Happy Donabe Life

New donabe products are finally available on toiro's website. From "Products" page, you can visit information/ order pages for individual products. So, please check them out to find out about these amazing donabes from Iga, Japan.

I am very, very excited with all the wonderful donabes from Iga. Because I've been so busy updating the info pages of toiro's website, I haven't had a chance to write any recipes for new donabe products yet. But, I've been cooking with different donabes every day and I would like to show you some sneak preview of what I've been cooking.

With the Donabe Steamer, "Mushi Nabe", we did steamed cod and vegetables.

With the Iga-yaki Grill, "Yaki Yaki San", we did Pork and Beef BBQ.

With the Donabe Smoker, "Ibushi Gin", we smoked chicken wings, salmon, shrimp, scallops, cheese, etc.

Oh, we eat so good with all the fantastic donabe cooking! More details will follow shortly.

Shojin (Vegan) Dish...Cous Cous style Okara Curry Salad

Almost every weekend, I get a big bag (2.5 lbs.) of okara (soy pulp) from Meiji Tofu. So, I cook with okara a lot. As I've written before, okara doesn't only taste so great, but is also a great source of fiber, protein, and other vitamins.

This is a variation of my last Okara Salad. As much as I use okara for very Japanese-style dishes, I enjoy cooking continental or ethnic style okara dishs like this. Okara is just so versatile!

This dish is very easy to make and you can also add basically any vegetables you like. It's a good way to finish some leftover ingredients from the fridge.

Cous Cous Style Okara Curry Salad

Ingredients

2 fluffy cups of okara

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 clove garlic, thinly sliced

1 tablespoon minced shallot

1/4 red bell pepper, minced

3-4 shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced

2-3 tablespoons sliced almond

2-3 tablespoon goji berries

1 tablespoon curry powder

salt and pepper

1/2 lemon

some lemon wedges

Procedure

1. In a saute pan, saute the garlic, shalot, red bell pepper, shiitake mushrooms, and almond with the olive oil for 3 minutes.

2. Ad the curry powder and saute until fragrant. Add the goji berries and stir. Transfer to a large bowl.

3. Saute the okara for 3-4 minutes or until the moisture is almost gone and fluffy. Transfer to the same bowl.

4. Season the mixture with the salt and pepper. Squeeze the lemon.

5. Serve with lemon wedges.

(I also added some chopped mizuna leaves at the end)

Making Miso...Week 8 Development

We entered the 8th week since we made the miso base and started its fermentation.

Our miso barrel has been resting in the basement since then. We decided to check on its development.

We carefully opened the lid and cover, then removed the weights.

We saw a few mold spots. According to the miso master of Komego (the traditional miso maker, from Fukui, Japan), for home miso making, the development of the mold on the surface during the fermentation is totally normal and not a big deal at all. The reason for the mold is because there was a slight contact with the air on the surface, even though we tried to make sure the surface was covered with the plastic with no air inside.

All you need to do is simply scrape off the moldy parts and smooth the surface again. The rest of the miso is just fine. In fact, with the salt and all the good micro-organisms (about 160 kinds!) living in the miso, miso could kill any unwanted or harmful bacteria even if you intentionally mix it in with the miso.

I love mighty miso. So, we tasted this still-under-fermentation miso. Wow, it already tasted quite "miso"ey and I was very happy.

We'll check it again in 6-8 week. There is still a long way to go (maybe 6 more months?) until this miso becomes ready.

New Donabe Products Have Arrived!

Great news...

We just received the shipment of new donabe products from Iga, Japan! Yes, they flew all the way across the Pacific Ocean.

The crate is quite huge. And, guess what, our storage is 40 steps from the bottom of the stairs.

I was just so happy to see them. I could smell Iga inside of the crate. We did the very careful inspection of each item all day today. Everything was in the perfectly sound condition.

The new products are...Donabe Steamer (black and white), Donabe Smoker, and Iga-yaki ceramic grill. I've been working very hard to update toiro's website with the new products information, etc. right now. They are scheduled to be available on toiro's website by this weekend, so please stay tuned!

Tonight's Donabe Cooking...Chicken Soup and Brown & White Rice

We had the first order from Moscow, Russia for Kamado-san (double-lid donabe rice cooker), so we just shipped it out this past weekend. How exciting! Kamado-san will travel all the way to Russia and our Russian donabe friend will be making donabe rice dishes. I hope the package will arrive safely.

I used two donabes for this evening's dinner. The soup & stew donabe, "Miso-shiru Nabe", and the double-lid donabe rice cooker, "Kamado-san".

Upon Jason's request, I made the chicken soup with the Miso-shiru Nabe again. The procedure is so simple. I first heated about 2 cups of water and 1/2 cup of sake with crushed garlic and scallions (green part). Then, I added the bone-in chicken thighs (seasoned with salt & pepper and rested overnight). After 10 minutes of simmering with the lid on, I added the russet potato (cut into cubes), sliced shiitake mushrooms and daikon radish (cut into strips). Seasoned with salt and pepper. After additional 20 minutes of simmering with the lid on, I added the shungiku (crown daisy) leaves, turned off the heat and closed the lid again. After 2-3 minutes, it was ready!

The soup was basically seasoned only with salt and pepper, but the flavor is surprisingly deep and soothing thanks to the donabe. The meat was so tender and fell off the bone with a fork.

For the rice, I did half-and-half brown and white rice. You just need to use the brand of brown rice which can cook like the white rice without extra time of soaking or cooking necessary. As always, the rice made with Kamado-san was so shiny and each grain was standing up.

Tonight's Donabe Cooking...Kurobuta Pork Shabu Shabu

I spent all day working on making new pages for my toiro's website today. I barely finished one product page (still draft stage) by taking the entire afternoon. Hew. But, the exciting news is...YES, the new donabe products are on their way from Iga to here in Los Angeles as I'm writing. So, hopefully they will be available on toiro's website next week! There are scheduled to be three new items. Please stay tuned.

Since I'm so tired. Just the photos from last night's dinner. We did Kurobuta pork shab shabu with the classic-style donabe, "Hakeme". We had them with two kinds of dipping sauces (miso, and salt ponzu).

Dashi was made with konbu (dried kelp) and dried shiitake. As soon as dashi was ready, these were removed. Then, we started cooking meat, tofu, vegetables, etc.

To end the meal (we call it "shime"), we made the ojiya (soup porridge). Wonderful!

Kabocha & Okara Korokke (Kabocha Pumpkin & Soy Pulp Croquette)

Korokke (croquette) is a popular rustic food in Japan. You go to a local deli or meat market, and you can buy a piping hot korokke for 50 yen (about 60 cents) or so. The traditional rustic korokke normally consists of simple mashed potato and some ground meat.

Today, I made my own version with kabocha pumpkin and super-healthy okara (soy pulp...packed with fiber and protein). Oh, I also included a little piece of mozzarella cheese in the filling!

Kabocha & Okara Korokke

Ingredients

1/2 medium-size kabocha, seeds removed

3/4 to 1 cup okara (soy pulp)

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon powder

salt and pepper

1/4 pound mozzarella cheese, cut into 12-14 cubes

flour

1 large egg, whisked

1.5 cups panko breadcrumbs

1 tablespoon each white and black sesame seeds, ground

1 liter vegetable oil

Procedure

1. Shave off (in a thin layer) most of the skin of the kabocha. Cut the kabocha into smaller cubes.

2. In a pot, put the kabocha and water to barely cover the kabocha. Bring to a boil, and reduce to simmer. With the lid on, simmer until kabocha is cooked. Drain.

3. While the kabocha is still very hot, coarsely mash it in a bowl. (For a richer version, you can also add 1-2 tablespoon of butter when mashing the kabocha.) Add the okara, cinnamon powder, and season with salt and pepper. Mix well. Cover and set aside to cool down.

4. Get the ingredients for the batter ready. Set separate bowls for the flour, egg, and panko. Mix in the ground sesame seeds into the panko.

5. Divide the kabocha mixture into 12-14 parts and shape each into a ball by wrapping a mozzarella cube.

6. Roll the balls in a bowl with the flour one by one. Dust off excess flour.

7. Once all the balls are dusted with the flour, dip each in the egg, then in the panko mixture. Dust off excess panko. Let them rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

8. Deep-fry in the 350 F degrees oil until the color turns to golden (about 4-5 minutes).

Right out of the oil...the cheese is nicely gooey.

I also enjoyed it with Okinawa sauce.

Chinese-style Grilled Eggplant Salad with Fermented Black Bean Sauce

I wanted to make a quick appetizer out of what I had in the fridge. So, I came up with this dish. Grilled whole eggplant is so easy to prepare and brings the nice smokiness to the dish. I tossed the eggplant with fermented black soy bean sauce and okra.

Ingredients

4-5 medium-size eggplant

some okra

1 tablespoon, thinly shredded ginger

thinly sliced scallion

ground white sesame seeds

la-yu (hot sesame oil)

(Sauce)

2/3 tablespoon fermented black beans

1/2 teaspoon sugar

1.5 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine or sake

1/2 teaspoon Chicken powder

1 tablespoon boiling water

1 teaspoon sesame oil

Procedure

1. On a stove top grill over high heat, grill the eggplants (all sides) until the skin is charred and inside is soft. Transfer the eggplants to a cutting board.

2. Cut off the heads, and peel off the skins while the eggplants are still hot. Cut the peeled eggplants into bitable sizes.

3. Blanch the okra in boiling water for about 1 minute. Cut into small pieces.

4. Combine all the ingredients for the sauce. Set aside.

5. In a bowl, combine the eggplant, okra, ginger and the sauce and toss.

6. Transfer the mixture to a serving bowl. Garnish with the scallion, ground white sesame seeds, and la-yu.

Making Sushi with Donabe...Maguro and Uni Chirashi Sushi (Tuna and Sea Urchin Chirashi Sushi)

We picked up very nice maguro (tuna) for sashimi and uni from a Japanese market, so I made the simple chirashi sushi with them.

The sushi rice made with the double-lid donabe rice cooker ("Kamado-san") always tastes so exceptional. So, to me, it's almost dangerous, because it tastes so good that I keep snacking on the sushi rice before decorating it with the fish! The donabe sushi rice is so shiny and so delicious on its own.

It's a super-simple preparation. All I had to do was to make the donabe rice, season with the sushi su (vinegar seasoning), and decorate with the tuna and uni. To finish, I scattered the surface with momi-nori (broken roasted seaweed) and sliced shiso.

With the condiments suchi as wasabi, gari (pickled ginger), and sashimi soy sauce. Wonderful meal. You can find the complete recipe on toiro's website. Please check it out.

My favorite pork belly dish...Buta No Kakuni with Donabe

Buta No Kakuni (braised "square" pork) is a popular rustic Japanese dish and it's been my favorite pork belly dish since my childhood. So, I cook it myself sometimes, and I think I've posted pictures of my Buta No Kakuni more than a few times in my last blog site. Well, here it is again.


My soup & stew donabe, "Miso-shiru Nabe", is the best cooking tool for this dish, as the pork becomes so tender and the broth builds the deep complex flavors when cooked with this donabe.


I've tried different methods of making Buta No Kakuni before, but I've concluded that I prefer when the meat is directly braised, instead of searing the outside before braising. In this way, the meat becomes so jiggly tender without having the crusty (foreign) texture outside.


I first boil the cubed pork belly for about 5 minutes and drain, so that the excess fat and particles can be removed.


In the soup & stew donabe, "Miso-shiru Nabe", I combine sliced onion, 4 tablespoons of sugar, 600 ml of water, and 100 ml of sake. Then, I placed about 2 pounds of boiled and drained pork belly cubes on top. Line the top with otoshi-buta (inner lid, or a piece of parchment paper), and close with the top lid. Bring it to boil, reduce to simmer. Simmer for about 2 hours.


Add 100 ml of soy sauce and tofu shirataki (optional). Simmer for additional 30 minutes.


That's it! The aroma is so wonderful, and the taste is even better. Serve with karashi mustard.