Japanese Recipe

Japanese Curry

Ingredients

3		large onions, chopped
2	T	vegetable oil
6		cloves garlic, minced
1		knob ginger, peeled and grated
1	T	(approximately) spices- I use a mix of curry powder, turmeric and cumin.
400	g	ground pork (or beef)
400	ml	beef bouillon
400	ml	tomato juice
2		bay leaves
160	g	curry roux (a full box, a spicy kind is better than a sweet one)
		salt, pepper and more spices to taste

Saute onion in oil for a few minutes, add garlic, ginger and spices, saute until fragrant. Add ground meat and saute until browned.

Add bouillon, tomato juice and bay leaves, simmer about 10 minutes, skimming the foam from the top from time to time.

Turn off heat and add the curry roux, stirring until the roux dissolves. Turn heat back on, taste the curry and add salt and pepper if needed. More spices can be added too, but be sure to simmer for another 10 minutes or so.

Niku-jyaga (Japanese simmered beef and potatoes)

Servings: 4 as a main dish

2	lb	potatoes, cut into large bite size pieces
1	lb	thinly sliced beef, cut into large bite size pieces (see intro)
1		large onion, thinly sliced
1-1/2	T	sesame oil
5	T	soy sauce
2	T	sugar
3	T	mirin

1. In a large (12") frypan heat the seame oil over med-high heat, add the onion and stir until just starting to wilt. Add the beef add cooking, stirring, untl it just loses its color.

2. Add the soy, sugar and mirin, bring to a boil then add the potatoes, stir a couple of times, then add enough water to come a little more then half way up the potatoes. tirn the heat to high and cover, stirring frequently.

3. When the potatoes are just tender remove the lid, boiling down til there is almost no liquid left, adding an extra splash of soy if you want. (I like it heavy on the soy!)

Serve hot or at room temperature or anywhere in between

Curry can be eaten when heated through, or it can be simmered for as long as you wish to make the spices smoother and milder.

Good over rice, great with nan, and can be frozen.

Mashed Potatoes and Celery Root with Creamy Yogurt
The mashed potatoes can be made a day in advance. To reheat, place in a large bowl set atop simmering water. Add 3/4 cup milk, heating slowly and stirring occasionally until hot, about 20 minutes.

INGREDIENTS

• Kosher salt
• 2 1/2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, unpeeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 large celery root (1 1/2 pounds), peeled, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 5 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 large shallot, finely chopped
• 2 1/2 cups plain low-fat yogurt, plus 1/2 cup extra if desired
• Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Boil 8 cups of water in a large pot with 2 tablespoons salt. Add potatoes, celery root and garlic. Return to boil and reduce heat to medium, cooking uncovered until potatoes and celery root are very tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

Drain potato mixture in a colander. Return to pot; add shallot and yogurt. With back of a fork, smash potatoes against sides of pot until mostly smooth but still slightly chunky. If creamier texture is desired, add additional 1/2 cup yogurt. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Vegetarian Dumplings.
Ingredients
# 300g glutinous rice, soaked for 2-3 hours and drained
# 150g black eyed beans (mei tau), washed and soaked for 2-3 hours, drained 6 medium-sized dried mushrooms, soaked and halved 12 dried chestnuts 12 pieces of 2cm-length pandan leaves
# 24 dried bamboo leaves, soaked overnight and washed hemp strings

(A):
# 2 tbsp sliced shallots
# 1 tbsp chopped garlic
# 2 tbsp oil

(B):
# 1 tbsp grated ginger
# 1 tbsp sesame oil
# 1 tbsp oil
# 1 tbsp Shao Hsing Hua Tiau wine

Seasoning for rice and beans
# 1/2 tbsp salt
# 1 1/2 tbsp five spice powder
# 1 tsp pepper
# 1 tbsp vegetarian oyster sauce
# 1 tbsp light soy sauce
# 1 tbsp dark soy sauce
# 2 tbsp sugar

Seasoning for mushrooms and chestnuts
# 1 1/2 tbsp light soy sauce
# 1/2 tsp pepper
# 1/2 tsp salt
# 1 tsp sugar
# 1 tbsp vegetarian oyster sauce
# 1/2 tsp dark soy sauce
# 1 tbsp sesame oil

Method
COMBINE rice and beans and place in a big basin. Add seasoning and set aside for 1-2 hours. Divide into 12 equal portions.

Prepare chestnuts as you would for the Hong Kong dumplings. Combine prepared chestnuts and mushrooms together. Add seasoning and set aside.

Heat oil in a wok and fry shallots and garlic until fragrant. Add seasoned rice and beans. Fry briskly. Dish up and set aside.

Heat oil and sesame oil in (B) and fry ginger until aromatic. Pour in wine and stir-fry well. Add seasoned mushrooms and chestnuts. Fry for 2-3 minutes. Dish up.

Fold 2 bamboo leaves into a conical shape. Put a piece of pandan leaf on the base, fill up with glutinous rice and beans mixture. Add a chestnut and one piece of mushroom. Add a little sauce. Cover with 2-3 tablespoons of rice mixture. Fold the leaves over the rice to form a pyramid shape. Tie with hemp string to secure the dumpling.

Bring to boil a pot of water. Add 1/2 tbsp salt and 1 tbsp sugar, and drop in the dumplings to cook for 2-2 1/2 hours over medium heat. Top up with more boiling water to maintain water level at all times. Test if it is cooked, remove dumplings and hang it up so that the excess water will drip off. If a pressure cooker is used, cooking time is reduced to 45-60 minutes.

Braised Pork Belly - 豚のかくに

Recipe: Buta no Kakuni - 豚のかくに
Serves 2 or 3 with rice and vegetables.

400 grams pork belly(豚ばら), cut into large cubes*
3 eggs (or one per person) hard-boiled and peeled
4 cups water to start, more as needed
1 peice of ginger (しょうが), peeled and halved
1 negi (Japanese leek) (長ネギ)
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup sake
2 TBSP sugar

• Brown the pork cubes in your saucepan and discard any excess fat.
  
• Cover with water (4 cups or more) and add negi and ginger to the pot.
  
• Simmer for the next two hours or so uncovered, then test the meat with a skewer. Does it slide through easily? If not, continue simmering. Add a little more water if the liquid has reduced past half the original amount.
  
• Once meat is tender, cool and skim the excess fat from the top.
  
• Add sugar, sake and half the soy sauce then cover with a drop lid** or foil and simmer for another half hour.
  
• Add eggs and remaining 1/4 cup of soy sauce and simmer for a final half hour or so, turning the eggs every now and then for an even color.
  
• Enjoy the soft, fatty goodness, taking comfort in the popular Japanese belief that the collagen in pork fat is good for your skin.
  

Serve with plenty of the simmering liquid and a dab of Japanese mustard, know as karashi (からし）on the side. If you can't get it, any other hot yellow mustard would work.

Thai Style Braised Pork Belly

This recipe is from Cheat Eat’s blog.
Ingredients
500g pork belly with skin, cut into thick pieces
2 tbsp oil
½ tbsp white peppercorns
1 tbsp coriander roots (if unavailable, use the stem)
1 tbsp garlic
4 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp dark soy sauce
4 tbsp palm sugar (if unavailable, use dark brown sugar)
3 cups water

Method
Using a mortar and pestle or food processor, grind the white peppercorns, coriander roots and garlic into a fine paste.

Heat a sturdy pan with a lid, add oil and lightly brown the pork belly over medium heat. Remove from pan and set aside.

Using the same pan, stir fry the pepper and coriander paste over low heat till fragrant. Add the fish sauce, dark soy sauce, palm sugar and ¼ cup water. Turn the heat up to medium and bring the sauce to a boil. Add the pork belly, stirring to coat every piece of meat with the sauce.

Add the remaining water to the pan, bring the sauce to boil again. Turn down to low heat and half cover the pan. Simmer until the liquid is reduced by half and the pork belly is tender. This will take about 1 to 1½ hour.

The sauce can be used on other cuts of pork, chicken, eggs, pressed tofu and deep fried tofu.

Tofu and mushrooms in oyster sauce

Easy to cook, nice to eat.

After blogging about some typical dishes we eat at home, I received requests to put up the recipe for this tofu dish. It's actually very simple, and I'm sure many Chinese Singaporean families have their own version of it. It's perfect with plain jasmine rice. Here's the recipe:

Tofu and mushrooms in oyster sauce

Ingredients:
100 gms minced pork/chicken/beef
1 300 gm-block tofu, cubed
1 400 gm-can button mushrooms (drained weight 200 gms)*
1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
chopped spring onions, to garnish

Marinade:
1 tbsp light soy sauce
0.5 tbsp sugar
0.5 tsp cornstarch

For the gravy:
2 tbsp oyster sauce**
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 cup water
cornstarch solution to thicken

1. Mix the minced meat with the marinade ingredients.

2. Heat a wok till hot, add 2 tbsp oil. Fry the chopped chilli, shallot, and garlic till fragrant.

3. Add the marinated meat, breaking it up into fine bits with the frying spatula.

4. Add the mushrooms, oyster sauce, and light soy sauce, stir-frying till everything is well mixed. Add the water.

5. When the mixture starts to simmer, do a taste test and adjust if necessary. Add the tofu, and let the gravy come to a boil again.

6. Gently mix the tofu with the mushrooms and meat, taking care not to break the delicate tofu cubes. Thicken the gravy slightly with cornstarch solution.

7. Transfer to a dish and garnish with spring onions. Serve hot with plain rice.

Soft pickled plum [ Ume-boshi ]

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Japanese plums, a species of apricot, turn yellow in June, the unripe fruits are harvested, packed with perilla leaves, which dye the plums red and give them better flavors. Ume-boshi are kept at almost all Japanese home.

Preparations of plum (in mid-June)

• 5 pounds plum
• 1/2 pound salt (10 percent weight of plum)
• 1 cup clear distilled liquor (35 percent alcohol by volume)

1. Wash plums and soak into water for 4-5 hours.
2. Drain the plums.
3. Wipe up plum with a towel and take away a spray with a toothpick. Spray has an astringent taste.
   

First pickle

1. Sprinkle salt into back of the earthenware receptacle or enameled ware, put plums on a step. Sprinkle salt and put plums again. Jam all plums like this way. Please kept a little of salt.
2. After jam all plums, pour 1 cup clear distilled liquor and sprinkle the rest of salt.
3. With a small lid resting directly on the plums and put 10 pounds weight on the lid.
4. After a day, remove the weight and lid, and rock the receptacle once in a day.
5. After 4 or 5 days, Seeped water comes up over plums, reduce weight in half. Cover with paper and leave at a cool place.

Rice balls [ Onigiri ]

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Ingredients

• boiled rice
• salt
• umeboshi (soft pickled plum)
• nori (dried laver)
• tororo konbu (konbu shavings)

Directions

1. When the rice has finished cooking, add the salt and mix lightly.
2. Wet your hands with water. Put 1/2 cup boiled rice on your hand and form into a ball. Make a dent in the center and put umeboshi. Close the rice over it. Form into a triangle or cylinder.
3. Wrap with nori or sprinkle tororo konbu.

Illustration

Grilled rice ball

Make rice ball rather hard. Press ball flat. Grill on the oiled toasting net for 3 or 4 minutes until surface becomes crispy

Deep-fried sweet potato with starch syrup [ Daigakuimo ]

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Ingredients

• 1 sweet potato (about 1/2 pound : 230 g)
• sesame oil
• toasted black sesame
• starch syrup
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce

Directions

1. Wash and pare sweet potato. Chop up and soak in water for 10 minutes.
2. Heat oil to 170 degrees, and deep fry sweet potato for 3 minutes.
3. Put sugar and soy sauce into pan and heat. When syrup comes to boiled down, put deep fried sweet potato and poured over.
4. Arrange sweet potato in the bowl and sprinkle toasted black sesame.

Sesame paste [ Nerigoma ]

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Illustration

Ingradients

• 1/2 cup sesame
• 1/2 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon soy sauce or 1 tablespoon miso

Direction

1. Parch sesame seads in frying pan until pop-ping.
2. Put parched sesame seeds into earthenware mortar and grind with wooden stick until it becomes paste.
3. Add sugar and soy sauce or miso, and mix well.

*You can also make white sesame paste using white sesame seeds instead of black one. And you make such as tofu paste with this paste.

Deep-fried mackerel with sweet vinegar sauce [ Agesaba no ankake ]

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As far as cooking of the mackerel, this and the miso boiling are standard.

Ingredients

• fillet of mackerel
• mirin, soy sauce
• Katakuriko : potato starch
• sesame oil
• ginger
• sweet vinegar sauce
  • 1/4 cup soup stock
  • 1/4 cup rice vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon soy sauce

Directions

1. Put mackerel in plastic bag, add 2 tablespoons mirin and 2 tablespoons soy sauce. Soak mackerel for 24 hours.
2. Take away mackerel from plastic bag, dust it with katakuriko equally well.
3. Heat oil to 160-170 degrees, and deep-fry mackerel for 3-4 minutes.
4. Put 1/4 cup soup stock, 1/4 cup su, 2 tablespoons sugar, 1 teaspoon soy sauce in saucepan, and heat. When sugar melt, pour katakuriko which dissolve in water, and stir until thick.
5. Arrange (3) on serving plate and pour (4). Garnish shredded ginger.

Deep-fried tofu [ Agedashi dofu ]

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Ingredients

• 1 blocks (3/4 pound:340g) tofu
• katakuriko : potato starch (if you don't have katakuriko, use wheat flour)
• 2 inch radish
• oil
• 3 tablespoons soup stock, 1 tablespoon mirin and soy sauce

Directions

1. Drain off tofu.
2. Cut tofu into two, and cut it into 3 pieces (See picture).
3. Put katakuriko into tea strainer, dust katakuriko all over tofu.
4. Heat oil to 170 degrees, and deep-fry tofu for 3 minutes.
5. Grate radish.
6. Boil 3 tablespoons soup stock, 1 tablespoon mirin and soy sauce in pan.
7. Arrange (4) on serving plate and pour (6). Garnish grated radish.

Scrambled tofu [ Iri dofu ]

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Colorful supporting actors patronize tofu of the leading role noisily

Ingredients

• 1 blocks (3/4 pound:340g) tofu
• 2 eggs
• 3 oz (90g) ground chicken
• 2/3 cups mixed vegetables (carrot, green pea and corn)
• ginger as big as thumb
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• sake, sugar, salt, soy sauce

Directions

1. Boil mixed vegetable lightly.
2. Grate ginger.
3. Put chicken into boil, pour a little of sake and mix.
4. Put oil in frying pan, heat, fry (2) and (3).
5. When chicken thoroughly cook, add (1), fry again, put tofu with pull down.
6. Add 1 tablespoon sake and sugar, 1 teaspoon salt and little of soy sauce. Simmer for 1 - 2 minutes, add egg that stir with chopstick and stir lightly.

Simmered meat and potatoes [ Nikujaga ]

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Typical Japanese mom's home cooking

Ingredients

• 3 potatoes (middle size)
• 1 carrot (big size)
• 2 onions (middle size)
• 1 pack konjak (string type)
• 3 ounces (90g) sliced beef
• sesame oil
• 1 1/2 cups soup stock
• soy sauce, sake, mirin, salt

Directions

1. Peel onion and slice into 5mm. Pare carrot and potato, cut into a bite pieces. Cut beef into a bite pices. Boil konjak for 2 minutes and drain off.
2. Heat sesame oil in the pan. Saute beef over high heat quickly and once take out. Saute half sliced onion well. When onion become soft, saute the rest of onion, potato, carrot. Add 1 1/2 cups soup stock and simmer for 10 minutes.
3. Add 1 tablespoon mirin, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 2 tablespoons sake, a pinch of salt. Simmer for more 5 minutes, and put into thermal box. Keep for 2 hours.
4. Before eat, garnish boiled green peas is pleasant to the eye.

Simmered pumpkin [ Kabocha no nimono ]

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Choose the good pumpkin which a durability weight does heavily above all.

Ingredients

• 2/3 pound (300g) pumpkin
• 1 sheet (2/3 pound) ita konjak
• 2 inch by 2 inch konbu
• sugar, salt, soy sauce

Directions

1. Cut into a little over 1 inch pieces and round off the corners (Pumpkin is easy to break into pieces while cooking).
2. Make twisted kinjak. Boil twisted konjak with a pinch of salt for 2-3 minutes and drain.
3. Put konbu into back of the pot and put pumpkin onto konbu. Pour 1 cup water and heat. When water comes to boil, put into konjak and simmer for more 5 minutes. When pumpkin cooked through, add 1 teaspoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon sugar. Simmer pumpkin over low heat until the flavor has been fully absorbed for 10 minutes.

Simmered yellowtail in soy sauce [ Buri no shoyudaki ]

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simmer over and over, then you can eat even bone

Ingredients

• 1 pound yellowtail's ara : head, bone, guts, gills
• 1 oz ginger
• 1 cup sake, 1 tablespoon mirin, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon sugar

Directions

1. Wash yellowtail by salty water.
2. Cut ginger in round thin slices.
3. Pour 1 cup sake into pan and heat.
4. When sake comes to boil, put yellowtail, ginger, 1 tablespoon mirin, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon sugar. Cover with drop-lid and simmer for a hour over a low heat.

Gyūdon - 牛丼

Recipe: Gyūdon - 牛丼
Serves 2

100grams super thin sliced beef strips
1 medium onion, cut into half moon slices
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup mirin
1/2 cup water
dash of sesame oil
rice to serve
pickled ginger (optional)

• Saute the onions in the sesame oil over medium heat.
  
  
• Add the beef, stir it around and add the soy sauce, mirin and water.
  
  
• Cover with a drop lid or piece of silver foil, then go and do something else for 10 minutes.
  
  
• Spoon the beef and onions over a bowl of warm rice with a little of the juice, adding some pickled ginger on the side if you like it.

Inari Sushi - 稲荷ずし

Recipe: Inari Sushi with Carrot, Enoki and Kiriboshi Daikon
Makes 12 fully stuffed pouches.

1.5 cups of brown rice
2.5 cups of water
1 piece dried konbu
3 TBSP sake
2 tsp. mirin
2 tsp. shoyu
Carrot, grated or peeled into thin slices
Enoki mushrooms, cut into short lengths
Kiriboshi daikon (dried, shredded daikon, written as 切り干し大根)
12 ready made tofu pouches

• If you've got time, put the water and konbu in the rice cooker to soak ahead of time.
  
• Add the rice, seasonings and vegetables and press start.
  
• When the rice cooker says you're done, taste the rice. Adding other ingredients can confuse even the smartest rice cooker. You may need more time, more liquid or both.
  
• Rinse the tofu pouches in hot water, gently squeeze them dry and fill with rice mixture (I used a spoon for this, pressing down with the back to pack the rice into the corners).
  
• Sprinkle with sesame seeds and enjoy!

Sweet Dipping Sauce Recipe - Japanese Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/3 cup Ketchup
• 3 tbsp honey
• 3 tbsp Pineapple juice
• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 tbsp soy sauce

PREPARATION:

Put honey and ketchup in a bowl and mix well. Add other ingredients in the bowl and stir well.