Category Archives: Eggs

Tamagoyaki with Mitsuba (Japanese Rolled Omelette with Herbs)

tamagpp Dear Japanese friends and all the experienced tamagoyaki makers, please be indulgent. What you see above is only my second attempt at the delicate task of preparing the Japanese omelette. The first time I tried making it, the result was tragical, so I expected a long series of failures. Surprisingly, this second omelette didn’t fall into pieces (even when I cut it) and, in spite of its messy looks, tasted wonderful. It made me so happy, I simply had to share my joy with you.

Tamagoyaki 卵焼き/玉子焼き (apparently also called “dashimaki”) is different from its European counterparts, not only because it contains some soy sauce and is sweet, but, most of all, because of a different frying method. Seasoned, beaten eggs are fried in thin layers, which are rolled successively with long cooking chopsticks and end up in a – hopefully neat – cylinder. A special rectangular or square pan is the traditional utensil, but it can also be made in a simple, round pan. I have seen the tamagoyaki making process dozens of times on television and internet and it always looked extremely difficult, especially for someone who, like me, lacks patience and dexterity and who isn’t used to cook with chopsticks.

Last year I decided to brave the tamagoyaki challenge and put the special pan as an obligatory item on the shopping list for my trip to Japan. I came back with a small rectangular pan and… didn’t have the courage to use it for over eight months! I don’t remember what has triggered my sudden urge to use it, but last week I thought I was fed up seeing the pan still unpacked in my drawer. I desperately needed very precise instructions, so I started to look for videos and finally followed the famous YouTube show called Cooking With Dog. I found it comprehensive, very well made and the concept of a talking dog funny and completely crazy. I have chosen this video also because the recipe called for mitsuba, the Japanese plant which starts forming a small forest on my balcony and which is particularly good with eggs. It was a sign I should choose this show and no other.

The video was very helpful and, apart from scaling down the recipe’s amounts, the only thing I changed was eliminating the sugar. Japanese omelettes are always sweet, the thing which doesn’t suit my taste buds, so my home-made tamagoyaki, even though clumsy and messy-looking, was the best because it was 100% savoury, just the way I love it. Check the Cooking with Dog show to see the original three-egg recipe and very comprehensive instructions, but, please, do not compare the final result to mine!

TIPS:

PAN: The special square or rectangular pan is not necessary. Tamagoyaki can be prepared in a round pan too. The important thing is to adapt the size of the pan to the number of eggs you want to use. I have bought the smallest pan I found because it was adapted to a two-egg omelette, perfect for one serving. My rectangular pan’s measures are: 18 x 13 cm (7 x 5 inches), so if you want to make an omelet with two eggs, take a similarly-sized round pan.

HERBS: I have used here mitsuba because I love it and am lucky to grow it on my balcony, but of course any fresh herb of your choice will be great here. I recommend chives, tarragon or dill.

SERVING: My favourite way to serve tamagoyaki is with good French buttered bread (baguette or similar bread with crunchy crust), but you can have it as a snack or in a more Asian way, as a part of a meal with rice, pickles, vegetables…

Tamagoyaki is often served cold, but personally I like it still slightly warm, with a splash of soy sauce.

Special equipment: long cooking chopsticks. As difficult as it may seem, in my opinion cooking chopsticks are a perfect tool for this omelette. You can try also with normal eating chopsticks, but they might be too small.

Preparation: 15 minutes

Ingredients (serves one as a main course, for example breakfast):

2 eggs

2 tablespoons Japanese stock (dashi), but in my opinion chicken stock will be perfect here too (you can dissolve a pinch of instant stock of course)

1 teaspoon soy sauce

(ground black pepper)

pinch of salt

about 10 sprigs mitsuba leaves or any other herbs of your choice (chives, tarragon, dill…)

oil

(soy sauce and grated daikon radish to serve)

Chop the herbs (if you use mitsuba, use also the stalks!).

In a wide bowl mix the eggs, add the stock, the salt, the soy sauce and the pepper, if using. Combine with the chopped herbs.

Heat a pan (keep in on medium heat) and grease is slightly using chopsticks and a piece of folded paper towel soaked in oil and brushing the surface with it.

To check if it’s hot enough Cooking with Dog’s chef advises pouring a small drop of egg mixture: if it sizzles, it means the pan is ready.

Pour a part of the omelette mixture (in case of my pan’s size 100 ml/about 3,5 fl oz was the ideal amount) onto the pan and move the pan so that the egg mixture covers the whole surface.

When it’s half-cooked, lift the pan from the heat and start rolling the omelette. I found that rolling in the direction towards me was easier.

Push the roll towards one side of the pan (the one with the handle is more practical).

Grease the pan once more, holding the soaked paper towel in chopsticks.

Pour once more the same amount of egg mixture. Spread it evenly, moving the pan.

Make sure it arrives under the rolled first part of the omelette (lift the roll slightly while spreading the mixture).

Fry it, destroying with your chopsticks the bubbles forming on the surface.

When this portion is almost cooked, lift the pan from the heat and roll the omelette, starting with the roll you have previously made.

Push it towards one side of the pan (preferably close to the handle), grease slightly the surface and repeat the whole process until you finish the egg mixture.

Make sure you are not left with a tiny amount of egg mixture! It’s better to make the last rolled layer too thick than too thin. If it’s too thin it will break or/and be overcooked.

Squash slightly the roll with a wide spatula, transfer it onto a chopping board.

Let it cool down slightly and cut into 4 equal pieces.

Serve cold or slightly warm (it is usually served cold).

Cooking with Dog show’s chef recommends serving it with grated daikon radish and a splash of soy sauce. I like it served still warm, with good buttered French bread (with crunchy crust), with a splash of soy sauce and, optionally, with some chili or chili paste.

Bread Tartlet with Egg and Asparagus

50 Comments

breadtartletaspp

All the asparagus fans will probably agree that a rare magic operates when an egg gets in contact with delicious green spears. Therefore, the successful outcome of this small experiment was neither a feat nor a surprise, but I was glad to learn another way to serve asparagus and to discover another perfect spring brunch: it is easy, quick, amusing and features the star of the season’s vegetables.

I love individual dishes, desserts and snacks, but bread tartlets are special also because they are one of the reasons why I appreciate soft, sliced toast bread (also called “sandwich bread”, but it is not my idea of a good sandwich…). I remember I saw this bread for the first time maybe only as a teenager. It appeared sliced, packed in plastic, had a suspiciously long life and was sold only in supermarkets, so I have always associated it with convenience – or even fast – food. Then, I slowly started to prefer it in certain snacks or dishes, such as bread tartlets, which for me give this super-soft bread a real raison d’être: no other bread I know is flexible enough to be easily rolled out, flattened and then shaped into an edible container. You can experiment with other types of bread of course, but it must be soft, dense (not with big wholes, like baguette for example) and elastic enough to be folded.

Until last week I had always prepared bread tartlets with ham and egg, the version I found years ago in “Si simple, si bon!” (So good, so simple) by Josée di Stasio. It was so simple and so good (the pun was unintended!), I have never felt the need to modify it. Now that I dared changing it, I somehow feel that this asparagus twist (which I have also tested with ham) announces a long list of experiments with other seasonal vegetables. (I actually already have several in mind…).

Josée di Stasio calls this tartlet a “ramekin”, but I thought the word “tartlet” was more appropriate (I think it could also be called a “bread basket”). She also recommends baking the tartlets in muffin moulds, but I usually prefer individual baking dishes (ramekins) which are wider, higher and make bigger baskets. Retrieving the tartlets from the ramekins may be delicate, but somehow even such a clumsy person like me has always succeeded, helping myself with a knife and then a spoon.

Here are some other suggestions for asparagus lovers:

Tama Konnyaku with Asparagus

Chawan Mushi (Egg Custard) with Asparagus

Asparagus with Chicken and Miso

Asparagus Tempura

Asparagus Teriyaki Pork Rolls

Asparagus with Cashew Nuts and Chicken

Asparagus Maki Sushi

TIP: If you don’t like crunchy asparagus, you can blanch it before making these tartlets. (I prefer it crunchy, so I never do this).

Special equipment: muffin moulds or individual round baking ramekins with approx. 8 cm/about 3 in diameter (if the bread slices are 10×10 cm/about 4×4 in, but if they are bigger, take bigger ramekins)

Preparation: 25-30 minutes

Ingredients (for one bread tartlet):

1 slice toast/sandwich bread

2 medium thick green asparagus spears (mine were about 1cm thick in the middle/a bit less than 1/2 in)

1 egg

butter

salt, pepper

(mustard)

(one or more ham slices)

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Roll out the bread thinly with a rolling pin.

Cut off the crust (it burns easily).

Spread butter on one side of the slice.

Butter the ramekin or the muffin mould.

Line the ramekin with the flattened slice (buttered side down) so that it forms a basket.

(Put some mustard at the bottom if you like to spice up the dish.)

(If you wish to add ham, line now the bread “basket” with a slice or slices of ham).

Cut off the hard bottom part of the asparagus spears (I usually cut off about 1/3).

Cut the rest into bite-sized pieces and place at the bottom of the bread tartlet, keeping one tip (you will put it on top after the egg for decoration).

Break one egg into the tartlet.

Place delicately the asparagus tip on top.

Put the tartlet into the oven and bake until the egg white is set (this depends to your preference: I prefer the runny yolk but the white must be completely set).

Take out of the baked tartlets (separating from the walls with a knife and then scooping out with a spoon should do the trick), season with salt and pepper, and serve hot with a green salad.

Chawan Mushi with Asparagus (Japanese Savoury Egg Custard with Asparagus)

50 Comments

chawanaspergesp

Chawan mushi is a perfect representative of these comforting, universally enjoyable dishes, which are hardly known in Europe and which surprise all those who still associate Japanese food with sushi and raw fish. For me it has all the qualities of a perfect dish: it is light and healthy, but filling; it is extremely versatile, both in terms of ingredients, as well as serving occasions, and, most of all, it tastes wonderful. It can be made in advance, then reheated or served cold and since it is prepared in individual containers, it also looks cute on the table. The only obligatory Asian ingredients here are sake and soy sauce, so I hope it’s accessible for home cooks all around the world. Accidentally, it’s perfect after short food indulgence periods, such as Easter.

Chawan Mushi (茶碗蒸し) was the first recipe I made from “The Japanese Cooking. A Simple Art” by Shizuo Tsuji, one of the best cookery books I have ever had and I have only slightly modified the amounts’ ratio. I have already written about this amazing dish almost a year ago, but here is a quick reminder. Chawan mushi, meaning “steamed in a tea cup”, is a light custardy mixture of seasoned stock (Japanese or Western) and eggs, to which different “fillings” are added. The traditional version includes a long list of ingredients (including ginko nuts!), but in my opinion this is a typical versatile dish that can easily be modified depending on one’s preferences, seasons or simply contents of one’s fridge.

My first chawan mushi was made with shrimp and green peas (see the recipe here), but I have already played with different meats, seafood, vegetables, mushrooms and the results were satisfactory every time. The ways to serve this custard are also endless: it’s perfect as a part of the main course, with rice and some Asian pickles, or Western way, with bread and a bowl of green salad dressed with vinaigrette. I find it excellent as a cold or warm starter, as an afternoon snack, as breakfast, as a picnic snack… Possibilities are endless.

Asparagus and egg are a well known successful pairing, so you will not be surprised if I say this is – at least now – my favourite version of chawan mushi. As a notorious carnivore I have added small pieces of chicken breast marinated in sake, but you can forget them and keep it strictly vegetarian. Shizuo Tsuji advises chicken stock if dashi is unavailable and, I will probably shock some Japanese cooks, but here, with bits of chicken I have definitely preferred chicken stock (I have tested both). (Of course vegetarians can use vegetable stock I guess).

If you don’t like asparagus, you might enjoy chawan mushi with shrimp and green peas:

TIPS: Even though chawan mushi is easier to prepare in a steamer, Shizuo Tsuji’s suggestion to use a water bath in the oven gives excellent results. Actually this is the way I prepare it because the steamer plate in my rice cooker is too low for my heatproof cups.

If you don’t have a nearby Japanese grocery shop, individual, but high heatproof cups may be difficult to get. I have found very good ones at IKEA (even though without lids), but as soon as I got hold of the beautiful Japanese chawan mushi cups you see above, I stopped using the old ones.

Mitsuba is the traditional herb served with Chawan Mushi (it is usually steamed on the top of the custard), but as you see I haven’t added it because my mistuba hasn’t even sprouted yet (check the lovely mitsuba decorated version on Nami’s blog (Just One Cookbook)). You can add any herbs on top, as long as they suit the ingredients, but frankly these custards were perfect without any herb.

Special equipment:

individual heatproof cups (at least 6 cm high, mine were 6,5 cm high,with a 7,5 cm diameter)

Preparation: 45 minutes

Ingredients (4 portions):

10 medium thick green asparagus (less than 1,5 cm thick in the thickest place) or double this amount if you want a vegetarian meal

2 small chicken breasts

1 tablespoon sake

salt

(mitsuba leaves)

Custard:

2 eggs

300 ml dashi (Japanese stock) or chicken stock

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sake or mirin (with mirin the custard will be slightly sweetish)

1 teaspoon soy sauce

Preheat the oven to 220°C (or prepare your steamer).

Cut up the chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces, combine with sake and sprinkle with a bit of salt.

Put aside.

Cut off the toughest part of the the asparagus stalks’ (I usually cut off 1/4 if I use the above-mentioned, medium thick asparagus).

Cut the rest into bite sized pieces.

Boil a lot of water and prepare a big baking dish at least as high as the heatproof cups.

Mix the eggs very delicately in a bowl. In another bowl combine the dashi (or chicken stock), salt (it depends on how salty your stock is), sake/mirin and soy sauce. Pour the stock mixture over the eggs and stir well, without beating.

Strain the chicken pieces. Divide them and asparagus equally into four heatproof cups.

Put mitsuba leaves on top (click here to see how Nami ties them in a cute traditional way).

Strain the custard mixture and pour into the garnished cups.

Cover the cups with aluminium foil or the lids if you have special cups with lids.

If you use the oven, place the cups in a big baking dish. Fill the dish with hot water (not boiling). The water should arrive up till 3/4 of the cups’ height.

Put the dish in the oven and let the custards bake for 30 minutes.

If you use a steamer, steam for about 20 minutes.

If you use herbs which do not support well the heat, sprinkle chawan mushi with them just before serving.

Serve hot or cold with bread/toast for breakfast, with a salad for a lunch, as a snack or as a starter.

You may serve it with soy sauce. Personally I think it is not necessary.

Even though the eggs’ mixture sets during the cooking process, the mushrooms or other vegetables might release juices, so think about putting a spoon on the table!

Fried Buckwheat Groats

45 Comments

friedbuckwheatpj

Fried rice is the most extraordinary leftover meal I can imagine. It’s easy, quick, versatile and it often tastes better than the meal for which the rice was previously cooked. I had been convinced that nothing could replace good white rice here until I tried buckwheat groats. This experimental, fusion version of this popular Asian dish was a revelation.

Buckwheat grains/groats (sometimes called “kasha”, the word which in reality refers to “groats” in general and not necessarily buckwheat groats) are dried, slightly triangular seeds of a plant (Fagopyrum genus) which is not a grass, nor a cereal, even though it looks like one and is not related to wheat. They are very rich in protein, contain minerals, antioxydants, iron and are gluten free, so they can be consumed by people who don’t tolerate it or try to reduce it. Apart from all these healthy sides, buckwheat grows very quickly and easily. That is why it can be cultivated in cold climate and crops can be easily multiplied in hot regions. Buckwheat grains, in their roasted form, are widely consumed in certain Eastern and Central European cuisines (such as Russian, Polish or Ukrainian). In Japan, India or France, often only buckwheat flour is known (although the grain form called “soba gome” is sometimes also eaten in Japan). If you have ever had soba noodles or French “galettes” (savoury crêpes), then you are familiar with buckwheat flour. Japan produces also soba shochu (alcohol distilled from buckwheat seeds).

I grew up eating buckwheat much more often than rice. It was usually served with meat in sauce (it absorbs sauces in a marvellous way) and even though I have never disliked it, I felt I could happily live without it (I have certainly never seen it as wonder food, the way in which it is made popular now by nutritionists in many countries). Taste buds change with age and the older I get, the more often I crave buckwheat’s nutty, strong fragrance and its curious, partly crunchy, partly soft texture. I eat only roasted, light brown buckwheat groats and would strongly advise everyone to try this version first, because the roasting process gives them a unique nutty aroma and a slightly bitter – but pleasant – taste (see the TIPS).

Unlike white rice I always use, buckwheat groats are not overwhelmed by bold-tasting products, such as garlic, chili or smoked meat, and are absolutely irresistible with miso. The choice of ingredients in this dish was mainly dictated by the content of my fridge (just like it happens when I prepare fried rice), so feel free to put any meat, vegetables or spices you prefer. I have opted for a miso and garlic sauce, but a simple addition of soy sauce would work great here too. The below recipe should be treated only as an example of what can be added to fried buckwheat which is certainly a pleasant change for those who eat rice on a daily basis.

TIPS: In many countries, where buckwheat is not traditionally consumed (such as France or Switzerland) buckwheat grains are sold in health/organic shops often only in a “raw” dried form in which they have a pale greenish colour and bland taste. For me (and several buckwheat fans I know) such buckwheat is simply inedible (especially when you know how marvellous it becomes once roasted). To tell you the truth, the only time I bought such pale buckwheat groats, they ended up in the bin because I couldn’t force myself to eat them. You can apparently roast them on your own in a pan (I have never tried it though), but the best idea is to look for the brown, roasted groats sometimes also sold in organic shops and practically always available in Russian and Polish grocery shops.

If you don’t have miso, you can simply omit it. It is far from being obligatory.

Preparation: 20 minutes + about 40 minutes (buckwheat cooking time)

Ingredients (serves one):

80 g (about 1/2 cup) roasted buckwheat groats + 250 ml water + 1/2 teaspoon salt or 250 ml/1 cup leftover cooked buckwheat groats

1 small courgette

2 thick slices of smoked bacon or other smoked meat (I have used smoked pork loin)

1/2 small onion

1 chili pepper

1 egg

Garlic miso sauce:

1 flat tablespoon miso

1 garlic clove (grated or crushed)

1 teaspoon sake

1 tablespoon soy sauce

chili oil

sesame seeds

Cook the buckwheat:

Pour the water into a pan. Bring it to the boil, add the salt.

Throw the buckwheat grains into the pan, give them a stir and let them cook partially covered at medium heat for about ten minutes.

Lower the heat and let it simmer, this time completely covered, for about 5 more minutes.

Put the pan aside, leaving the cover on and leave the buckwheat for 15 minutes in a warm place.

Cooked buckwheat can be kept in a closed container in the fridge for several days and reheated in a microwave.

Combine the sauce ingredients.

Slice the onion and the chili pepper.

Cut the bacon and the courgette into bite-sized pieces.

Fry the onion in a heated pan with oil.

After 3-4 minutes add the chili pepper.

Fry it on medium heat for one minute.

Add the bacon and the courgette to the pan.

After 5 minutes, add the buckwheat and the miso sauce.

Stir-fry until the buckwheat is well heated.

In the meantime fry an egg in another pan.

Serve the fried buckwheat with a fried egg on top. I loved it with coriander leaves, toasted sesame seeds and a splash of chili oil.

Shiso and Bacon Fried Rice

37 Comments

baconshisoricep

This is not ordinary fried rice, but a delightful example of the Japanese excellence in simplicity. Few humble ingredients, quick and easy preparation, subtle seasoning and a sensational result. Even though I have prepared it at least a dozen times this summer, each time I take a first bite I am astounded by the flavours’ complexity and perfect choice of ingredients. I have found this wonderful recipe on Humble Bean blog, a source of refined, but unpretentious Japanese dishes, where I have also discovered the unequaled Tomato and Shiso Salad, my staple during the whole tomato season. Thank you, Azusa, for another extraordinary shiso dish idea.

Shiso (紫蘇) or perilla is a herb widely used in both Korean and Japanese cuisines. I am addicted to its herbaceous, slightly bitter flavour and its strong aroma and apart from the above mentioned salad, you might have seen here some other delicious ways to use it. I know some of you either don’t know shiso or have difficulties in finding it, or both. For those who don’t have nearby Japanese or Korean grocers, I have good news: shiso can also be found in Vietnamese shops (the one I buy is imported from Thailand). Those who cannot find a Vietnamese grocer either, can prepare this simple, but surprisingly flavourful meal using any other herb which supports well warm dishes and which is strong enough to face the powerful scent and flavour of smoked bacon. I haven’t tried it yet, but I have some replacement ideas if anyone is interested.

I have modified the original recipe, stripping this dish of the scrambled egg (after numerous meals, I realised I preferred it either “pure” or with a fried egg on top with a runny yolk) and slightly modifying the proportions. Click here to see Azusa’s exact recipe.

Talking about bacon… I wanted to share with you something I never get tired of (and believe me, I have watched it more than once), with a special dedication to all the bacon fans:

Now you know one of my biggest secrets: Ron Swanson is my idol and role model.

TIPS: One day old rice gives here the best results (or even two days’ old according to Azusa), but definitely not freshly cooked rice. If you don’t have one day old rice, cook eat several hours beforehand, leave it to cool down and refrigerate for at least one-two hours.

Very cold rice might be difficult to break into grains, so I always microwave it just before adding to the wok. Warm rice is easier to incorporate.

Azusa says this dish is particularly good with brown rice. Since I’m not a big fan of it, I haven’t tried this version yet, but if you like brown rice, it’s worth remembering.

Preparation: 15-20 minutes

Ingredients (serves one):

150 g (about 4 oz) cooked rice (the best one is leftover from the day before, but it has to be at least cooked several hours beforehand and refrigerated)

1/2 small onion

2 thin strips of smoked bacon

5 big shiso leaves

1/3 teaspoon finely chopped fresh ginger

1 teaspoon sake

1 teaspoon soy sauce (or more if using low-salt soy sauce)

freshly ground pepper

1 teaspoon sesame oil (to add at the end)

(salt)

(1 egg)

Cut up the bacon into bite-sized pieces.

Fry it until crispy.

Put aside on paper towels.

Slice the onion and fry it with ginger until the onion softens.

Warm the rice in a microwave (it will help to separate the grains).

Add the rice to the onion and stir-fry, separating the grains for about 30 seconds.

Add the bacon, the sake, the soy sauce and stir-fry until everything is hot.

(If the bacon is not very salty, you might need to add salt. Do not exaggerate with soy sauce, which might destroy the balance of flavours).

Finally add the shiso cut into thin strips, sprinkle with ground pepper, pour some sesame oil, stir well everything until shiso warms up and serve.

You can fry an egg and serve it on top or incorporate it in the middle of frying process (see Azusa’s instructions).

Egg, Pepper and Anchovy Salad

34 Comments

egganchovysaladp

I promised myself to use my kitchen library more often. I did it when I started to mark with red stickers all the spines of the books I have never cooked from. I was appalled by the result and decided to act immediately, especially since another two recently ordered items were on their way… I love reading cookery books, leafing through them (even those which don’t have illustrations), dreaming with them (those without photos are excellent here), but somehow rarely open them in my kitchen.

The other day, desperate to use up a couple of dying, wilted red peppers I forced myself to keep away from the computer and turn to my book shelves instead. I remembered vaguely something interesting in a Spanish cookery book I haven’t opened for ages and I was right. A cute little book called simply Cocina Española (a Spanish edition of “Spanish” by Parragon books, no author), brought by my friend as a gift from Spain, proved to contain a salad I was able to prepare without even going out shopping. I couldn’t ask more for lunch on a hot sunny day: the salad was quick, easy, comforting and incredibly Mediterranean. In short the epitome of a casual Spanish dish.

This salad (not the first recipe from this concise but surprisingly practical book) not only convinced me that I should cook Spanish more often, but most of all, proved once more that my cooking library if full of treasures I should profit from. It has also reminded me how much I adore anchovies and how delightful they are paired with eggs. Accidentally, it’s the first Spanish recipe I have posted on my blog and I was very glad to add a new “country” category.

I have slightly adapted the original recipe to make it a dish for one. I have also changed the proportions and replaced black olives with vinegared capers to add a fresh, acid accent. (I’m sorry for the messy presentation, but I was really hungry!).

Preparation: 30 minutes

Ingredients (serves one as the main course or two as a starter):

2 hard boiled eggs

2 big sweet red peppers (long or bell peppers)

6 -8 canned anchovy fillets (drained)

3 tablespoons drained capers (I used vinegared capers) or 6- 8 black olives

Sauce:

1 tablespoon jerez (sherry) vinegar

1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil

salt, pepper

Combine the olive oil, the vinegar, season with salt and pepper.

Cut the peppers in two and place, skin side up, under the oven grill or keep them over the flame until the skin becomes black.

Put them into a plastic bag, close it and wait until they cool down.

Peel them with your fingers, remove the seeds and white parts.

Wash the peppers and slice them.

Cut the eggs into quarters.

Put all the salad ingredients in a bowl.

Pour the sauce over them and serve with bread.

Lecsó (Hungarian Pepper Stew)

41 Comments

lecsop

This week something unusual has happened. I prepared a dish posted by a blogger a long time ago only to see the same person post one of my recipes two days afterwards. I talk of course about Zsuzsa (Zsuzsa is in the kitchen) who has made a real piece of art (see it here) out of my Poppy Seed and Chocolate Cake recipe and moreover called her post “Birthday Cake for Sissi”. (I felt as if it was my second birthday this year…). Zsuzsa had no idea that two days before I had prepared the famous Hungarian pepper stew (lecsó), following her recipe. I haven’t told her of course because I wanted to make a small surprise, so here it is: Zsuzsa’s extraordinary, genuine Hungarian lecsó.

Of course this is another dish I prepared using the peppers brought by my friend from Hungary (I have used some of them in Hungarian Stuffed Peppers) and I hope this “detail” made my lecsó even more Hungarian. In case you have never heard about it, lecsó (pronounced letcho) is a big Hungarian classic. Just like stuffed pepper it calls for long light yellow sweet peppers with thin skin. Lecsó is usually served either with sausage (according to my Hungarian friend the best ones are the smoked, but not dried sausages, such as Hungarian, Polish or German) or with beaten eggs which are incorporated into the lecsó at the end. It is also often cooked together with rice, but I wanted to have it with some crunchy baguette and fried sausage, so I have skipped the rice. Lecsó can also be an excellent side dish served with meat or fish.

I haven’t really modified Zsuzsa’s recipe, but slightly changed the amounts. I found it simply perfect, especially the addition of garlic which doesn’t always figure in other Hungarian recipes. This lecsó is light and low-fat (just like Stuffed Peppers) and proves that Hungarian cuisine doesn’t have to be heavy and greasy (I know some people think this). Make sure you cook more than you think you’ll eat because the smell and the taste are so irresistible, second helpings have absolutely to be included in your estimates. Thank you, Zsuzsa, for this amazing recipe.

TIPS: Zsuzsa doesn’t peel the tomatoes and I couldn’t decide whether I should peel them or not (I usually do when cooking tomatoes). Finally I peeled half of the tomatoes, but next time I will not peel them at all. The skin adds more flavour. I know that some people have problems with tomatoes skin, so if you are one of these, peel all the tomatoes.

If you want your lecsó hot, add some hot chili powder (see below). Otherwise you can use only sweet paprika.

Preparation: around 1 hour

Ingredients (serves 2, with second or third helpings):

6 medium tomatoes

6 long yellow peppers

2 long red peppers

4 tablespoons oil (I used duck fat instead)

1 onion

4 garlic cloves

3 tablespoon sweet paprika (I have put 1 tablespoon hot paprika and 2 tablespoons sweet paprika)

salt, pepper

(300-400g smoked sausages (sliced) or 4 beaten eggs)

Peel the garlic and chop it finely.

(If you want to peel the tomatoes, put them in boiling water for a minute. Take them out with a slotted spoon and put into cold water. Peel them.) Chop the tomatoes roughly.

Core the peppers, remove the stalks and cut them into slices.

Chop the onion and fry it in fat until soft and translucent.

Remove from the heat, add the remaining ingredients.

Simmer covered until the peppers are soft, checking if you need to add more water.

If you want to serve it with sausages, I strongly advise frying or grilling them before. Then slicing them. It gives much more taste to the lecsó. Add the sausage slices, cook for 10 more minutes and serve.

If you want to serve it with eggs, beat the eggs in a bowl and simply pour them into the pan with lecsó, stir a bit and serve when the eggs are set.

Chawan Mushi (茶碗蒸し), or Egg Custard with Shrimp and Peas

60 Comments

Beautiful, uncomplicated, healthy, nourishing and luscious. Most of you will not be surprised if I add it is a Japanese dish I’m talking about. On the other hand, those who associate Japanese cuisine with sushi, seaweed and miso soup, would certainly be in awe if they tasted Chawan Mushi, one of the most universally enjoyable Japanese dishes.

Chawan Mushi (茶碗蒸し) was the first recipe I made from “The Japanese Cooking. A Simple Art” by Shizuo Tsuji. I was offered it a year and half ago, but I still consider this as the most extraordinary cookery book in my life (actually, apart from testing more than a dozen recipes I have read this book at least three times!). As soon as I prepared my first Chawan Mushi, I posted it, but when, later, I saw the gorgeous Chawan Mushi on Nami’s blog (Just One Cookbook), I felt really ashamed and quickly deleted my hideous photo together with the text. I have completely forgotten to repost it, even though I prepared this dish regularly. Yesterday, I finally felt brave enough to take new shots and even though it might not be the best-looking Chawan Mushi, I decided to present you once more this extraordinary dish.

Chawan Mushi belongs to the mushimono (蒸し物), or steamed Japanese dishes family, and could be described as a seasoned stock and egg mixture combined with different ingredients. It is served hot or cold depending on the weather and preferences. The most popular version seems to include, among others, shrimp and mushrooms, but Shizuo Tsuji affirms that the savoury egg custard basis is the only obligatory part of this dish and modifications are more than welcome. I have already made Chawan Mushi with different ingredients and it was excellent every single time because the basic mixture is quite versatile. It can also be served practically at any time of the day: for breakfast, with a green salad for a light lunch, as a starter or as a light, but nourishing snack. Since sweet peas start to appear on the markets, I thought they would look nice in the yellow custard, combined with shrimp. In fact, not only did they look nice, but, most of all, they this Chawan Mushi tasted great served both hot and cold.

TIPS: Even though Chawan Mushi is easier to prepare in a steamer, Shizuo Tsuji’s suggestion to use a water bath in the oven gives excellent results. Actually this is the way I prepare it because my steamer is too low for my heatproof cups.

If you don’t have a nearby Japanese grocery shop, individual, but high heatproof cups may be difficult to get. I have found very good ones at IKEA (even though without lids).

Mitsuba is the traditional herb served with Chawan Mushi (it is usually steamed on the top of the custard), but you can add any herb of your choice, but if you’re not sure how it will taste baked, sprinkle the dish with it just before serving. (Chives are a very good option).

Special equipment:

individual heatproof cups (at least 6 cm high, mine were 6,5 cm high,with a 7,5 cm diameter)

Preparation: 45 minutes

Ingredients (4 portions):

15 medium shrimp (deveined, shelled and boiled)

200 g green peas (fresh or frozen), blanched

mitsuba leaves or another herb of your choice, such as chives

Custard:

2 eggs

300 ml dashi (Japanese stock) or chicken stock

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon mirin

1 teaspoon soy sauce

Preheat the oven to 220°C (or prepare your steamer).

Divide the shrimp and the green peas equally into five heatproof cups.

Put mitsuba leaves on top (click here to see how Nami ties them in a cute traditional way).

Boil a lot of water and prepare a big baking dish at least as high as the heatproof cups.

Mix the eggs very delicately in a bowl. In another bowl combine the dashi (or chicken stock), salt, mirin and soy sauce. Pour the stock mixture over the eggs and stir well, without beating. Strain it and pour into the garnished cups. Cover the cups with aluminium foil or the lids if you have special cups with lids.

Place the cups in a big baking dish. Fill the dish with hot water (not boiling). The water should arrive up till 3/4 of the cups’ height.

Put the dish in the oven and let the custards bake for 30 minutes.

If you use a steamer, steam for about 20 minutes.

If you use chives, sprinkle chawan mushi with them just before serving.

Serve hot or cold with bread/toast for breakfast, with a salad for a lunch, as a snack or as a starter.

You may serve it with soy sauce to pour over the custard. Personally I think it is not necessary.

Even though the eggs’ mixture sets during the cooking process, the mushrooms or other vegetables might release juices, so think about putting a spoon on the table!

Egg Croquettes (Tamago no Korokke)

44 Comments

I love eggs and have always considered myself an exceptionally big egg consumer until I read that the Japanese eat more than 300 eggs per person a year. Nowadays everyone agrees that an egg a day is perfectly safe (for healthy people of course), but when eggs were on a nutritional black list in Western countries, this Japanese preference, paired with national low cholesterol levels must have seemed mysterious for our health specialists. I have recently realised that many of my blogging friends share my love for eggs (a special mention here for Hiroyuki’s neverending list of delightful egg recipes which could fill a whole cookery book!). I have bookmarked many recipes and intend to prepare them in the near future, but in the meantime they made me long for a dish I loved as a child, namely Egg Croquettes.

Egg Croquettes are an easy, comforting, home dish everyone seems to enjoy. They call for only three ingredients and are one of these dishes you can make when you think there is practically nothing left in the fridge. I have always used to serve them with a refreshing well-vinegared salad and some bread. This time, maybe keeping in mind the Japanese love for eggs I had them with a bowl of rice and it turned out to be an excellent option too. They make a perfect lunch, dinner, brunch or big breakfast and I am sure they would be an excellent picnic snack and why not a bento box item?

Actually I have “Japanised” these croquettes even more. They are usually shallow-fried, but since deep-frying is not only much quicker, but also less fat-absorbing, I decided to deep-fry them just like I proceed with the famous Japanese korokke (Potato and Meat Croquettes). They turned out better than all my previous egg croquettes and I will never go back to the traditional method. I have also found that Japanese panko crumbs created a crunchier, less soggy crust. Of course, if you prefer however shallow frying and standard breadcrumbs, I guarantee that such traditional croquettes will be excellent too.

Egg croquettes don’t require any sauce, but I have accidentally discovered that they are simply irresistible served with mayonnaise and Thick and Crunchy Japanese Sauce (Taberu Rayu). With all these Japanese touches I decided even to give it a Japanese name. I hope my Japanese friends will not scold me for this.

In case you are also a big egg fan, here are some recipes with eggs playing an important or main role:

-Spring Salad with a Fried Egg

-Smoked Mackerel and Egg Spread

-Tanindon (Rice Bowl with Eggs and Pork)

-Mixed Salad with a Fried Egg

-Bread Baskets with Eggs

-Oyakodon (Rice Bowl with Eggs and Chicken)

TIP: Even though it takes one more hour, I found out that refrigeration makes the forming process much easier: cold ingredients are simply stickier.

Preparation: 1 hour (or two, if you choose to refrigerate the egg mixture)

Ingredients (serves 2-3):

6 hard-boiled eggs

1 raw egg

4-5 tablespoons breadcrumbs (or more)

salt, pepper

5-6 tablespoons chopped chives or spring onions

breadcrumbs for coating (several tablespoons)

oil for shallow- or deep-frying

Chop the eggs as finely as you can (you can mix two of the eggs in a food processor to make the texture creamier, but not all of them!).

Combine them with the raw egg, the chopped chives or spring onion and season with salt and pepper.

Add gradually breadcrumbs until the mixture can be formed into balls (it depends on the egg size, the breadcrumbs, the chopping etc.).

(Putting the mixture into the fridge for one hour will make the forming process easier but you can start doing it straight away).

Preheat the oil in a pan.

Squeezing tightly the egg mixture, form balls and flatten them to round or oval patties (5 cm/2 in. diameter).

Coat them in breadcrumbs and shallow- or deep-fry.

If you deep-fry, my test for the right temperature is throwing some breadcrumbs into the pan. If they don’t fall down, but bubble and fry immediately, then the temperature is high enough.

Deep-frying will take only about one or two minutes. Shallow frying will take much longer (at least 15 minutes).

Put the croquettes on paper towels to remove excess oil and serve them either with bread or with rice.

Spring Salad with a Fried Egg, or Salade Composée Printanière

43 Comments

I meant to post a completely different recipe today, but when I prepared this salad for yesterday’s lunch, I liked so much its spring look, colours and character, I decided to write about it instead. “Salade composée”, or mixed salad, is a dish I discovered in cheap small French restaurants, where it’s usually served for lunch. It is served in big bowls filled with green salad leaves, other raw vegetables and some proteins (usually a fried egg and for example a slice of ham). As soon as the weather starts warming, this kind of salad is one of my favourite quick lunch ideas. Last September I wrote about the salad I prepare most often (with tomatoes and smoked pork loin, click here to see the recipe), but the ingredients change quite depending on the season and on what I have in the fridge. Only the “bed” of green leaves and the fried egg are the obligatory items. (When you break the yolk and taste a salad leaf coated in the stupendous mixture of vinaigrette and egg yolk, you will understand why I never skip the egg).

Even though I made it with what I found in the fridge, this salad was mainly composed of seasonal produce: cucumber, radishes, avocado, a fabulous, spring, crisp, reddish lettuce called “rougette” and, last but not least, several rocket leaves straight from my balcony. Moreover, the egg, as well as the cooked ham come from happy, free-range animals (well, the pig was happy only until a certain point…). In short, it might look like an ordinary salad, but for me it represents the perfect high-quality, healthy spring meal. Served with several slices of good baguette, it’s a light, but complete and definitely nourishing dish. If only I could control my food cravings and have such a wise dish daily…

Preparation: 15 minutes

Ingredients (serves one):

green salad leaves (5 big or ten smaller)

5 cm (2 inch) cucumber piece

7 big radishes

1/2 avocado

1 slice of cooked ham

1 egg (or two if you feel very hungry!)

Vinaigrette with mustard:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 heaped teaspoon mustard

3 tablespoons vinegar of your choice

salt and pepper

Take a big bowl (for example with 20 cm (8 inch) diameter).

Tear the bigger salad leaves, cut the cucumber into matchstick or other small pieces, slice the radishes.

Cut the avocado into pieces.

Cut the ham or tear it (this is what I prefer to do if the slices are thin).

Arrange the salad, the cucumber, the avocado and the ham in the bowl.

Prepare the salad dressing and pour it over the salad.

Heat a pan and fry an egg.

Put the egg on the top of the salad, sprinkle some salt and pepper over it and serve.

Smoked Mackerel and Egg Spread

59 Comments

When about two weeks ago Charles (Five Euro Food) posted the famous Kedgeree recipe, using smoked mackerel, I was very glad to discover a new way to prepare this delicious fish. In fact, even though I love smoked mackerel, I have been preparing it for many years in only one way. I promised Charles I would write about it, so here it is!

The addictive mackerel and egg spread you see above comes from Poland, where smoked Atlantic mackerel is very popular and often ends up prepared this way. The spread is very quick to prepare and makes a wonderful everyday sandwich filler (it keeps for several days in the fridge), but I also find it perfect as a canapé topping. Maybe it is due to the big egg content, but somehow I thought it could be a nice idea of an Easter snack.

This spread goes well with all types of bread (even the “diet” crunchy one), but the canapés you see above were a real hit. I made them with a recent find: tiny round slices of my beloved German pumpernickel bread. If you can find this bread, I strongly recommend it not only with this spread, but with any pickled or smoked fish.

TIP: If you cannot find smoked Atlantic mackerel, you can substitute it with another smoked fish, but choose the one which has very delicate, flaky flesh (smoked salmon is not a good substitute here).

Preparation: 10 minutes

Ingredients (makes about 300 ml):

150 g smoked Atlantic mackerel without skin or bones (I also discard the darkest flesh parts, because they tend to taste bitter)

2 hard-boiled eggs

1 big pickled cucumber (fermented in salted brine or pickled in vinegar, both are ok)

1/2 medium white or yellow onion (the red one I used looked better but was somewhat not strong enough here)

salt, pepper

2 – 3 heaped tablespoons mayonnaise

(chives to decorate)

Shred the fish with your fingers, discarding all the small bones and put it in a big bowl.

Chop the cucumber as finely as you can.

Chop finely the onion and the hard boiled eggs.

Combine all the ingredients with the shredded mackerel, add the mayonnaise, season with salt and pepper.

Mix everything with a fork. Taste, add some more salt and pepper if necessary (you may also want to add more onion or cucumbers depending on your preferences).

Serve cold.

Tanindon (他人丼) or Tanin Donburi with Ginger

38 Comments

Some of you certainly know (and others maybe remember from my previous post) Oyakodon, a delicious Japanese rice bowl with chicken fried with eggs and onion. Oyakodon (親子丼) or Oyako Donburi (meaning parent and child – i.e. chicken meat and egg – bowl) is the most famous variation of donburi dishes (rice bowl with a topping) and one of the most frequent meals I prepare. In fact, since I made it for the first time it has been on my table for every single Sunday brunch.

When I published Oyakodon recipe, Hiroyuki (from Hiroyuki’s Blog on Japanese Cooking) has drawn my attention to a less famous tanindon (他人丼), “stranger bowl”, prepared more or less like oyakodon, but with beef or pork instead of chicken. Both oyakodon and tanindon are traditionally served with mistuba leaves and when about two weeks ago, I saw a small mitsuba sprig still growing on my balcony I thought it was probably the last chance this year to make tanindon with mitsuba leaves.

I have followed the Oyakodon recipe, choosing pork of which I am very fond of. I have sliced it very thinly and marinated in ginger and sake. Tanindon proved an very flavoursome oyakodon alternative, with a stronger and livelier taste, but still keeping the same comforting dish character. Even though oyakodon will always have a special place in my heart, the pork version of this donburi, or rice bowl, has also become a staple. Thank you, Hiroyuki, for giving me this wonderful idea!

I usually prepare it with freshly cooked rice and freshly fried meat, but both oyakodon and tanindon are excellent ways to use up leftovers.

TIP: The egg(s) shouldn’t be mixed like when you make scrambled eggs. It should be delicately stirred and the best tool here is a chopstick. You should obtain an egg white with “ribbons” of yolk.

Before I pass to the recipe I would like to express my gratitude to Barbara from Profiteroles and Ponytails for giving me the Versatile Blogger Award. Thank you, Barbara! I am very proud and flattered by this distinction. The Award consists in revealing some personal facts and giving the award to other bloggers, but since someone has kindly passed me this award not a long time ago, I hope Barbara will not mind if I simply link to the related post (click here).

Preparation: 25 minutes

Ingredients (serves one):

a portion of freshly cooked rice

50 g pork, thinly sliced and cut into 1 cm strips

salt

pepper

1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

1 tablespoon sake

1 small shallot or spring onion, thinly sliced

1- 2 eggs, slightly stirred (see the TIP above)

Sauce:

50 ml dashi (Japanese stock)

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon mirin

1 tablespoon sake

sprigs of mitsuba

Season the pork slightly with salt and pepper, add sake, ginger and let it stand for about 10 minutes.

Fry it or deep-fry it and when it’s almost done, put it aside.

Fry the onions in the same pan and add all the sauce ingredients (previously combined together).

Lower the heat and bring it to boil.

Add the pork and cook together until it is done (do not overcook).

(Here, if you judge the sauce amount is too big, discard some of the sauce. Using the above amounts of liquids I have never felt like discarding it).

Pour the egg over the sauce with pork and, without mixing, wait until it is cooked. (I don’t like runny eggs, so they are always well cooked, but the consistency depends on personal preferences).

Put some hot rice into a bowl and transfer the egg and pork topping onto the rice.

Garnish with mitsuba sprigs.

Layered Herring Salad

48 Comments

I have been meaning to post this recipe a long time ago, but no matter what I did this dish always looked unappetising. Finally I started to think it was a part of its charm, visible only to an adventurous gourmet’s or a herring fan’s eyes. My cousin had discovered it at a party where this salad was the only item no one wanted to touch. As a daring gourmet, she took a generous portion, urged by the hostess, who told her that as soon as one of the skeptical guests tasted it, it would disappear in no time at all. She was right and I’m happy my cousin asked for the recipe. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have discovered the most irresistible herring salad which has been my favourite for almost ten years. If you like herring, you will find yourself unable to stop eating it. If you are a beetroot hater, you must absolutely taste it anyway (I know people who hate beetroot but love this salad). If you are Mr. Three-Cookies (from the Three-Cookies blog), I bet you will adore it! (For those who don’t know the Three-Cookies blog, its author is a big herring – and of course cookies – connoisseur and if I eat more of this fish this year, it’s certainly thanks to his inventive and frequent herring dishes.)

This complete-meal salad calls for soused herring (thank you Charles), labeled “matjes”/”maatjes”/”matjas” and sometimes simply “herring in oil”. Since apparently matjes can in some countries mean herring without oil (thank you, Mr. Three-Cookies), I thought the best advice would be to say the herring used here shouldn’t be very sour. All the ingredients are perfect paired with herrings and the layering isn’t only for decoration. The order of layers is not accidental either. Onions must absolutely touch the herring, since their flavours merge when you put the salad in the fridge (several hours are obligatory!). Potatoes have a neutral taste, so they don’t disrupt the onion and herring combination. Eggs come just under the mayonnaise (how could I possible separate eggs from mayonnaise?) and the beetroot brings a nice, sweetish, refreshing touch in the middle.

I will be honest: the more mayonnaise you put on top, the better the salad will be. On the other hand, if you want to make this lighter, you can mix the mayonnaise with some yogurt or sour cream, but the taste will be slightly “thinner”. The ingredients’ amounts are totally up to you, as long as no layer is skipped. The original recipe calls for grated eggs, but I have discovered chopping them finely creates the same taste result, so I stopped the arduous process of egg grating.

I would have almost forgotten to mention this salad is an excellent hangover soother.

If you have difficulties with finding pickled herring, look for Russian or Polish grocers. They will certainly carry both vinegared and “matjes” herrings.

If you look for an easier, but delicious herring salad, try my Herring and Potato Salad.

Preparation: 1 hour + at least 5 hours in the fridge (but it’s best left overnight)

Ingredients (serves 4 or 6 as a main dish):

250 g drained “matjes” (soused) herring

2 medium onions

4 big potatoes

2 big beetroots

4 – 5 eggs

10 heaped tablespoons mayonnaise (or more), or a mixture of mayonnaise + sour cream/yogurt (don’t use low-fat yogurt)

salt

pepper

Cook the potatoes, the beetroots and the eggs.

Let them cool down.

Cut the herring into bite-sized pieces and place at the bottom of a big salad dish.

Chop the onion and sprinkle over the herring.

Peel the potatoes and grate them over the onions.

Season generously with salt and pepper.

Peel the beetroots and grate them over the potatoes.

Chop the eggs finely and sprinkle over the beetroot layer.

Season with salt and pepper and cover with mayonnaise.

Cover the bowl with cling film and put into the fridge for at least 5 hours, but the best results are after a night in the fridge.

Mixed Salad with a Fried Egg, or Salade composée

34 Comments

This is one of the dishes I have been preparing for ages and would have never thought of posting about if it hadn’t been for the fact that not a single one of my friends or family members makes it. A couple of days ago the Tandoori-Style Salad on Baking Devils’s blog has reminded me I have been planning this post for some time and that warm September days are probably still a good period to write about a nourishing, but light salad.

“Salade composée” (mixed salad) is not something you will find in standard French cookery books. You also have slim chances of being served it in a French house and in most French restaurants. I first tasted it when a friend took me for lunch in Paris announcing we would go to a very cheap restaurant serving most extraordinary salads. The restaurant was cheap indeed, it served only salads (all based on lettuce), each of them looked very exotic to me for one reason: they all had a fried egg or/and other warm ingredients served on top and were really huge. Since then I have noticed only some cheap, quick, small restaurants serve this kind of salads and you don’t find them in every French city. The only exception is Lyon. “Salade lyonnaise” is very similar (it contains bacon, green leaves, croûtons and poached eggs), but I have already seen it served there with boiled eggs or without eggs.

One day I decided to prepare my own “salade composée” and since then I have prepared hundreds of them, every time different, but every time with two permanent items: lettuce (or other green leaves) and a fried egg. It is healthy, quick, easy and could be called “put-whatever-you-want” salad (but, please, don’t skip the fried egg!). Technically this salad is great fun to eat. First, you serve it in a big bowl, which usually contains the green salad for the whole family. Secondly, everyone has his or her own method and order of eating it. Some start by combining everything with the dressing, others leave the fried egg for the end and have it soaked in the dressing. When served for the first time, people always wonder where to start, which is quite amusing to observe. I always eat a bit of the salad and then break the liquid egg yolk, so that it blends with the salad ingredients and the vinaigrette sauce…

This salad is great for a weekend brunch, lunch and dinner. Apart from the fried egg I also like putting some other warm ingredients, like grilled bacon/sirloin/chorizo or cheese cubes. If you are vegetarian, skip the ham/bacon and put some cheese or tofu for extra proteins (check the Tandoori marinated tofu on Baking Devils, it really sounds amazing). It can be served simply with good bread, but goat cheese toasts are perfect too.

Preparation: 15 minutes

Ingredients (serves one):

5 – 7 iceberg or other salad leaves

1 big tomato (I used 5 mini San Marzano tomatoes)

several cucumber slices

1 big slice of ham/grilled sirloin or bacon or any other cold meat (I used smoked and grilled sirloin)

1 egg (or two if you feel very hungry!)

Vinaigrette with mustard:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 heaped teaspoon mustard

3 tablespoons vinegar of your choice (balsamico tastes great here, but I often use rice vinegar)

(chopped chives or other herbs)

salt and pepper

Take a big bowl (for example with 20 cm diameter).

Tear the salad leaves, cut the tomato into pieces, slice the cucumber.

Cut the ham or sirloin into bite-sized pieces.

Arrange the salad, the tomato, the cucumber and the ham in the bowl.

Prepare the salad dressing and pour it over the salad.

Heat a pan and fry an egg.

Put the egg on the top of the salad, sprinkle some salt and pepper over it and, if you have, chopped herbs.

Serve with bread or toast.

Udon Soup, or Kake Udon かけうどん in a Ramen Disguise

21 Comments

What you see above is my very first udon soup and the unorthodox toppings have only one explanation: I wanted to prepare a ramen soup*. I have been planning it for months, but when I discovered I had a choice between three different broth types, I was unable to take a decision. Hot Summer days were not very motivating either. I kept on reading attentively Hiroyuki’s Blog on Japanese Cooking, his instructions, recipes, testing his patience with endless questions and discussions… Then, I also searched Nami’s blog (Just One Cookbook) for all her Japanese soup recipes, asked her some more questions, received precious advice and… still hesitated. Thank you both for your patience!

Finally, when it started to rain and the temperature fell, I felt ready for my first ramen, but I realised I only had thicker and slightly chewy udon noodles. Then I remembered the questions Charles (from Five Euro Food) asked on my blog about a good noodle broth recipe and Hiroyuki’s answer (see both here) and decided to switched to kake udon idea (かけうどん), in other words, udon soup made with kakejiru broth (meaning “soup for pouring on”).

Even though in some source (such as Shizuo Tsuji’s “Japanese Cooking“) kakejiru contains salt and sugar, I sticked to the broth recipe given by Hiroyuki, slightly modifying his ingredients ratio (12:1:1). Since I use only low-sodium soy sauce, I doubled it and I must say it was not too salty at all. Finally, I ended up with 25:5:2 ratio for, respectively, (home-made) dashi, soy sauce and mirin and found this broth particularly good and versatile enough to withstand the strong taste of the pork marinated in ginger and garlic. Thank you, Hiroyuki, once more for all your patient and detailed advice!

IMPORTANT UPDATE: Having exchanged several messages with Hiroyuki, I have decided to add something important: if you use instant dashi (containing sodium), stick to Hiroyuki’s original 12:1:1 ratio and adjust the taste afterwards. I was able to add so much soy sauce and created 25:5:5 ratio only because home-made dashi is not salty and because I use low-sodium soy sauce.

The kake udon photos I have seen didn’t feature as many toppings and I admit the garnish was chosen rather to match my original ramen idea. However, I was right to dare it since the soup taste was simply fabulous. Looking at my photo I think I should still work on an efficient method to cut neatly a medium-cooked egg in two… It’s not as easy as I thought!

*Ramen is a nourishing wheat flour noodle soup with different toppings, served in a big bowl and adored by most Westerners, for example my husband.

Preparation: 30 minutes

Ingredients (makes one big bowl):

Broth (kakijuru):

250 ml home-made dashi (I have posted the recipe here, but you can use the instant dashi, however stick to Hiroyuki’s original ratio 12:1:1, since instant dashi contains salt; afterwards you may adjust the taste of course)

50 ml low sodium soy sauce or 25 standard soy sauce

20 ml mirin

1 egg

100 g thinly sliced pork (mine was lean)

1 small clove garlic, grated or crushed

1 cm fresh ginger, grated

1 tablespoon soy sauce

chopped chives

finely sliced small red onion

1 package udon

Combine the soy sauce, the garlic, the ginger and the pork and put aside to marinate for 15 minutes.

Prepare udon according to the instructions on the package.

Put the egg into a small pan with cold water (just enough to cover it) and cook it exactly 6 minutes after the water starts to boil.

Put it aside.

In the meantime stir fry the pork and put aside in a warm place (slightly heated oven is a good option).

Warm up the broth ingredients and put aside when they are almost boiling.

Put the noodles into a big bowl. Cover with the broth.

Carefully place the pork, the egg cut in half and chopped chives.

Serve.

Bread Tartlets with Eggs

25 Comments

breadtartletp

Yesterday I realised experiments and discoveries have recently dominated my blog (hence the overwhelming presence of the Japanese cuisine I become more and more fond of). Meanwhile, I was forgetting write about the dishes I have been preparing for years… I have decided to look through my old recipe notebook more often and share with you more simple but delicious dishes I have been preparing for years.

This messy-looking bread tartlet is one of my beloved lunch or brunch dishes. Sliced bread formed into a basket, filled with egg and ham, is simple, amusing and can be adapted to everyone’s taste. I still remember I found this recipe several years ago in “Si simple, si bon!” (So good, so simple) by Josée di Stasio, a Québec tv food program star and I highly recommend this book to everyone looking for easy recipes with sometimes very impressing results (unfortunately I have no idea if it was published in English).

Josée di Stasio calls this dish “ramekins”, but I thought the word “tartlet” was more appropriate (I think it could also be called a “basket”). She also recommends baking the bread tartlets in muffin moulds, but I usually prefer individual baking dishes (ramekins) which are higher and make bigger baskets. Retrieving the tartlets from the ramekins may be delicate, but somehow even such a clumsy person like me has always succeeded, helping myself with a spoon.

Special equipment:

muffin moulds or individual round baking dishes, about 8 cm diameter (if the bread slices are 10×10 cm, but if they are bigger, take bigger ramekins)

Preparation: 25-30 minutes

Ingredients (for one bread basket):

1 slice sandwich bread

1 big (or several smaller) slice(s) ham or other cold meat (salami, chorizo, bacon), I used smoked pork loin here

1 egg

butter

salt, pepper

(mustard)

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Roll out the bread thinly with a rolling pin.

Cut off the crust (it burns easily).

Spread some butter on one side of the slice.

Butter the ramekin or the muffin mould.

Arrange the slice, buttered side out, in the ramekin so that it forms a basket.

(Put some mustard at the bottom if you like to spice up the dish.)

Line the bread “basket” with a slice or slices of ham.

Break one egg into the tartlet.

Put into the oven and bake until the egg white is set (this depends to your preference: I prefer the runny yolk but the white must be completely set).

Take out of the baked tartlets (separating from the walls with a knife and then scooping out with a spoon should do the trick), season with salt and pepper, and serve hot with a green salad, for example Tomato Shiso Salad.

Oyakodon or Oyako Donburi (親子丼)

14 Comments

Oyakodon or Oyako Donburi belongs to the “donburi” dishes category. Donburi (丼) means either a rice bowl or a rice-bowl dish and includes many quick Japanese rice dishes with different toppings. Oyakodon (親子丼) means “parent and child donburi” and this charming name refers to its main ingredients: chicken and eggs. Oyakodon is apparently the most popular of all the donburi dishes and the first one I have ever prepared (or tasted). I have decided to publish the recipe just before the weekend, since I feel this is a perfect weekend breakfast, brunch or lunch idea!

Since it is very popular, I have heard or read about oyakodon hundreds of times and had been meaning to prepare it for a long time. When I saw an oyakodon photo on Shizuoka Gourmet’s blog, it reminded me I still haven’t tried this apparently quick and easy dish. When, in one of the following Shizuoka Gourmet’s posts the author gave an extremely detailed and well explained oyakodon recipe, I simply couldn’t resist. I had chicken, I had eggs (not to mention the rice) and prepared it for lunch the same day. It was so delicious, easy and quick, I also had it for lunch the following day! I already feel it will be one of my favourite and most frequently prepared Japanese dishes (or rather dishes in general). Thank you Robert-Gilles!

Now that I had it twice, “versatile” is probably the word I would use to describe oyakodon. Depending on the circumstances and personal habits, this dish is perfect for a nourishing breakfast, lunch, Sunday brunch, afternoon snack and a quick late-night dinner. It is also versatile in the sense that, contrary to some Japanese dishes, this one will be enjoyed even by those who approach the Japanese cuisine sceptically. In my opinion it has a universal taste with a slight Japanese hint.

The amounts of the below ingredients can be adjusted according to your personal preferences. I used here a low-sodium soy sauce and have put quite a lot of chicken (especially when I compare my very messy bowl to the photo on the Shizuoka Gourmet’s blog). I was also lucky to have mitsuba leaves, grown patiently on my balcony (thank you Hiroyuki for the kind gardening advice!), but I suppose any green fresh herb of your choice can be used, e.g. chives which go very well with eggs.

It is best with freshly made rice and freshly fried chicken, but it can also be a good idea to use leftover meat and the leftover, heated rice. If you are very hungry, I would advise two eggs per person.

Preparation: 15 minutes

Ingredients (serves one):

a portion of freshly cooked rice

50 g chicken meat, cut into bite-sized pieces

salt

pepper

1 small shallot or spring onion, thinly sliced

1 -2 eggs, slightly stirred (see the tip above)

Sauce:

50 ml dashi (Japanese stock)

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon mirin

1 tablespoon sake

sprigs of mitsuba

Season the chicken slightly with salt and pepper.

Fry it or deep-fry it and when it’s almost done, put it aside.

Fry the onions in the same pan and add all the sauce ingredients.

Lower the heat and bring it to boil.

Add the chicken and cook together until it is done (do not overcook).

(Here, if you judge the sauce amount is too big, discard some of the sauce. Using the above amounts of liquids I have never felt like discarding it).

Pour the egg over the sauce with chicken and, without mixing, wait until it is cooked. (I don’t like runny eggs, so they are always well cooked, but the consistency depends on personal preferences).

Put some hot rice into a bowl and transfer the egg and chicken topping onto the rice.

Garnish with mitsuba sprigs.

Buckwheat with Miso

14 Comments

Buckwheat is cultivated in as different countries as Russia, Japan, France and Brazil. Japanese soba noodles and soba shochu, Russian blinis гречневая каша, French “gallettes” or savoury pancakes, boûketes in Belgium, Polish “kasza gryczana” (hulled grains, usually roasted), Italian pizzoccheri,… All those are made from the same plant.

Belonging to the Fagopyrum genus, buckwheat is not a grass, nor a cereal, even though it looks like one. Its qualities are so numerous, it is surprising most of the Western countries never consume it. It is very rich in protein, minerals, antioxydants, iron and doesn’t contain any gluten, so can be consumed by people who don’t tolerate it. Apart from all these healthy sides, buckwheat grows very quickly and easily. That is why it can be cultivated in cold climate and crops can be easily multiplied in hot regions.

The older I get, the more I like buckwheat – based products, and especially buckwheat groats, e.i. hulled grains. They are a bit crunchy and a bit soft at the same time. They have a very pleasant nutty aroma and a tiny hint of bitter taste. I don’t know if it is due to my temporary deficiency of one of its healthy components or if it’s a simple food craving, but sometimes I want it so much, I must have it in the following hours. In Switzerland (like in most Western European countries) the only easily obtained buckwheat groats are not roasted and lack the nutty flavour the roasted ones have. Luckily Russian and Polish shops carry roasted groats and luckily they exist in most European countries and in North America, where the buckwheat groats’ name (“kasha”) has Polish/Russian origins.

I usually have buckwheat groats as a side dish (they are perfect with pork roast and the Polish pork stew with allspice), but they also make a good ravioli or vegetable stuffing. I don’t know why, but I have never tried to mix them with Asian ingredients. However, a couple of days ago, I thought about the Japanese soba noodles, remembered I had a miso (Japanese soybean paste) dressing in the fridge and decided to combine them. It is difficult to describe how excellent this Japanese-Polish fusion proved to be. Needless to say, since that day miso has become the buckwheat groats’ best friend. (UPDATE: It’s not really a fusion dish… I have just learnt that buckwheat groats do exist in Japan where they are called “soba gome”; they are however not very popular).

The White miso dressing recipe comes from my beloved Japanese Cooking. A Simple Art by Shizuo Tsuji (read more here). It keeps about 2 weeks in the fridge and is a good way to use up an egg yolk. If you don’t want to prepare the miso dressing, the buckwheat will be also good with miso alone (if you can add some mirin, it will be even better). This time, instead of pork, I had it with grilled chicken.

Update: Janet’s comment and cooking kasha experience made me think how buckwheat groats/kasha may be tricky to cook, especially for the first time. After two or three times it’ll become very easy. I changed a bit the cooking process description, more helpful this time – I hope - for a beginner.

Preparation: 30 minutes

Ingredients (serves two):

150 g roasted buckwheat groats

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 tablespoons white miso

or White miso dressing:

1 egg yolk

4 tablespoons white miso

1 tablespoon sake

1 teaspoon sugar

1 tablespoon mirin

(dashi, Japanese stock, 出し)

Put the buckwheat groats into a cup.

Measure the double of the buckwheat volume in water.

Pour the water into a pan. Bring it to boil, add the salt.

Throw the buckwheat into the pan and let it cook partially covered at medium heat for about ten minutes.

Lower the heat and let it simmer, covered, for about 5 more minutes.

The water should be completely absorbed by the grains. If it’s not absorbed yet, put the pan aside, leave the cover on and it will get absorbed without cooking too.

Prepare the miso dressing.

Combine the yolk with the miso in a small pan.

Add the remaining ingredients one by one.

Put the small pan into a bigger one, with boiling water and let the sauce thicken (and the egg yolk cook), delicately stirring for about 5-10 minutes.

(The miso dressing can be diluted with dashi stock. It keeps two weeks in the fridge.)

Taste the buckwheat groats. They should be still crunchy, but cooked. If they are not soft enough for your taste, add a bit more water and cook them longer.

Drain the groats. Combine them with one tablespoon miso or miso dressing.

Serve the groats with a big dollop of miso/ miso dressing on top.

Egg and Bacon Pie

6 Comments

Yesterday I had one of the most guiltily delicious Sunday breakfasts for ages! When, during one of my visits to The Cottage Smallholder blog, I stumbled upon the Egg and Bacon Pie recipe, I felt at once it would be a Sunday breakfast hit. I did the grocery shopping and waited impatiently for the weekend. With its few ingredients, its scrumptious taste and seductive looks, this pie is as good as it is simple and would certainly embarrass anyone who denigrates or ignores the British cuisine. The bacon and the number of eggs might seem scary at the beginning, but the first bite makes one forget the cholesterol, the calories and all the guilt.

Since the unsmoked bacon (listed in the original recipe) was very fatty, I opted for the smoked one and the result was wonderful too. I have only slightly modified the recipe, halved the amount of ingredients and baked the pie in a small tart dish. Apart from a nourishing breakfast, I agree with the Cottage Smallholder‘s author, this pie would make a perfect picnic dish and I already see it as a great teatime filling snack, a travel alternative to sandwiches or an efficient hangover comforting dish…

Preparation: 1 hour

Ingredients (serves 2 starving, late Sunday breakfasters):

1 shortcrust pastry sheet (mine weighed 230g)

6 eggs

200 g bacon (sliced)

pepper

(I haven’t used any salt since my bacon was already very salty)

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Fry the bacon on both sides.

Line a buttered pie dish with half of the pastry sheet.

Break 3 eggs over the pastry case trying not to destroy the yolks.

Season with ground pepper.

Put the bacon slices over the eggs.

Finish the filling with the remaining eggs (still not destroying the yolks) and add a bit more pepper.

Cover the pie with the remaining pastry, pinching on the borders.

Make small holes in the pastry lid with a knife or a fork.

Bake for 40-50 minutes until golden.

Served alone (hot or cold) or with a green salad.