Okonomiyaki

Okonomiyaki is a mixture between pancake and pizza. "Okonomi" means "as you like". This refers to the ingredients.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ingredients:


Dough
300 g flour
210 ml water
2 eggs
Cabbage
Possible ingredients to put into/onto Okonomiyaki
Katsuobushi*: Dried, shaved benito (katsuo)

Aonori*: Green, dried seaweed.

Leek or green onion
Beef: thinly sliced or ground
Pork: thinly sliced or ground
Chicken: breast filets
Octopus*
Squid*
Prawn
Tuna
Mushrooms
and much more...
Sauces
Brown okonomiyaki sauce*
Mayonnaise

* May not be available in Western supermarkets; but you should be able to find it in Japanese grocery stores that exist in most large European and American cities.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Preparation:

Cut four large, green cabbage leaves without the hard, white core in thin strings (ca. 4 mm).

Mix the water, flour, eggs and the cabbage strings together.
You may now add more ingredients to the dough: e.g. seafood, cut in little pieces, ground meat, cut mushrooms, etc.
Fry the dough like a pancake in a small frying pan.

Before turning the okonomiyaki over, and while the dough is still quite soft, you may put other ingredients on top of the dough.

Turn the okonomiyaki.
When fried well, serve the okonomiyaki with katsuobushi, aonori, mayonnaise and okonomiyaki sauce.

Tuna and Daikon Spaghetti

It's a simple Japanese-style spaghetti with tuna and daikon radishes.
INGREDIENTS:
3/4 lb. spaghetti
4-5 inches daikon radishes
2 small cans of tuna
4 tbsps soy sauce
1 tbsp butter
2 tsps salt
PREPARATION:
Peel the daikon radish and grate it. Boil water in a large pan and add salt in the pan. Add spaghetti in the boiling water. Cook spaghetti according to package directions and drain. Put butter over the spagetti and stir lightly.

Serve the spaghetti into plates. Place tuna and grated daikon on top of the spaghetti. Pour soy sauce over the toppings.
*Makes 4 servings

Shogayaki (Fried Ginger Pork) easy to make recipe.

Shogayaki is a great little dish that has sustained popularity throughout Japan where it is eaten with rice at lunch or dinner time. As the name suggests, the main ingredients is ginger which combined with pork makes for a light meal that will provide you with plenty of energy - perfect for summer time!

Ingredients - Serves 2 people
Pork slice - 8 slices (100g)
Ginger - one small piece
Soy sauce - 2 tablespoons
Sugar - 1 and half tablespoons
Sake (Liquor) - 1 and half tablespoons *
Mirin (sweet sake used as seasoning) - 1 tablespoons *

* Sake and Mirin can be found at your local Japanese food shop.

Step 1 - PrepareIn preparation, in order to make the ginger sauce, add all the ingredients together, with exception for the pork making sure to peel and grate the ginger into the sauce.

Step 2 - Soak PorkNow that you have prepared the sauce, add in the slices of pork. Slowly mix all the ingredients together and leave the pork to soak thoroughly in the sauce for approximately 10 minutes, allowing the flavour to penetrate through.




Step 3 - Heat and serveFinally, pour a small amount of oil into a heated frying pan and add the pork. Once the pork has browned nicely, remove from the pan. Now add the remaining sauce into the pan and boil for a few seconds, then add the pork with the sauce and mix together for a short while.







Tip: Please heat the pork and ginger sauce separately as if they are heated together it is more easy to burn the ginger sauce.

Sushi Information

Encyclopedia
In Japanese cuisine, sushi (most commonly 寿司, but also 鮨 or 鮓) is a food made of vinegared rice combined with various toppings or fillings.

In Japan the word sushi refers to a broad range of foods prepared with sumeshi (酢飯) or sushi meshi (寿司飯), vinegared rice. Sushi toppings or fillings can include seafood, meat, vegetables, mushrooms or egg, Sushi toppings may be raw, cooked, or marinated. In the Western world, sushi is often misunderstood to mean clumps of rice topped with raw fish (nigiri), or even simply raw seafood, which is properly called sashimi.

There are various types of sushi. Sushi served rolled in nori (seaweed), is called maki (rolls). Sushi made with toppings laid onto hand-formed clumps of rice is called nigiri; sushi made with toppings stuffed into a small pouch of tofu is called inari; and sushi made with toppings served scattered over a bowl of sushi rice are called chirashi-zushi, or "scattered sushi."




Types of sushi
The common ingredient in all the different kinds of sushi is sushi rice. Variety arises in the choice of the fillings and toppings, the other condiments, and in the manner they are put together. The same ingredients may be assembled in various different ways:

Nigiri-zushi (hand-formed sushi). 握り寿司. Arguably the most typical form of sushi at restaurants, it consists of an oblong mound of sushi rice which is pressed between the palms of the hands, with a speck of wasabi and a thin slice of a topping (neta) draped over it, possibly tied up with a thin band of nori. Assembling nigirizushi is surprisingly difficult to do well. It is sometimes called Edomaezushi, which reflects its origins in Edo (present-day Tokyo) in the 18th century. It is often served two to an order.
Gunkan-maki (battleship roll). 軍艦巻き. An oval, hand-formed clump of sushi rice (similar to that of nigiri-zushi) is wrapped around its perimeter with a strip of nori, to form a vessel that is filled with some ingredient, for example, roe, natto, or less conventionally, macaroni salad.




Makizushi (rolled sushi). 巻き寿司. A cylindrical piece, formed with the help of a bamboo mat, called a makisu. Makizushi is generally wrapped in nori, a sheet of dried seaweed that encloses the rice and fillings. In an American invention, the roll is wrapped so that the rice is on the outside, which presumably makes the maki more acceptable to people unfamiliar with nori. California roll, another American invention, is always prepared this way. In another variation, the nori is substituted with a paper thin fried egg wrapper. Makizushi is usually cut into six or eight pieces, which constitute an order. The Korean gimbap is makizushi.
Futomaki (large rolls). 太巻き. A large cylindrical piece, with the nori on the outside. Typical futomaki are two or three centimeters thick and four or five centimeters wide. They are often made with two or three fillings, chosen for their complementary taste and color. During the Setsubun festival, it is traditional in Kansai to eat the uncut futomaki in its cylindrical form.
Hosomaki (thin rolls). 細巻き. A small cylindrical piece, with the nori on the outside. Typical hosomaki are about two centimeters thick and two centimeters wide. They are generally made with only one filling, but that doesn't preclude California rolls from having multiple fillings.
Kappamaki, filled with cucumber, is named after the Japanese legendary water imp, the kappa.
Temaki (hand rolls). 手巻き. A large cone-shaped piece, with the nori on the outside and the ingredients spilling out the wide end. A typical temaki is about ten centimeters long, and is eaten with the fingers since it is too awkward to pick up with chopsticks.
Uramaki (inside-out rolls). 裏巻き. A medium-sized cylindrical piece, with two or more fillings. Uramaki differ from other maki because the rice is on the outside and the nori within. The filling is in the center surrounded by a liner of nori, then a layer of rice, and an outer coating of some other ingredient such as roe or toasted sesame seeds.
Oshizushi (pressed sushi). 押し寿司. A block-shaped piece formed using a wooden mold, called an oshibako. The chef lines the bottom of the oshibako with the topping, covers it with sushi rice, and presses the lid of the mold down to create a compact, rectilinear block. The block is removed from the mold and cut into bite-sized pieces.



Inari-zushi (stuffed sushi). 稲荷寿司. A pouch of fried tofu filled usually with just sushi rice. It is named after the Shinto god Inari, whose messenger, the fox, is believed to have a fondness for fried tofu. The pouch is normally fashioned from deep-fried tofu (油揚げ or abura age). Regional variations include pouches made of a thin omelet (帛紗寿司 or fukusazushi) or dried gourd shavings (干瓢 or kanpyo).
Chirashizushi (scattered sushi). 散らし寿司. A bowl of sushi rice with the other ingredients mixed in. Also referred to as barazushi. ばら寿司.
Edomae chirashizushi (Edo-style scattered sushi). Uncooked ingredients artfully arranged on top of the rice in the bowl.
Gomokuzushi (Kansai-style sushi). 五目寿司. Cooked or uncooked ingredients mixed in the body of the rice in the bowl.
Narezushi (なれ鮨) is an older form of sushi. Skinned and gutted fish are stuffed with salt then placed in a wooden barrel, doused with salt again, and weighed down with a heavy tsukemonoishi (pickling stone). They are salted for ten days to a month, then placed in water for 15 minutes to an hour. They are then placed in another barrel sandwiched and layered with cooled steamed rice and fish. Then this mixture is again partially sealed with otosibuta and a pickling stone. As days pass, water seeps out, which must be removed. Six months later, this "funazushi" can be eaten, and it remains edible for another six months or more.

Chawamnushi is Japanese steamed custard in a cup.

INGREDIENTS:
3 eggs
1/2 cup dashi soup stock
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp soysauce
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp sake
1 chicken thigh
4 shiitake mushrooms
1 oz mitsuba (trefoil)
2 oz. kamaboto fish cakes

PREPARATION:

Cut chicken into small cubes. Slice kamaboko and shiitake mushrooms thinly. Beat eggs in a bowl. (*try not to bubble the eggs.) Add dashi soup stock, soysauce, salt, sake, and sugar in the bowl.

Strain the egg mixture. Prepare four cups and put shiitake, chicken, and kamaboko in each cup. Pour the egg mixture into each cup. (*fill each cup to the third-forths.) Place mitsuba on top of each cup. Cover the cups with lids. (*use alumiun foil or plastic wrap if you don't have lids.) Preheat a steamer on high heat. Turn down the heat and carefully place cups in the steamer. Steam the custard for 15 min. Poke the custard with a bamboo stick. If clear soup comes out, it's cooked.

*Makes 4 servings.

(Kamaboko)

Japanese Cooking Ingredient Pictures
Kamaboko are semi-cylinderical fish cakes. Pink and white kamaboko are served as Japanese New Year's food. Kamaboko are often used as toppings in noodle

dishes.

( Dashi Soup Stock )

Konbu (kelp) dashi is known as vegetarian soup stock. Removed konbu is good to cook with vegetables.

INGREDIENTS:
4 cups of water
6 inches long konbu (Dried kelp)
PREPARATION:
Wipe the konbu with clean cloth to remove dirt. (Konbu shouldn't be washed.) Soak the konbu in the water in a pot for one to two hours. Put on low heat and bring the water to boil. Just before the water comes to a boil, remove the konbu. Now, you have a vegetarian soup stock for your cooking.
Makes 4 servings

Sukiyaki Pronounced tskee-yaki

Ingredients

(4 servings)
1 piece beef suet, about 2" x 2" x 1/2" (enough to lightly grease hot pan) 1 Lb. lean beef, sliced paper-thin across the grain, then cut into bite-sized pieces 1 bunch Scallions, cut into 2" lengths, both white and green parts or 1 large white onion, peeled, halved and sliced thick 1 block of fresh tofu, cut into bite sized squares 1-12 oz. can of shirataki (yam noodles) (This is optional as they are very expensive on the east coast) 1-16 oz. can of bamboo shoots, sliced thin 1/2 Lb. fresh bean sprouts 8 fresh brown mushrooms, sliced about 1/4" thick 1/2 c. Soy Sauce 1/2 c. Sugar 1 c. Water 2 T. Sake Mirin or dry sherry

Instructions

Heat skillet until the suet sizzles when it touches. If the suet does not sizzle, remove it and heat the pan further. Move the suet around the pan, putting a coat of oil over the whole surface. Place about 1/3 of the sliced beef in a corner of the pan, mix it about a bit to brown for about 1 minute. Add the begetables, 1/3 of each in their own 'corner' of the pan, except the scallions. Pour sauce (see following recipe) over these but not so much that the vegetables are swimming (about 1/2 the sauce). Bubble for 4-5 minutes, gently turneverything over and place scallions on top in a neat pile. Bubble 4-5 minutes more and it is ready to serve. Carefully place 1/4 of the meat in each person's bowl. Then immerse the scallions in the pocket you have just created in the skillet. Serve the other ingredients and by the time you have served all, the onions/scallions should be wilted and cooked just right. Spoon a bit of sauce over all. Start the next batch of sukiyaki when the first half of the dish has been served. SAUCE: Combine the soy sauce, sugar, water and mirin in a bowl or pitcher. Stir well, set aside for cooking/serving.

Serving

Sukiyaki is generally served with rice. Also, to be totally authentic people serve themselves out of the bubbling mass in the center of the table (on a hot dish). Also, each person has a little bowl with raw egg in it. You take the boiling hot item from the central cooker, and dip it in the egg. This transfers the heat to the egg so you don't scald your mouth. -->

Chirashi-sushi

Chirashi-sushi is not only beautiful but also fabulous taste.

Ingredients

A.For Sushi-Rice
700gram (24 1/2oz) rice
1100cc(18 oz) water
5cm konbu kelp
Sushi vinegar
8Tbs vinegar
6Tbs sugar
3tbs salt

B.Sushi-ingredients
Simmered shiitake mushrooms
5 dried shiitake mushrooms 150cc(5oz) water
1Tbs each sugar, mirin
2Tbs soy sauce
Soboro Chicken topping 400gram(14oz) ground chicken
3Tbs Sugar
3Tbs Mirin
5Tbs Sake
5Tbs Soy sauce
1Tbs vegetable oil
1tbs ginger juice (grind ginger and squeeze)
Golden- thread egg(thin omellet)
3 eggs
pinch salt
8@shrimps
1Tbs sake
simmerd pea
8 peas
boiled in salted water
Salom roe
(if any for decoration)

How to make

A. For sushi rice
(1) Prepare White Rice
(2) Remove white rice from a pan to flat container ( you can substitute bowl). Spread rice and sprinkle vinegar for sushi thoroughly and mix together. And wait until rice as cool as human temparature.

B.Sushi-ingredients
(1)soak dried shiitake mushrooms in 150 cc water until mushrooms become soft.(about 15 minutes) Never get rid of soak brown water which is called mushrooms dashi, because it contains mushrooms good flavor and taste. Remove stems and cut shiitake mushrooms thinly.
(2)Mix mushrooms dashi and sugar, mirin, sake, soy sauce in a pan and simmer until the sauce is almost gone and shiitake mushrooms shining.
(3)To make Soboro Chicken topping.Heat the vegetable oil in a large pan or skillet and stir the ground chicken for 5-10 minutes until the color is white. Add to the pan, together with sugar, Mirin, Sake,Soy sauce, and ginger. Bring to a boil , cover and simmer for 20 minutes until the sauce to gone.
(4)To make golden-thread egg
Beat eggs and add pinch salt and combine. Heat the oil pan and add few vegetable oil and pour few egg and spread widely.
When surface is dry, turn over and cool. Continue to make omellet until egg is gone.
When thin omelets are cold,Roll the omeleets and slice into fine strips.
(5)Put shrimps on a plate and pour sake and wrap .Microwave high to 2minutes.
(6)Enter peas into boiling salted water about 2-3 minutes and soak in cold water to keep green color.
(7)Mix sushi- rice and sushi ingredients. And decorate colurfully.

Japanese Style Pork Cutlet

Serving Size : 4
Preparation Time :0:10
Categories : Pork-Ham

Ingredients:

Preparation Method

1 pound pork loin cutlets

1 1/2 cups medium grain rice

2 cups yellow onions -- sliced

2 cups chicken broth

1/2 cup mirin

1/2 cup soy sauce or oyster sauce

2 tablespoons sugar

4 slices fresh ginger

6 large eggs -- lightly beaten

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 pinch black pepper2

1/2 cups panko (or bread crumbs)

1/4 cup oil

green onions -- chopped

1. Prepare rice according to package directions.

2. Before breading cutlets, beat the eggs in a shallow dish (like a pie plate), mix flour, salt and pepper in a second dish, and place the panko in a third dish; set aside.

3. Pound cutlets between sheets of plastic wrap until 1/4-inch thick. Bread cutlets by first dredging both sides in flour mixture, then dipping into the egg, and following with the panko. Then "double bread," dipping into the egg, then panko again. Transfer to a rack or plate until ready to fry. Heat oil over medium-high heat in a skillet.

4. Fry cutlets in batches, browning on both sides until cooked through, 6-8 minutes total. Transfer cutlets to a rack set over paper towels to drain and then to a warming plate in a low oven.

5. Simmer onion, broth, mirin, soy sauce, sugar, and ginger in a large saute pan over medium-low heat until onion is soft, 15 minutes.

6. To serve, place 2 cutlets sliced in 1/2-inch wide strips, on top of some rice, ladle with broth, and sprinkle with green onions.

NOTE: If you don't have "mirin", combine sake/sugar in a combination of 3 sake to 1 sugar. I sometimes serve the broth on the side and have guests take what they desire.

Vegetable Tempura

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

Tempura Batter:

1 cup cold water or cold beer1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 egg yolk1 cup sifted unbleached flour1 tablespoon cornstarch

1 teaspoon baking powder1 teaspoon garlic powder1/2 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon salt

Dipping Sauce:

2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

1/2 cup soy sauce1 teaspoon Mirin

1 tablespoon ginger, grated

1 tablespoon sliced scallions

Preparation:

Batter:

In one bowl, mix all liquid ingredients. In another, mix dry ingredients. Slowly stir wet into dry, making sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl frequently for stray clumps.

Dipping Sauce:

Combine all ingredients in bowl. Stir to combine. Keep Chilled until use.For tempura vegetables, simply drop your choice of veggies (zucchini, mushrooms, broccoli, etc.) into the batter, remove with tongs and drop into hot (350 degrees) peanut oil until golden brown. Serve with dipping sauce on the side.

Japanese Fruitcake with Filling

Ingredients

(8 servings)
1.00 c Butter,at room temperature 2.00 c Sugar 4.00 Eggs 3.00 c Flour 0.50 ts Salt 3.00 ts Baking powder 1.00 c Milk 1.00 tb Orange rind,grated 1.00 ts Vanilla 1.00 ts Allspice 1.00 ts Ginger 0.50 c Raisins 0.50 c Pecans,chopped 1.00 tb Flour 1.50 c Coconut,grated Candied cherries (opt) FRUIT FILLING: 2.00 tb Flour 1.00 Juice of 3 lemons 1.00 c Sugar 1.00 cn Pineapple (20 oz)* 2.00 Egg yolks 0.50 c Pecans chopped

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350'F.

2. Grease and flour 3 9-inch layer cake pans. Cream butter and sugar with electric mixer until soft and fluffy. Beat eggs until light and add to butter-sugar mixture.

3. Sift flour, salt, and baking powder together and add alternately to batter with milk. Stir in vanilla and orange rind; beat well. Spread 2/3 of the batter into 2 of the 3 prepared pans.

4. Add allspice and ginger to remaining batter. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon flour over the raisins and nuts to coat, then add to batter and mix well. Spread spiced batter into remaining third pan.

5. Bake layers at 350'F. for 30 minutes, or until cake tests down and sides shrink from pan. Invert on wire rack and allow to cool.

6. When completely cool, spread fruit filling between layers and thinly over the top and side of cake, using a flat-bladed knife to spread evenly. (Place the fruit/spice layer in the middle when stacking layers.) Cover top and side of cake with the coconut. Decorate with red and green candied cherries in a wreath design if desired.

FRUIT FILLING: * - pineapple should be crushed & drained. Combine all ingredients in top half of a double boiler over, not in, simmering water and cook, stirring frequently, until mixture thickens. It should be quite thick. Remove from heat and allow to cool, stirring occasionally.

Sukiyaki Pronounced tskee-yaki

Ingredients
(4 servings)
1 piece beef suet, about 2" x 2" x 1/2" (enough to lightly grease hot pan) 1 Lb. lean beef, sliced paper-thin across the grain, then cut into bite-sized pieces 1 bunch Scallions, cut into 2" lengths, both white and green parts or 1 large white onion, peeled, halved and sliced thick 1 block of fresh tofu, cut into bite sized squares 1-12 oz. can of shirataki (yam noodles) (This is optional as they are very expensive on the east coast) 1-16 oz. can of bamboo shoots, sliced thin 1/2 Lb. fresh bean sprouts 8 fresh brown mushrooms, sliced about 1/4" thick 1/2 c. Soy Sauce 1/2 c. Sugar 1 c. Water 2 T. Sake Mirin or dry sherry
Instructions
Heat skillet until the suet sizzles when it touches. If the suet does not sizzle, remove it and heat the pan further. Move the suet around the pan, putting a coat of oil over the whole surface. Place about 1/3 of the sliced beef in a corner of the pan, mix it about a bit to brown for about 1 minute. Add the begetables, 1/3 of each in their own 'corner' of the pan, except the scallions. Pour sauce (see following recipe) over these but not so much that the vegetables are swimming (about 1/2 the sauce). Bubble for 4-5 minutes, gently turneverything over and place scallions on top in a neat pile. Bubble 4-5 minutes more and it is ready to serve. Carefully place 1/4 of the meat in each person's bowl. Then immerse the scallions in the pocket you have just created in the skillet. Serve the other ingredients and by the time you have served all, the onions/scallions should be wilted and cooked just right. Spoon a bit of sauce over all. Start the next batch of sukiyaki when the first half of the dish has been served. SAUCE: Combine the soy sauce, sugar, water and mirin in a bowl or pitcher. Stir well, set aside for cooking/serving.
Serving
Sukiyaki is generally served with rice. Also, to be totally authentic people serve themselves out of the bubbling mass in the center of the table (on a hot dish). Also, each person has a little bowl with raw egg in it. You take the boiling hot item from the central cooker, and dip it in the egg. This transfers the heat to the egg so you don't scald your mouth.

Fun With Sushi