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Cooking, Recipe and Food Blog

Shiitake Chicken Ramen

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I am still not over my soup streak. I think it is because of the extremely hot weather. I’ve been having my share of soups for almost a week now and I’m running out of ideas. That’s why I chose ramen. I honestly am not a big fan, because I prefer Chinese noodle dishes better. This time around, I appreciated it more. It has a distinct flavor from the dashi. You can buy it in powdered form, but you can make your own as well.

 

Serves 1

Ingredients:

1 package of ramen noodles

1 or 2 chicken breasts, cooked and sliced

1/2 cup of scallions, sliced

1/2 cup of Shiitake mushrooms

1 egg

Dried Kelp

6 cups of water

 

To prepare the soup or dashi, soak the mushrooms in water for 30 minutes. After, drain it and discard the water. Place the mushrooms in a pot half filled with water.

Set the heat on high and bring it to a boil. Turn off the heat and let it stand for another 30 minutes. Strain the soup and separate the mushrooms. Set aside.

Next, cook the noodles according to package instructions or place 2 cups of water in a pot and bring it to a boil. Add the noodles and cook it for 2-3 minutes or until the noodles are al dente. Drain and set aside.

Put the egg in a pot and put 2 cups of water. Bring it to a boil. Turn of the heat and let it sit for 10 minutes. After, peel it and slice lengthwise.

Combine the noodles, chicken breast, dried kelp, shiitake mushrooms and soup. Ladle it into a bowl and garnish it with egg and scallions. Serve immediately.

 

 

Photo Courtesy Of:  telepathicparanoia

 

Simply Oishi Katsudon

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Japanese food never fails to bring out my sumo appetite! I always end up eating like a sumo wrestler every time I’m at a Japanese restaurant … and all you have to do is roll me all the way home.

Their portions are often times quaintly served and for someone who eats a lot, you get tempted to eat more.

So much effort is put into each dish that you’d feel guilty just chomping down on it. A perfect example of which is the Sushi bar! Although I’m not a real fan of anything that stares back at me, I do like Maki rolls. Have you ever watched a Sushi chef prepare a single serving of those pretty raw things you just gobble in one minute? Let alone making one yourself? I feel sorry for the Sushi chef who pays attention to every single detail of these small pieces of art, but I guess the appreciation comes from how many of them you’ve managed to devour.

True enough, Japanese cuisine often looks so tedious to prepare. Everything they cook seems to have some sort of a ritual to it. Their food presentation always looks like it follows a certain Zen rule in its arrangement and at times, the food looks too pretty to eat. But hey, when you’re hungry….you’re hungry! And right now, I am drooling at the thought of a steaming hot bowl of Katsudon!

Katsudon is a rice meal made of breaded and fried pork cutlet simmered in a mix of Japanese sauce, veggies and egg. Mostly, any Japanese dish with the suffix “don” means it is a rice meal served in a bowl. The main ingredients are simmered together with sweet and savoury sauces, vegetables and topped over steaming white sticky rice.

Now if there isn’t any decent Japanese restaurant near you, you can always try your hand at cooking some Katsudon for yourself. Here’s an easy recipe that is totally Oishi ne!

KATSUDON

Ingredients:

120g Pork Loin/pork steak cuts
salt and pepper to season
Flour
A Pinch of Water
Japanese Panko Bread Crumbs
1 egg
Cooking oil

Katsudon Sauce

50ml Water
1/5 tsp Granulated Dashi
1 tbsp Soy Sauce
1 tbsp Mirin
1 tsp Sugar
Onion- thinly sliced
Leeks
1 Egg
Japanese Wild Parsley

Fresh Steamed Rice

Instructions:
• Season pork cutlet with salt and pepper. Coat both sides with flour, dip it in the egg and coat both sides with bread crumbs. Deep fry in oil until golden brown. When cooked, slice the fried cutlet into 1 inch wide pieces and set aside
• To make sauce: In a bowl mix together water, sugar, soy sauce, mirin and dashi. Using an omelette pan, pour in the sauce mixture and add the onions and leeks. Cover and let it boil. Soon as it has come to a boil, lower the heat and put the cutlet in the pan. Pour in the egg and simmer for a few more minutes depending on how you want your egg done.
• Put freshly steamed rice in a bowl and top it with the cooked katsudon, along with any remaining sauce in the pan. Garnish with Japanese parsley and serve hot.

 

Photo Credit: jetalone

Photo Credit: jekert

Okonomiyaki

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Okonomiyaki is a Japanese pancake or pizza with a variety of ingredients.  According to Wikipedia, The name is derived from the word okonomi, meaning “what you like” or “what you want”, and yaki meaning “grilled” or “cooked”. Okonomiyaki is mainly associated with Kansai or Hiroshima areas of Japan, but is widely available throughout the country. Toppings and batters tend to vary according to region.

 

Ingredients:

1/2 potato, peeled, grated

4 eggs

2 cups water

3 cups of plain flour

100g button mushrooms, sliced

100g green beans, trimmed and sliced

3 green cabbage leaves, shredded

6 green onions, sliced

100g button mushrooms, sliced

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 grated cheese

1/2 cup canned corn kernels

1/4 cup tonkatsu sauce

1/4 cup Japanese mayonnaise

 

Mix flour, eggs, potato, a dash of salt and water in a large bowl to create a batter. Add green onions, cabbage, mushrooms and green beans.

Heat a small amount of oil in a large non-stick frying pan over medium-low heat. Scoop one ladle of mixture onto frying pan and cook for 10 minutes or until the pancakes are light brown underneath and set.

Turn pancake over and cook for 10 to 15 minutes. Keep warm and repeat with remaining batter.

Drizzle mayonnaise and tonkatsu sauce over the okonomiyaki. Top with cheese and corn. Garnish with nori. Serve immediately.

 

Photo Courtesy Of:  Sistak

 

Agedashi Tofu

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Agedashi Tofu is a well known Japanese dish served as an appetizer or eaten as a side dish. It is a personal favourite, but I prefer a thicker sauce instead of the regular tentsuyu. Tofu is a good source of iron, low calorie and low fat. It is a healthy and delicious recipe that is perfect for those on a diet.

Ingredients:

One block soft tofu

Corn starch

Oil for deep frying

1/2 cup dashi stock (powdered dashi dissolved in water)

1/8 cup mirin

1/8 cup light soy sauce

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon grated ginger

2 tablespoons grated radish (daikon)

Sliced green onions/scallions

Dried bonito flakes/katsuobushi or shredded nori

To prepare the dipping sauce, heat the mirin in a pan under medium heat. Pour in the dashi and soy sauce. Once it boils, stir in the sugar, ginger and radish. Mix well until the sugar granules dissolve. You may add a little cornstarch if you wish the sauce to thicken. Strain and discard the solid parts. Set aside.

Cut the tofu into pieces. Pat them dry using paper towels. Coat them in cornstarch and deep fry until golden brown or crispy. Drain the oil using paper towels or place the tofu in a strainer.

Place the fried tofu in a bowl and pour in some tentsuyu sauce.  Garnish with scallions and katsuobushi or nori. Serve immediately.

Photo Courtesy Of: arnold | inuyaki