Iberico Pork Shabu Shabu...Real Treat!

I was back in Japan last week to stay with my family there. One night, we did shab shabu with the premium Iberico Pork from Spain!

Iberico Pork is a premium breed of pork from the south-west Spain. The pigs grow up in the wild woods of cork trees by eating acorns, and other wild plants/ fruits. Iberico pork is filled with great flavors and nutrients. We got both belly slices and loin.
Because of its premium status, Iberico pork is much more expensive compared to regular kinds of pork. The belly meat was more than $60/ lb. in US equivalent.


We heated the dashi stock with sake, and cooked the pork, and other ingredients such as mizuna, abura-age, hakusai, different kinds of mushrooms, kuzukiri, etc. The dipping sauces for the night were our standard sesame sauce, and salt ponzu. The pork was amazingly flavorful and melted in my mouth! It was truly special!!

Yellowtail with Sansho Teriyaki Sauce (Buri no Sansho Teriyaki)

This my family’s traditional style. In the winter time, buri (grown up yellowtail) tastes especially good because the fish more fat content. If you cannot find fresh sansho pepper berries (mountain peppers), you can omit them and just grate the black pepper in the sauce at the end.

Buri No Sansho Teriyaki

Ingredients (2 servings)
4 tbsps soy sauce
2 tbsps mirin
2 tbsps sake

2 large pieces buri (yellowtail) filet.

2 tbsps. fresh sansho berries (mountain pepper)

Procedure
Combine the soy sauce, mirin, and sake in a shallow glass baking dish and marinate the fish filets for 1 hour. Remove the fish filets from the dish. Reserve the marinade.

Grill the fish both sides until done over medium-heat. (Stove-top grill is fine.)

Meanwhile, in a milk pan, heat the reserved marinade over medium-heat and reduce to half. Add the sansho pepper berries and cook for another 2 minutes.

Plate the fish and pour the sauce.

(I served the fish with the stir-fried asparagus and mushrooms.)

Tofu Steak with Mixed Mushroom Sauce

I make this dish sometimes. My tofu steak is very easy, healthy, and tasty. This is a Shojin-style dish (Buddhist-style vegetarian). To make it strictly a vegan style, the dashi made from dashi konbu (dried kelp) and/or dried shiitake mushrooms should be used for the sauce. Or, if you want to make it a “guilt” style, you can use the butter instead of sesame oil to sauté the mushrooms. It’s really good.

Ingredients (2 servings)
1 package firm tofu
katakriko (potato starch)

(sauce)
2 tbsps. sesame oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 ea. 1”-length ginger, peeled and minced
about 3/4 lb. mixed mushrooms - enoki, shiitake, and oyster mushrooms, cut or sliced into small pieces
1 cup dashi stock
2 tbsps sake
1/2 tsp sugar
1.5 tbsps soy sauce
1/2 t bsp oyster sauce
1 tsp potato starch
1 tsp water
Garnish – thinly sliced carrot, thinly sliced scallion, and katsuo-bushi (bonito flakes)

Procedure
1 hour before cooking, place the tofu in a shallow plate, top it with a flat plate (or a small cutting board). Put more weight (such as food cans) over it to drain the excess water from the tofu. Slice the tofu into desired thickness.

Pat-dry the sliced tofu and sprinkle some potato starch on both sides of each slice.

In a pan, heat 1 tbsp of sesame oil over medium-heat. Cook both sides of the tofu slices until golden-brown (about 3 minutes each side).
Meanwhile, in another pan, heat 1 tbsp of sesame oil over medium-heat and sauté garlic and ginger until aromatic (about 30 seconds). Add the shiitake and oyster mushrooms and sauté until cooked through (about 3 minutes). Deglaze with the sake and add the dashi stock. Add the sugar, soy sauce and oyster sauce and stir.
Add the enoki mushrooms and stir for about 30 seconds. Add the mixture of 1 tsp of potato starch and 1tsp of water in the pan. Stir another 30-60- seconds.

Divide the sauce into two plates, and top each plate with the tofu steaks. Garnish with the thinly sliced carrot, scallion and katsuo-bushi (dry bonito flakes).

Spring Vegetable Chirashi Sushi for Girls' Day

March 3rd was Japanese Girls' Day. Traditionally, we make Chirashi Sushi to celebrate being "girls". Tonight, Jason was working until very late, but I made Chirashi Sushi for myself anyway. I made it in my beautiful donabe rice cooker, "Kamado-san".

I made the very healthy version with the brown rice, brown vinegar, and different kinds of vegetables. There were more vegetables in volume than the rice, so the dish was almost like thhe salad, yet it was still very filling and so delicious!

I posted the recipe in toiro's website.

Takenoko Gohan (Bamboo Shoot Rice)...Spring is Here!

Takenoko Gohan (bamboo shoot rice) is one of the most popular rice dishes in the spring season in Japan. Since you can find the vacuum-pack cooked bamboo rice at (Japanese) grocery stores, you can also enjoy this delicate spring flavor year-round, too.

It's so easy to cook with the donabe rice cooker. I posted the recipe in toiro's website.

Wine Dinner at Duck House

Once a month, I get together with this super-fun group of wine lovers for dinner. We met at Duck House this time and had the wonderful duck and other Chinese dishes with so many great wines. There was no theme for the wines this evening. There were 14 of us, but we opened more than 20 bottles! Here is the list of some of the wines we had.

2006 Yves Boyer-Martenot, Meursault "Les Tillets" Cuvee unique

2005 Domaine Colin-Deleger, Chassagne-Montrachet, 1er Cru "En Remilly"

2005 Domaine Fontaine-Gagnard, Chassagne-Montrachet, 1er Cru "Clos des Murees" (Monopole)

2003 E. Guigal, Hermitage (blanc)

2004 Chateau d'Yquem, "Y"

1972 Chappellet, Chenin Blanc (Napa)

2007 Gerard Raphet, Gevrey-Chambertin, "Labaux St-Jacques"

2003 Alain Burguet, Gevrey-Chambertin, "Mes Favorites"

1995 Alain Michelot, Nuits-Saint-Georges, "Les Vaucrains" 1er Cru

1996 Domaine Armand Rousseau, Gevrey-Chambertin, 1er Cru "Clos St-Jacques"

2003 Hospices de Beaune, Corton Grand Cru, "Cuvee Docteur Peste" (by Louis Jadot)

1999 Harlan Estate, The Maiden (Napa)

2001 Vincent Arroyo, Cabernet Sauvignon, "Winemaker's Reserve" (Napa)

2005 TOR, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cimarossa Vineyard, Napa Valley

2006 J. Rochioli, Little Hill, Pinot Noir (Russian River Valley)

2006 Red Car, The Fight Round 4 (100% Syrah)

1993 Penfolds, Grange Shiraz

1983 Long Vineyards, Johannisberg Riesling, Botorytis (Napa Valley)

1997 Domaine Zind Humbrecht, Alsace Pinot Gris, "Clos Windsbuhl"

2001 Clos Haut-Peyraguey, Sauternes 1er Cru Classe

1990 Chateau Rieussec, Sauternes 1er Grand Cru Classe

The list was a good mixture of French and California wines (except for Grange). Surprisingly, there was no Italian tonight.

Japanese Mabo Tofu

In Japan, Mabo Tofu (or Mapo Tofu in Chinese) is one of the most popular dishes which were adapted from China. I've never really thought of it, but I heard many people make it because it's a budget meal. That's right that it costs so little to make a big bowl of Mabo Tofu. But, to me, I keep making it because of its flavor and texture. This one dish with a bowl of rice can make a complete satisfying meal for me.

Ingredients

1 package medium-firm tofu

1 package silky tofu

1 tsp. chopped garlic

1tsp. fermented black beans

1/2 tbsp. chopped ginger

3-4 ea. shiitake mushrooms, cut into small pieces

1 tbsp. sesame oil

1/2 lb. ground pork

1 tbsp. tobanjan (hot chili bean paste)

1 cup Chinese chicken stock

(sauce mixture)

1/2 tsp. sugar

1/2 tsp. tian mian jiang (Chinese fermented sweet flour paste)

1 tsp. oyster sauce

1.5 tbsps. soy sauce

2 tbsps. Chinese rice wine

ground Sczechuan pepper

Potato Starch-Water mixture (1 tbsp of potato starch, mixed with 1tbsp of water)

Chopped scallions

Procedure

Cut the tofu into small cubes and blanch in the boiling water for a couple of minutes, then drain.

In a wok, saute the garlic, fermented black beans and ginger in the sesame oil for 1 minute at medium-high heat. Add the shiitake and continue to stir for another minutes or until the shiitake is wilted.

Add the ground pork and saute until the meat is cooked through.

Push the meat to one side of the wok to make a small empty room on the other side of the wok. Add the tobanjan in the empty side and stir only the paste until it's fragrant.

Stir-fry the meat and tobanjan together, add the chicken stock and tofu and let it simmer at for 3-4 minutes.

Add the sauce mixture and continue to simmer for a couple of more minutes.

Add the potato starch-water mixture to the wok and stir well.

Garnish with the chopped scallions.

Braised Kabocha

This is one of my favorite dishes of my childhood. My mom used to cook it for me and my sister all the time.

Ingredients

1 ea. Medium-size Kabocha (about 1lb)

2 tbsps. brown sugar

1 tbsp. light soy sauce

1/2-1 tbsp. dark soy sauce

yuzu rind, thinly sliced (optional)

salt to taste

Prodedure

Cut the kabocha into half and scoop out all the seeds. Cut each half into large pieces and trim the edges.

In a pot, place the kabocha pieces and water. Water should just barely cover the surface of the kabocha.

Bring the mixture to boil, reduce the heat to low. Cover the surface with the parchment paper and close the pot with a lid. Let the ingredients to simmer for about 10 minutes or until the kabocha is tender.

Discard half of the cooking liquid and the parchment paper. Add the sugar and soy sauces. Continue to cook the kabocha for another 5 minutes or so. Adjust the seasoning by adding a little amount of salt. Add the yuzu rind (optional) 1-2 minutes before the end of the cooking.

This dish can be enjoyed either hot or at a room temperature.

Grated Daikon and Crab Salad

Daikon is so versatile and I love it so much.

I simply tossed the ingredients in home-made ponzu.

Ingredients (for 2)

2-3" length medium-size daikon, peeled, grated and its juice drained

4 ea. relatively thin asparagus, cut into 2" length and blanched

1 ea. abura-age (deep-fried pressed tofu pouch), pan-fried both sides and sliced into thin strips

1/3 to 1/2 cup lump crab meat

(ponzu sauce)

1.5 tbsps. soy sauce

1 tbsp. rice vinegar

1/2 tbsp. grapefruit juice

1/4 tsp. sesame oil

katsuo-bushi (bonito flakes)

Procedure

Mix the ingredients for ponzu sauce and set aside.

In a bowl, combine grated daikon, asparagus, abura-age, and crab meat with the ponzu.

Garnish with katsuo-bushi.

Vegetable Chap Chae (Korean Stir-fry Noodles)

Chap Chae is a very popular Korean noodle dish. The good chap chae has the bouncy texture of the noodle and not soggy. It's not a difficult dish to fail. I like to make it with just vegetables and tons of mushrooms.

Ingredients (for 2 main servings or 4 appetizers)

200g (about 6.5oz) bean thread noodles (glass noodles)

1.5 tbsps. sesame oil

3-4 ea. shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced

2 ea. medium-size king oyster mushrooms, thinly sliced

1 ea. small carrot, peeled and julienned

1/2 ea. medium-size red bell pepper, julienned
1 small bunch yellow or green nira (Chinese chives), cut into 2-3" length

1.5 cup soy bean sprouts

2 tbsps mirin

1/4 cup soy sauce

1 tbsp sake

1/2 tbsp rice vinegar

salt and pepper

la-yu (hot chili sesame oil)

Procedure

Cook the bean thread noodles in the boiling water for 5 minutes. Drain, rinse, and cut into bite-size lengths with scissors. Set aside. In a cup, combine the mirin, soy sauce, sake and rice vinegar and set aside.

In a wok, heat the sesame oil and saute the mushrooms, carrot, and bell pepper at medium-high heat for about 2 minutes. Add the nira and soy bean sprouts and cook for another minute.

Add the sauce mixture to deglaze the pan. Season with salt and pepper. Add the cooked bean thread noodles and toss all the ingredients for 1-2 minutes.

Serve in a plate and drizzle la-yu and garnish with dried chili threads, scallion, and cilantro (garnish is optional).