguese Jesuits reached Japan, they brought with them this cooking technique that helped preserve the vegetables. Peixinhos were also very popular during Lent where Catholics abstain from red meats. That’s also one of the possible origins for the word tempura, a derivation from the Latin word tempora used by the missionaries to refer to the Lent period.
Homemade Peixinhos da Horta – Ingredients
This recipe has two main components, the green beans, and the batter that coats them. Any type of green bean can be used, in Portugal the most common are the flat green beans and the string green beans, both of them work well in this recipe! As for the batter, you will find there are several different recipes out there. Mine has changed through the years and currently consists of a mix of flour, corn starch, egg, garlic powder, ground nutmeg, lemon zest, beer, salt, and black pepper.
Peixinhos are deep fried so you will also need plenty of vegetable oil. I also like to sprinkle my fried green beans with a little paprika powder and a squeeze of lemon juice. If I have some extra time I’ll also prepare a homemade roasted garlic mayo to serve it with but that’s totally optional. You will find the recipe for that below.
Peixinhos da Horta – The Recipe
We start by rinsing and trimming the ends of the green beans, if you are using the flat ones, you can cut them in half. The next step is to blanch the beans in boiling water with a generous sprinkle of salt for about 4 minutes, you don’t want to overcook them.
You then transfer the beans to an ice bath to cool off, drain and pat dry with kitchen paper. Set aside while you prepare the batter.
In a bowl mix the flour with the corn starch and the seasonings (garlic powder, lemon zest, ground nutmeg, salt, and black pepper) until combined. Make a well in the center and crack the egg in. Using a wire whisk, start to incorporate the egg.
Once the egg is absorbed into the flour, pour in the beer. Whisk well to combine making sure there are no flour lumps left. We want a runnier batter, so if yours feels too thick, you can add a splash of water or beer. Set aside.
While the batter rests, place a pan suitable for deep frying over low to medium heat, then fill it with your vegetable oil. Let it heat up slowly.
Check your oil, the ideal temperature is 190 °C. If you don’t have a thermometer, you can stick a wooden spoon handle tip into the hot oil. If lots of gentle bubbles form around it, the oil is good to go. Use a pair of chopsticks or tongs to dip your green beans into the batter to coat them, shake it a little to remove any excess. Place it into the hot oil straight away, fry until golden on both sides.
Repeat the process until you run out of green beans. Rest them on top of absorbent paper. Season with some smoked paprika, and more salt and pepper to taste before serving. Enjoy!
How to Make Portuguese Tempura Green Beans
Peixinhos da Horta – How to Make Portuguese Tempura Green Beans
6
servings25
minutes20
minutes154
kcaleixinhos da Horta or ‘Little Fish from the Garden’ is a delicious Portuguese snack made with blanched green beans, covered in a light batter and deep fried.
Ingredients
500 g 500 Green Beans – ends trimmed
200 g 200 All-purpose Flour
1 1 Medium Egg
1 tsp 1 Corn Starch
2 tsp 2 Garlic Powder
1/4 tsp 1/4 Ground Nutmeg
Zests of Half a Lemon
250 ml 250 Chilled Lager Beer
Black Pepper – to taste
Salt – to taste
1 tsp 1 Smoked Paprika
1 l 1 Vegetable Oil for Frying
- Roasted Garlic Mayo Ingredients
1 1 Small Garlic Bulb
1 tsp 1 Olive Oil
1 1 Egg Yolk
Juice of Half a Lemon
50 ml 50 Vegetable Oil
1 tsp 1 Dijon Mustard
Salt – to taste
Black Pepper – to taste
Directions
- Wash the green beans thoroughly, trim their ends, if you are using flat green beans, cut them in half.
- Blanch them in boiling water with a generous sprinkle of salt for 4 minutes. Immediately transfer the blanched beans to an ice bath. Drain, pat them dry with kitchen paper, then set aside.
- Meanwhile, place a pan suitable for deep frying over low to medium heat, fill it with the vegetable oil. Let it heat up slowly while you prepare the batter.
- In a bowl, mix the flour with the corn starch and the garlic powder, lemon zest, ground nutmeg, salt, and black pepper until combined. Make a well in the center and crack the egg in. Using a wire whisk, start to incorporate the egg.
- Once the egg is absorbed into the flour, pour in the beer. Whisk well to combine making sure there are no flour lumps left. We want a runnier batter, so if yours feels too thick, you can add a splash of water or beer. Set aside.
- Check your oil, the ideal temperature is 190 °C. If you don’t have a thermometer, you can stick a wooden spoon handle tip into the hot oil. If lots of gentle bubbles form around it, the oil is good to go.
- Use a pair of chopsticks or tongs to dip your green beans into the batter to coat them, shake it a little to remove any excess. Place them into the hot oil straight away, fry until golden. Repeat the process until you run out of green beans.
- Rest them on top of absorbent paper. Season with the smoked paprika, and more salt and pepper to taste before serving. Enjoy it with garlic mayo or a squeeze of lemon juice!
- Garlic Mayo Directions
- Remove the top of a whole garlic bulb to expose the cloves without removing the peel. Drizzle with the olive oi, then wrap it in foil. Cook in the airfryer for 30 minutes at 180°C or until the garlic is gooey and lightly caramelised. Let it cool down.
- To a food blender add in the roasted garlic, the egg yolk, the lemon juice, vegetable oil, and Dijon mustard. Season with salt and black pepper to taste. Blend until silky smooth. Store in the fridge until you are ready to serve the peixinhos da horta.
Recipe Video
Notes
- Don’t overcrowd the pan too much while frying your battered beans, you don’t want to reduce the temperature of the oil.
- If the mixture is too thick you can add a little more sparkling water, if it’s too thin you can add a little more flour.
Have you tried this recipe? Let me know in the comments!