cooking | Your Home for Homemade Japanese Food

September 30, 2020
by fravitch 26 Comments

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

August 21, 2020
by fravitch 4 Comments

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.

July 28, 2020
by fravitch 16 Comments

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!

July 3, 2020
by fravitch 17 Comments

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.

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

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.

June 4, 2020
by fravitch 12 Comments

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!

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

[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

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

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.

May 14, 2020
by fravitch 18 Comments

4 Ingredients Easy Custard Pudding (gluten-free, vegetarian)

There are many recipes for custard pudding. Today I introduce you to the easiest custard pudding. It is simple yet very delicious!!

It has very smooth texture and great delicate taste!! There is no need to add butter or vanilla extract. This pudding already has rich taste!! If you prefer, you can mix in some shredded chocolate before refrigerating to make chocolate puddings.

You need only eggs, sugar, cornstarch, whole or low fat milk and one soup pan.

You can use skim milk and nut milks for the recipe, but the pudding is going to be a bit watery after refrigerating in my experience. When you use skim milk or nut milks, you might want to use less than normal amount of the milk in the recipe.

Ingredients (servings 4)

3 egg yolks

6 tablespoons sugar

3 tablespoons cornstarch

2 1/4 cups whole milk or 2% milk

In a soup pan, whisk the yolks and sugar well.
Add the cornstarch to the pan and mix gently.
Pour the milk gradually into the pan while stirring.
Cook it over medium heat for about 8 minutes, stirring constantly, until the mixture just barely comes to a boil. Turn the heat to low and keep stirring until it is getting custard consistency, for 2 to 3 minutes.
Pour the pudding into a deep (about 5 ounce) grass cup and refrigerate for about 2 hours.

April 20, 2020
by fravitch 11 Comments

Easy Japanese Tofu MOCHI Dessert (vegan/gluten-free)

Have you ever eaten Japanese traditional dessert dishes, which is called Wagashi in Japanese? There are so many recipes, such as mochi, dango, and sweet beans paste. Today I will introduce you to “Easy mochi dessert” using tofu.

In my recipe, you don’t need special ingredients; you need only tofu, corn starch and sugar. You can enjoy this dish on its own, and also it is great when you eat it with a bit of sugar, chocolate spread, or caramel. Here I sprinkle the mochi with the mixture of ground sesame seeds and sugar. This makes the dish more traditional taste.

Ingredients (20 -24 pieces small mochi)

1/2 (14-ounce) package of firm tofu

4 tablespoons sugar

6 tablespoons cornstarch

[for dusting] to taste

1 tablespoon ground roasted sesame seeds

1 tablespoon sugar

Process the tofu in food processor until it gets smooth.
In a pan, mix the tofu, sugar and corn starch. Stir for 3 minutes over medium heat, until you see some lumps. Turn the heat to low, stir for 8 to 10 minutes, until it becomes sticky dough. (This is a bit tough but it is worth it.)
Once the dough is cool enough to handle (Do not cool it completely. It is going to be hard to make a ball shape.), roll into small ball shapes by hand. Dust with the mixture of the sesame seeds and the sugar to taste.

March 31, 2020
by fravitch 8 Comments

Spinach and Walnut Salad with Lemon Zest (Vegan/Vegetarian/Gluten-free)

Are you looking for easy, healthy yet delicious recipes? Well, this dish is for you! “Spinach and walnut salad” which has very fresh taste from lemon zest.

The recipe is very easy and quick. It takes only 5 to 6 minutes. Moreover, you can store it for up to 4 days in the refrigerator.

Ingredients (servings 4)

10 oz. fresh baby spinach

1/4 cup walnuts pieces

Grated zest of 1 lemon

1 tsp. extra virgin olive oil

Salt and pepper

Boil the spinach for 10 seconds in boiling water. Drain, rinse the spinach under cold running water and wring it dry by hand.
In a mixing bowl, combine the spinach, walnuts, lemon zest, olive oil. Season with some salt and pepper and mix well.

February 17, 2020
by fravitch 22 Comments

Sautéed Chicken and Pumpkin with Miso Sauce (Gluten-free)

Today I introduce you to “Sautéed Chicken and Pumpkin with Miso Sauce”. It is a delicious, flavorful and hearty dish.

I use winter squash Kabocha in the recipe. Kabocha is a common ingredient in Japanese cuisine. It is high in vitamins, potassium, fiber and beta-carotene. The taste is slightly sweet and the texture is very soft when it is cooked.