Tofu Dengaku (In A Miso Umeboshi Glaze)

June 19, 2018 Leave a comment

Dengaku, a miso glaze traditionally used on tofu,daikon or eggplant ( see Nasu Dengaku for a further recipe.) This one has lots of umami flavour as I used Umeboshi plum giving it that sweet,salty and sour taste. To make the glaze mash one tablespoon of Umeboshi plum with one tablespoon of white miso paste or any other miso you prefer like red or hatcho. Add one teaspoon of maple syrup or malted brown rice syrup,a teaspoon of mirin and a teaspoon of brown rice vinegar and mix together. Now you can use this to glaze your tofu. Cut your tofu into cube or steaks if you like and spread on the glaze. Bake in the oven until the tofu is golden. Top onto warm rice to make Tofu Dengaku Donburi. Add a sprinkle of sesame seeds and chopped green onion.

You can use the glaze for eggplant either cut into rounds or lengthways and score a cross hatch pattern into the flesh. This is called kakushi-bocho,this will help the eggplant absorb the flavours while baking. Bake in the oven until tender,again adding some sesame seeds and green onion before serving.

Finally Daikon Dengaku this one is particularly nice in winter. Peel and cut your daikon into at least one inch rounds and simmer until tender in some kombu dashi,do not throw away the water after as it makes nice broth for miso soup. When tender you can serve your daikon as is with some of your miso paste on top .

or why not pan sear first to give your daikon a crispy outer coating. I also like to add a little dashi broth with a dash of tamari when serving my daikon in the bottom of the bowl. Makes for a comforting dish. In this particular paste I added a splash of yuzu citrus ,if you have any paste left over just add it to a jar with a little water put on the lid and give it a little shake for the perfect salad dressing.

Blog, Summer Food

Soba Noodle Salad With Dressing

June 3, 2018 Leave a comment

When the weather starts to warm up salads are always a good choice. This is a cold soba noodle salad and is a great way of using up veg in the fridge.

First prep what vegetables you would like to use. I used sweet corn,radish,cucumber,edamame,green onion,red cabbage,mizuna,steamed broccoli and baby corn and grated daikon. For a topping I also diced some silken tofu and minced an Umeboshi.

Then make your dressing one tablespoon each of sweet white miso,mirin,brown rice vinegar,sesame oil and yuzu juice. Also some grated fresh ginger. Add this to a jar pop on the lid and give it a good shake. If it’s still to thick add a little water or more vinegar.

Finally cook your soba noodles . I like to use the fresh kind if you can get them that literally take minutes to cook. I used green tea soba noodles but normal soba noodles are just fine. Cook your noodles and as soon as they are al dente drain and wash in cold running water.

Place your noodles in a bowl and toss in a little sesame oil now add your prepared vegetables and mix them in. Top with your toppings,daikon,Umeboshi,sesame seeds maybe some shredded nori if you like. Drizzle around the outside your dressing and your done.

A pefect summer salad with a Japanese twist.

Autumn Food, Blog

Kenchinjiru

October 25, 2017 Leave a comment

Kenchinjiru is a hearty warming soup which originates from the Kencho-ji temple in Kamakura. This is my version of this Shojin Ryori Zen Buddhist dish. Full of root vegetables and crumbled tofu in a kombu,shiitake,tamari and miso broth.

Soak one piece of Kombu kelp and two dried shiitake mushrooms in a 1 litre jug of hot water. Leave for a few hours then discard the kombu and slice the shiitake for later.

Add some toasted sesame oil to a pan and sauté your root vegetables I used :lotus root,gobo ( burdock),carrot and daikon radish. Then add your dashi stock. Then add some crumbled tofu a tablespoon of tamari and mirin and shiitake and simmer until all the vegetables are cooked.

Ladle a cup of stock and dissolve one heaped tablespoon of miso and add to the soup. Do not boil the soup as this will destroy the enzymes of the miso.

Just before serving add any leafy green vegetables I used komatsuna and also snap peas.

Serve in a deep bowl and garnish with some sansho pepper to schichimi togarashi .

A wonder winter warmer.

Blog, Summer Food

Agedashi tofu

April 30, 2017 Leave a comment

Hot crispy golden tofu which makes a delicious appetiser . Normally deep fried but I shallow fry mine and it works well.

I use firm tofu as it doesn’t fall apart so easily. Drain your tofu and I wrap mine in a cloth to soak up excess liquid . Cut your tofu into cubes add some add some plain flour or potato starch into a bowl. Roll your tofu in the flour and coat well .

Then make your sauce 1 cup of dashi 2 tablespoon of tamari and 2 mirin and 1 teaspoon of sugar. Combine these in a pan and heat until boiling . Add a slurry of kuzu liquid 1 teaspoon kuzu to 1/4 teaspoon of water to the boiling sauce and stir until thickened turn the heat down and leave on low to keep warm.

Heat a tablespoon of coconut butter in a frying pan until hot and place your tofu into the hot oil turned and each side goes nice and crispy .

Add a little of your sauce to a shallow bowl and place your tofu on top. Add grated daikon and chopped green onion and grated ginger to garnish . If you like it a bit spicy add some schichimi spice

I recommend using a Japanese ginger grater to grate your daikon and ginger .

Blog

Nabe (Hot Pot)

April 12, 2017 Leave a comment

To night I made a nabe ( hot pot ) I was so cold at work to day it felt like it got right into my bones so needed a hot broth to warm me up .
I used a shiitake kombu broth with a little mirin tamari and a little ginger and yuzu juice .
The vegetables I used were carrot,napa cabbage,burdock root,daikon radish,shiitake mushroom,aburaage,
yaki fu,bean sprouts and some lovely tofu. I’ve been using some great organic tofu just recently by @tofooco available at Tesco . I topped it with a little chicory . It felt like I was having a lovely Japanese style dish

Blog

Osechi Ryori

April 11, 2017 Leave a comment

Another Osechi Ryori
お節料理
O’zoni お雑煮
Namasu and Kiriboshi
紅白なます
Nishime (simmered vegetables) 煮しめ
And kuromame with candied yuzu peel
黒豆
For the simmered vegetables I used taro,carrot,daikon,freeze dried tofu
shiitake,mangetout and bamboo shoots. I did mean to use lotus root and completely forgot so will use it in another dish .
It was a lovely sunny day to day much better weather than yesterday so we went for a lovely walk in the countryside. I hope everyone is enjoying their New Year so far.

Blog, Winter Food

O’zoni New Year’s Day meal

January 1, 2017 Leave a comment

Happy new year!
明けましておめでとうございます

Start the New Year’s Day with a traditional Japanese breakfast called O’zoni .
It is a breakfast soup,said to be the most auspicious new year food,part of Osechi Ryori. (Good luck food)
Depending on the region in Japan the broth can either be clear or with miso .
Make a white miso broth and add steamed carrot and daikon flowers, shiitake,a slice of kabocha,komatsuna,
yuzu,peel and grilled mochi.

Blog, Winter Food

Kenchinjiru

December 29, 2016 Leave a comment

This is a traditional Zen Buddhist shojin Ryori cuisine which originates from the Kencho-ji Temple in Kamakura . Jiru means soup and Kenchin is derived from the temple name.

This soup is full of umami flavour using kombu,shiitake mushroom,toasted sesame oil and tamari ( or soy sauce )

The soup consists of root vegetables in a shiitake kombu stock ( you can also add miso if you wish .) This soup also has tofu it is said that you tear the tofu into the soup instead of cutting the tofu as it is supposed to be divided equally between the residents of the temple regardless of status. This dish contains no onion,devout Buddhists believe that onion is not good for your peace of mind so not good for meditation.

First make you stock

I normally leave a piece of konbu to soak over night in water the konbu comes with a white powder on its surface do not wash this off as this adds to the flavour just simply wipe with a cloth. ( for this recipe I used 3 cups of konbu stock and 1 cup of shiitake stock .

After you have soaked your konbu place the water and konbu in a pan and turn on the heat remove the konbu just before the water starts to boil. Make shiitake stock by soaking a few dried shiitake in one cup of water for around 20 mins ( place a small bowl over to submerge the shittake to stop them from floating. After 20 mins take out the shiitake and slice them and add the stock to the konbu soaked water .

Now you need to prepare your vegetables

You can use a variety for vegetables Burdock root,daikon radish,carrot,lotus root,taro komatsuna or any leafy green vegetable,you can also add konnyaku (konjac) but I just used tofu in this recipe . I didn’t use burdock root as I couldn’t find any and I didn’t use taro .

chop your vegetables and add about a tablespoon of toasted sesame oil to a deep pan sauté your root vegetables for a few minutes then add your stock but do not add your leafy greens until the soup is nearly ready to serve. Simmer until the vegetables are tender then add 1 tablespoon of tamari or soy sauce and one tablespoon of mirin .

take a block of drained tofu and crumble it into the soup in large pieces and finally add your chopped leafy greens .

Now your soup is ready

Blog, Winter Food

Oden (winter stew)

December 20, 2016 Leave a comment

In the winter in Japan you can often walk in to stores and find lots of things simmering in piping hot stock for you to choose and have a hot meal . This is called Oden . I made my own oden winter stew.

It is traditional to use a donabe pot but if you don’t have one you can use what ever you have .

First make your broth to simmer your vegetables in I used water that had been soaked over night with a piece of kombu kelp about 1 litre add to this some mirin and tamari ( or soy sauce) about one tablespoon .

In your donabe set out your veggies I used sliced daikon ,tofu,bamboo shoots,lotus root,tofu sausage,shiitake mushroom and aburaage parcels filled with cabbage bean sprouts and vegetables. These pouches are called kinchaku or fukuro.

If you do not have a donabe you can use another pot or even a steamer and arrange them after. If you decide to use a steamer steam your vegetables and make a separate broth to add your vegetables to after . I prefer to cook the vegetables in the broth as they soak up the flavour.

Pour in your stock and simmer your pot on low with the lid on if it looks like the water is running low add a little more stock.

When your vegetables are tender take a little stock and in a bowl add a little miso . Dissolve the miso and then pour this over your vegetables to finish.

I would of liked to of added a few other things that I didn’t have but I’m glad with how it turned out.

Served with rice it was a delicious filling meal for a cold winter evening

Blog, Winter Food

Hoto “Houtou” thick noodle soup

November 29, 2016 Leave a comment

Hoto or Houtou is a miso soup with thick flat noodles which is a speciality of Yamanashi prefecture Japan.

It can made made in a pan or donabe pot .

To make the noodles you will need

160g of all purpose flour

70 mil of tepid water

salt

Put your flour in a bowl with a pinch of salt add your water little by little until you get a dough. Knead well and spread out your dough to a few mm thickness on a flour surface or parchment paper. Cut out long thick noodles .

In a large pot / pan add your vegetables I used

daikon,carrot,kabocha,taro,shiitake add enough water to cover and simmer vegetables until tender.

Then add any leafy greens like cabbage or komatsuna .

ladel a little of the liquid and add a heap teaspoon of your choice of miso a miso with a nice earthy flavour is good like barley or brown rice or a Hatcho miso. Dissolve the miso and add it to your pot of vegetables

Finally if needed add a little more hot water and add your noodles . I found that it’s good to lay your noodles on the top of your vegetables and pop on a lid to steam them for 5 mins .

If you have made this in a donabe pot you can simply eat it straight from the pot or ladle out into bowls .

This nabe miso hot pot dish makes a great winter warmer.

Autumn Food, Blog

Kabocha ( pumpkin) curry

October 20, 2016 Leave a comment

A super delicious filling curry using pumpkin to thicken the sauce .

you will need a quarter of kabocha squash ( Japanese pumpkin) this has a lovely nutty flavour steam the kabocha until tender scoop out the flesh and discard the skin.

Cook your Japanese rice and leave on warm in your rice cooker or pan with lid.

In a pan add the kabocha and some of the cooking liquid from steaming about one and a half cups , add to this one tablespoon of S&B Japanese curry spice mix or any Japanese curry spice you can find ( I get mine from the Japan centre in London ) and simmer the kabocha down . If you need to thicken it you can add a 1/2 teaspoon slurry of kuzu powder.

Steam some lovely vegetables until tender I cut the vegetables nice and chunky to really get the flavour I used zucchini,peppers,daikon,carrot,lotusroot and more kabocha.

Add some rice to a plate or bowl and laden your curry sauce around and top with steamed vegetables and a sprinkle of sesame seeds.

Daikon

Instagram

Tags