Your Home for Homemade Japanese Food

How to cook "with visual instructions" "using familiar ingredients from your local grocery stores" healthy, traditional and delicious Japanese dishes!!


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Pickled Lotus Root (gluten-free/vegan)

Today I introduce you to “Pickled Lotus Root” which is basically one of Japanese new year’s dish. But it is delicious, easy-to-cook and very healthy so I make it all the time. The dish can be stored in the refrigerator for about 5 days.

Lotus root is high in vitamin C, potassium, fiber and polyphenol. Their crunchy texture is amazing! Lotus root is versatile enough to be eaten deliciously in every cooking way, such as tempura, sauté, simmering, and roasting.

Ingredients (servings 2-3)

The recipe is very easy. It takes less than 10 minutes.

  1. Slice the lotus root thinly and soak in some water for about 5 minutes.
  2. Meanwhile, in a microwavable bowl, combine mirin, salt, vinegar, sugar and water, and mix well.
  3. Drain off the water from the lotus root and add the lotus root to the vinegar mixture.
  4. Cover the bowl, microwave for 1 minute, and sprinkle some crushed red pepper to taste. Let it cool at room temperature before serving or storing in the refrigerator.
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Datemaki, Japanese Traditional Pan-Fried Egg (Vegetarian)

This is a Japanese traditional New Year’s dish called Datemaki. It mainly contains egg and fish paste and has sweet taste and smooth texture.

Today I use tofu as substitute for fish paste because tofu is easily available, it is delicious, and it becomes a great dish for people who follow vegetarian diet.

For good final presentation, you may as well use Makisu which is a bamboo sushi mat, but you can use a piece of parchment paper if you don’t have Makisu.

Ingredients (servings 2)

• 7 oz (198g) firm tofu

• 4 eggs

• 4 tablespoons sugar

• 1 tablespoon Mirin, Japanese sweet cooking rice wine

• 1/2 tablespoon Yamasa Marudai Zu Soy Sauce

The recipe is easy but takes a little bit time. You can store this dish in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days so you may want to make ahead and serve it later.

Drain tofu, wrap with paper towels and place on a plate. Put a weight, such as a heavy plate, on the wrapped tofu for at least 1 hour to drain completely. (Change the paper towels halfway through if they are completely soaked).

Combine the drained tofu, eggs, sugar, mirin and soy sauce in a bowl. Mix well using a hand blender until smooth.

Heat a dry non-stick skillet over medium heat for a few minutes, then coat the skillet with cooking spray. Put the hot skillet on a damp cloth to let the bottom of the skillet cool down slightly. Next, put the skillet on the range back and pour in all of the egg mixture. Put a lid on the skillet and cook for 12 minutes over low heat. Then turn the heat off and let it sit on the range for 5 minutes with the lid on. Remove the lid and let it sit another 5 to 10 minutes until it becomes cool enough to handle.

Place the egg on a Makisu or a piece of parchment paper. Roll it into a tight jelly roll. Put a rubber band around the roll and let it sit at room temperature for about 1 hour to cool down. Then refrigerate for at least 1 hour to allow it set up before cutting and serving.


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Carrot and Daikon Radish Sweet Pickles (Gluten-free/Vegetarian)

Today I will introduce you to “Japanese traditional New Year’s food”. 

New year is very important event in Japan. Anciently Japan had a tradition that people wouldn’t shop or cook for the first three days of New Year. Therefore, people cook lots of colorful dishes that last long on 31st December and put them in beautiful boxes together for the three days, which is called Osechi. Each dish has auspicious meaning, such as health, longevity, and safety of the year.  Lately some shops and restaurants are open on New Year’s day, but many people make/buy Osechi and celebrate the New Year. 

This dish “carrot and daikon radish sweet pickles” is called “Namasu”. It has red and white color so it is considered as a happy dish.

The recipe is very easy and the dish last for about 5 days in the refrigerator so it is a versatile dish for any occasion.

Cut the daikon radish and carrot into about 3-inch-length thin strips. Combine the vegetables and salt in a zip-top bag or in a bowl and knead gently. Let it sit for 10 minutes until the vegetables become tender.

Meanwhile, combine the vinegar, sugar and dash powder in a microwavable bowl. Microwave for 40 seconds, mix well and set aside. Wring the vegetables dry by hand and add in the vinegar mixture.

• 6-inch-length daikon radish, peeled and cut in half

• 1 small carrot, peeled

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 3 tablespoons rice vinegar

• 2 tablespoons sugar

• 1/2 teaspoon Kombu Dashi Powder with No MSG (Vegetarian Soup Stock)


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Stuffed Pumpkin

It is October!! Time to enjoy pumpkins!!

In Japan we usually use “Winter Squash” which we call “Kabocha” for cooking. Kabocha squash is high in vitamin C, vitamin E, beta-carotene, and potassium. The taste is a lot sweeter in other kind of pumpkins, and the texture is so soft and smooth that is similar to sweet potato.

In this recipe, I use onion, carrot, mushrooms, ground chicken meat and shredded cheese. You can add more vegetables, use other kind of meat and also use any kind of cheese you like.

The recipe is

Cook filling in a pan and season. Cut the top of the kabocha off and take all seeds out. Spoon the filling into the kabocha and bake in the preheated oven.

Detailed and visual instructions can be found in the recipe PDF: Stuffed Pumpkin

{Ingredients (servings 2)}

½ lb. Ground Chicken

1 Kabocha or Winter Squash

1 small Onion

1 Carrot

4~5 Mushrooms (any kind)

1 Tbsp. Vegetable Oil

2 Tbsp. Flour

½ Tbsp. Margarine or Butter

3 Tbsp. Cooking Sake or White Wine

¾ cup Shredded Cheese (total) (any kind)

½ tsp. Salt

½ tsp. Black Pepper


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Gunkanmaki Sushi

Today I will give you a quick advice about making sushi.

If you are struggling with making sushi rolls, please check

Sushi Cookbook for Beginners: 100 Step-By-Step Recipes to Make Sushi at Home

In this book I made the recipes easy and used ingredients that are simple to find and available in the United States. There are seafood, meat, vegetarian, and vegan sushi dishes. This book will teach you tons of easy-to-follow recipes that will help you turn your kitchen into a sushi workshop.

I recommend trying to make Gunkanmaki sometimes. It is much easier for beginners to make gunkanmaki than sushi rolls. The shape is also great for holding ingredients that would be easily dropped in any other form.


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Sushi Cookbook for Beginners

It’s finally here!

Today is a beautiful day—my brand new book, Sushi Cookbook for Beginners, is officially out in the world for you all.

Thank you again for all of your support. It really means the world to me! I hope you enjoy reading the book as much as I loved writing it!


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How to make traditional Japanese sushi roll

I know some of you sometimes struggle with making good looking sushi rolls.

Here is a tip on my YouTube video “How to make Homemade Sushi Roll”. I hope this helps you!!

In addition, my sushi cookbook which has very easy to follow directions, will be published on 28th July!! Now available for pre-order on Amazon!

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Sushi Cookbook for Beginners: 100 Step-By-Step Recipes to Make Sushi at Home


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Classic Japanese Biscuits “Egg Bolo” (Gluten-free/ Vegetarian)

Japanese egg bolo which is classic Japanese biscuits, has a very small ball shape and a light delicious taste.

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For Japanese, egg bolo may be the first sweet snack because there are many “egg bolo” products as a baby food.

However, lately, homemade egg bolo is very popular because it is easy to make using simple ingredients.

In this recipe, you need only 3 ingredients; cornstarch, egg yolk and sugar. In Japan, there are also other kind of bolo which uses flour or buckwheat flour.

My new cookbook Sushi Cookbook for Beginners: 100 Step-By-Step Recipes to Make Sushi at Home will be published on July 28th!! Now available for pre-oder on Amazon!

 

Ingredients (90 to 100 balls)

1/4 cup sugar

2 egg yolks

1/2 cup cornstarch

  1. Preheat the oven to 320 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks and sugar well. Add the cornstarch gradually while mixing by hand. Do not add the cornstarch all at once. If the mixture is still too sticky, add 1 tablespoon of cornstarch.

3. Shape the mixture into a very small ball; the size of the little finger’s tip. (They are going to puff up after baking. The big bolo texture is not good very much).

4. Bake for 15 minutes.


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New cookbook!! “Sushi Cookbook for Beginners”

My new cookbook is now available for pre-order and will be published on July 28th.

Sushi Cookbook for Beginners: 100 Step-By-Step Recipes to Make Sushi at Home

This book teaches you how to make delicious sushi using easy recipes using only the most basic equipment you probably already have at home!
It gives you lots of sushi making tips, and teaches you both traditional sushi recipes and classic American sushi recipes, plus a few you won’t find anywhere else!


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Chicken Burger Patties (gluten-free/ egg-free)

Today I will teach you how to make Japanese style Burger Patties, which is the most popular style in Japan. The ingredients are ground chicken, tofu, mushroom and onion.

It is common to add Tofu to some dishes in Japan, as an ingredient, such as meatball, pancakes, muffins and so on. It makes the dishes healthier and it requires fewer ingredients. The texture of the patties is amazingly soft because of the tofu’s texture. Tofu is high in quality protein, so this patty has great nutrition!

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Japanese usually have homemade burger patties with sides of vegetables and white rice, not with hamburger buns.

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[Ingredients (servings 4)]

1-pound ground chicken

7-ounce (1/2 package) firm tofu

3 shiitake mushrooms, finely chopped

1 small red onion, finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

 

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Drain the tofu and wrap it in paper towels, then microwave for two minutes. Let it sit at room temperature until cool down.

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In a bowl, combine the chicken, onion, mushrooms, salt and pepper. Mix for at least 2 minutes until very well combined. Shape the mixture into 8 palm-size balls, and flatten them with your hands. In a skillet, heat the vegetable oil over medium heat and cook the burgers for 3 minutes. Flip them, cook the burgers over low heat with a cover for 7 minutes. Transfer to paper towels to drain.

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