16th May 2019 / Last updated : 16th May 2019 Mog 03 : Side Dishes

Salt Koji Marinated Mushrooms (塩麹きのこマリネ)

Koji is an ingredient used for fermented foods such as miso and Sake, made from grain such as rice, wheat, soybean, etc. The beneficial bacteria promote gut health and are also rich in enzymes that help to digest protein, carbs and fat while increasing the bioavailability of minerals. I used salt koji from Kokoro Care Packages. Ingredients Fresh mushrooms (Any kind of mushroom is OK.) Salt Koji 1-1.5 tbsp per 100 g of mushrooms Instructions Prepare a pan and boil water. Slice the mushrooms. Cook mushrooms for 1.5 mins. Then drain the excess water. Prepare a clean food container. Mix the mushrooms and salt koji together. When it cools, store […]
23rd January 2019 / Last updated : 23rd January 2019 Mog 02 : Main Dishes

Meat Stew with Tofu (Niku Tofu)

If you have no time to prepare a meal but want to eat Japanese food, you might consider trying this recipe. Cooking time is only about 15 mins! Ingredients (for 2 – 3 servings) 200 g thinly sliced pork or beef 200 g Shirataki (Konnyaku noodles) 1 tub tofu 1 onion 50 mL soy sauce : (A) 50 mL mirin : (A) 50 mL Sake : (A) 50 mL water : (A) Instructions Cut the onion into wedges. Boil the Shirataki for 3 – 4 minutes. Drain the water and cut into bite-size lengths. Cut the sliced meat into bite-size chunks. Place Tofu in a strainer. Leave it for 20~30 […]
3rd January 2019 / Last updated : 3rd January 2019 Mog 07 : Other

Zoni Tokyo Style (東京風雑煮)

Zoni is Traditional Japanese soup with rice cakes and vegetables, which we eat for New Year’s breakfast. Each region has each Zoni. My recipe is Tokyo style as Tokyo is my mum’s hometown. Ingredients (for 4 servings) 1.2 L Dashi broth (See this page to prepare Dashi broth.) 120 g chicken thigh (without skin) with 1 tsp soy sauce and 1 tsp cooking Sake 50 g carrot 50 g Daikon radish 4 small taros 4 Shiitake mushrooms 5 cm kamaboko 2 bunches Japanese mustard spinach Edible clovers for topping (optional) Yuzu peel for topping (optional) 2 tbsp soy sauce : (A) 1 tbsp mirin : (A) Salt for taste 4 […]
17th November 2018 / Last updated : 17th November 2018 Mog 03 : Side Dishes

Fukujinzuke (Crunchy Pickles, 福神漬)

Fukujinzuke is a very popular condiment in Japanese cuisine, commonly used as a relish for Japanese curry with a crunchy texture. Although the lotus roots are used in this recipe, other vegetables like celery would work. The name originates from the tale of Seven Lucky Gods. In homage to the name, some varieties of fukujinzuke consist of seven different kinds of vegetables. Ingredients Daikon radish 250 g Cucumber 1 Carrots 40 g Lotus roots 40 g Vinegar 2 tbsp (for soaking the lotus roots) (A) Soy sauce 4 tbsp (A) Mirin 3 tbsp (A) Sugar 1.5 tbsp (A) Rice vinegar 1 tbsp (A) Sake 1 tbsp (A) Shredded ginger 20 […]
13th November 2018 / Last updated : 28th November 2018 Mog Local Food

Okonomiyaki (お好み焼き)

I am not raised in Kansai (Western Japan). So I learned this recipe from my friend from Kansai area. You will be able to make “good” okonomiyaki without any special ingredients. Ingredients (for 3-4 servings) (A) 200g of all purpose flour (A) 2 tbsp of potato starch (A) 1 tsp of baking powder 250 mL of Dashi Broth (or 1 tbsp of Dashi powder and 250 mL of water) 150 g of grated potato 1 tbsp of sake 5 eggs 5 sheets of thinly sliced pork shrimps, squid, etc. 600 g of cabbage (chopped) Bonito flakes and aonori for topping Okonomiyaki sauce Mayonnaise Instructions Add all ingredients (A) in a […]
25th October 2018 / Last updated : 25th October 2018 Mog 03 : Side Dishes

Kenchin Jiru (Vegan Soup, けんちん汁)

Kenchin-jiru is a sort of Buddhist cuisine, Japanese vegetarian or vegan cuisine based on Buddhism. It’s soy flavoured Kombu kelp-based soup with many vegetables for ingredients including root vegetables. Basically, no animal-derived foods are used in this soup. However, some people add chicken or pork. Ingredients (for 4-5 servings) Taro  200 g Carrot  100 g Daikon radish  100 g Gobo  100 g Green onion  1 stick Konnyaku  1 sheet Tofu  1 Sesame oil  1 tbsp Dashi broth (kombu kelp only preferred)  1000 mL Sake  3 tbsp Soy sauce  2 tbsp Instructions Cut the carrot and the daikon radish into 5 mm thick quarter slice. Peel the taro skin and cut […]
24th October 2018 / Last updated : 24th October 2018 Mog 05 : Rice & Noodles

Chestnuts Pilaf (Kuri Gohan, 栗ごはん)

You can see various foods in supermarkets in Japan especially in autumn. A mountain of chestnuts is a symbol of the arrival of autumn. How do you cook chestnuts in your country? I think roasting is the most popular way to cook chestnuts, but in Japan, we often cook them with rice. Ingredients (for 3-4 servings) 20 raw chestnuts 450 g of uncooked rice 620 mL of water (including condiments (A)) (A) 2 tbsp of soy sauce (A) 1 tbsp of sake (A) 1 tsp of dashi powder (when using water instead of dashi broth) Roasted sesame seeds for toppings Instructions Wash the rice and soak in water. Wash the […]
1st October 2018 / Last updated : 1st October 2018 Mog 02 : Main Dishes

Simmered Daikon radish with squid (Ika-daikon, イカ大根)

Simmered daikon radish with squid is my dad’s favourite food, so my mum used to cook it quite often. It wasn’t my favourite, as the squids were too chewy. If you don’t like squids because they are hard to chew, try this recipe. They are very soft and mild. Ingredients (For 4 servings) 1 whole body of squid 450 g of white Daikon radish Water that has been to used to wash rice (otherwise 2 tbsp of flour + 100 mL of water) (A) 300 mL of Dashi broth (otherwise 300 mL of water and 1.5 tsp of Dashi powder) (A) 2 tbsp of soy sauce (A) 2 tbsp of mirin […]
27th September 2018 / Last updated : 2nd December 2018 Mog 03 : Side Dishes

Pork Miso Soup (Tonjiru, 豚汁)

Tonjiru is a kind of miso soup, simmered with pork and vegetables. It has more ingredients than that of miso soup that you may know. My mum used to cook it in the cold winter. Ingredients (4 servings) 200 g of thinly sliced pork rib 1/2 carrot (about 100 g) 1/2 onion (about 100 g) 1/4 white daikon radish 1/2 gobo (burdock root) 1/2 tofu or atsuage (thick deep fried tofu) I used atsuage this time. 100 g of konnyaku 1 tbsp of vegetable oil 1000 mL of Dashi broth (otherwise 1000 mL of water and 1tbsp of Dashi powder) (A) 1 tbsp of soy sauce (A) 3-4 tbsp of […]
20th September 2018 / Last updated : 20th September 2018 Mog 02 : Main Dishes

Stick Grilled Pacific Saury Sushi (焼き秋刀魚寿司)

Pacific saury is typical fish in autumn. If you want to cook your own sushi, but cooking sushi is difficult, you might consider trying this recipe. You can use mackerel instead of Pacific saury. Ingredients (for 4 sticks) 4 fillets of Pacific saury (if any, you can use mackerel fillets.) 50 g of pickled ginger (otherwise 50 g of chopped ginger) 6 leaves of Oba (optional) 3 tbsp of roasted sesame seeds 500 g of freshly cooked rice (A) 40 mL of rice vinegar (A) 1.5 tbsp of sugar (A) 1/2 tsp of salt lemon juice (optional) Instructions Chop the Oba and pickled ginger. Mix the condiments (A). Add the […]