Category Archives: Fish

Asparagus Maki Sushi

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After green salads, maki sushi are my second biggest spring cooking frenzy. I am not able to prepare perfectly shaped and equal rolls, but the taste is there, so my lack of dexterity doesn’t stop me from preparing them regularly (I guess I should write about them more often…). Maki sushi are quick (and become quicker and easier to prepare with practice), cheap, healthy and offer endless combinations. Crunchy, slightly blanched green asparagus gives a fresh seasonal spring touch to maki sushi and confirms once more that asparagus, in spite of its distinct taste, creates marvellous dishes even with such bold ingredients as seaweed. Here I have combined it with mayonnaise and katsuobushi (shaved bonito flakes, see below). I find the result extraordinary, but if you don’t like or cannot find shaved bonito, asparagus alone is an amazing maki sushi filler.

Even though I play rather freely with different ingredients, the idea of asparagus maki sushi came from Shizuoka Gourmet blog, an excellent source of virtual culinary trips to Japan (or rather to the Shizuoka prefecture!). Without Robert-Gilles’s blog I would never imagine that asparagus and katsuobushi might be a perfect company. Its smoky taste, combined with crunchy fresh asparagus and mayonnaise is stunning. It’s a pity I cannot prepare these maki sushi all year round. Thank you, Robert-Gilles, for this wonderful idea!

If you are fond of asparagus, you might like some of these ideas (click at the images):

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

You might also like these sushi maki versions:

with Ground Beef

with Shrimp, Avocado and Cucumber

TIPS: As you see above, I prefer maki with less rice than usually served in restaurants and on most blogs, but if you prefer the “standard” rice amount, count 500g (about 2 2/3 cups) rice and not 300g (1 1/2 cup).

Dried shaved bonito flakes (katsuobushi) are sold in bags in Japanese grocery shops. Together with konbu seaweed it is one of the ingredients of the most popular version of Japanese stock (dashi, see the recipe here). It cannot be substituted by anything, but if you don’t find it, these maki sushi will be excellent anyway.

Sesame seeds are far from obligatory too. I am just addicted…

Special equipment:

rice cooker (unless you know how to cook the rice in a “normal” pan)

maki rolling mat or a special futomaki roller

Preparation: 20 minutes (+ 1 hour for rice cooking and cooling)

Ingredients (serves 2 – 3):

5 nori seaweed sheets

300g (about 1 1/2 cup) sushi rice (or 500g/about 2 2/3 cups if you prefer “standard” rolls)

Rice mixture:

4 tablespoons rice vinegar

1 tablespoon mirin

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

Filling:

15 green thin asparagus spears (about 1 cm diameter), 3 for every nori sheet

10 heaped tablespoons katsuobushi

mayonnaise

(grilled white sesame seeds)

soy sauce+wasabi

a bowl of rice vinegar

(marinated ginger)

Cook the rice in the rice cooker (or in a pan if you know how to do it!). Put the hot rice into a bowl and add the rice mixture ingredients. Stir well and leave to cool down.

In the meantime cut off the toughest lower part of the asparagus spears (usually the lower 20%).

Blanch the asparagus spears (about 2 minutes) and let them cool down.

When the rice has cooled down to the room temperature (it can’t be completely cold!), put a nori sheet vertically on the rolling mat, shiny side down.

With fingers dipped in a bowl of rice vinegar spread 1/5th of the rice evenly, leaving a 1 cm gap on the top, far edge.

Arrange the filling ingredients on the rice, in a horizontal line, close to the bottom edge.

Sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Roll the maki starting from the bottom edge, gently pressing after each turn.

Moist the upper edge with rice vinegar before doing the last turn.

Press gently the roll and put it aside.

In order to obtain more or less similarly sized pieces, cut the roll first in two parts, then put them in a row and cut them in two parts, etc..

(It is easier to cut maki with a moist knife blade.)

Arrange them on a plate and serve with wasabi, soy sauce and marinated ginger.

Taramosalata (Greek Fish Roe Dip)

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“Free style”, easy-looking recipes are either a blessing or a curse. I have no idea to which category belongs taramasalata, but I am proud to say that even my very first humble attempt to prepare it gave flavoursome, satisfying results. I wonder why I waited so long before making this easy home-made version of the famous fish roe dip.

As many of you probably know, taramosalata is a Greek fish roe dip (“tarama” means fish roe and “salata”… salad) and is usually made with carp or cod roe, oil, lemon juice and bread crumbs or mashed potatoes. According to Wikipedia similar roe spreads apparently exist also in Turkey, Bulgaria and Romania. I am not Greek nor have any links with these nationalities, but taramosalata has kept me company since early childhood. I have always been crazy for what I knew at the time as “caviar paste” and buttered bread with a generous layer of this delicacy was one of my beloved snacks. Since the only brand I knew was Swedish, I had been convinced until recently that it was a traditional Swedish product. Since I have never tasted taramosalata made in Greece, nowadays the only two commercial taramasalatas I like also come from Sweden.

I had no idea what the home-made taramosalata should taste like, so I have no comparison, but what you see above was very different from what I used to buy. In a good sense of course; it’s not as horribly salty, not as “violent” and strangely addictive… I couldn’t stop myself from snacking on it all evening… According to Wikipedia, taramosalata is served in Greece on the first day of Easter Lent, but personally I could have it every single day, all year long. I have no idea what the Greeks serve it with (it’s my first Greek recipe on this blog!) but until now a slice of buttered French baguette is my favourite choice. I have also greatly enjoyed it with crunchy Finnish rye bread and with German pumpernickel. Taste wise taramasalata pairs well with cucumber and dill. I like to serve it as a snack on small toasts when my taramasalata-loving friends come for drinks and cannot wait to make them taste my home-made version.

After reading many different recipes on Greek cooking blogs I realised everyone made taramosalata in a different way. Unfortunately Katerina, my favourite Greek blogger, hasn’t written about it, so I finally decided to improvise and develop my own recipe. The result has got almost nothing in common with what I have known until now (on the other hand I used roe from a different fish), but the paste is delicious. Since I improvised a lot, I encourage you to treat the below recipe only as a guide line and adapt it to your own preferences and products you use.

TIPS: I have used here cheap IKEA herring roe bought for the purpose of what I considered a risky experiment. You can use any other fish roe of course. According to many people the whiter the roe, the better the quality.

I have preferred extra-virgin olive oil, but it has a stronger taste and is slightly bitter compared to canola oil which is more neutral. Up to you to decide.

With the below small amount a small baby food processor works the best.

I found that taramasalata greatly improves after several hours in the fridge, so I advise you to prepare it in advance.

Preparation: 15 minutes+ 2-3 hours in the fridge

Ingredients (yields about 200 ml/ 1 1/2 cup taramasalata):

85 g (3 oz) cured fish roe (for this first experiment I have used cheap herring roe bought at IKEA)

2- 3 slices of soft white bread (without crust) soaked in water and squeezed

125 ml (1/2 cup) oil (I have used extra-virgin olive oil, but canola oil has a more neutral taste)

1/2 small onion, chopped

chili powder and salt to taste

juice from 1/2 lemon

(fresh dill)

Put the fish roe, 2 soaked slices of bread, the onion and half of the oil in a food processor and mix until smooth and fluffy.

Add more oil and mix once more.

If the consistency is too thick, add more oil and mix once more.

If it’s too liquid, add the third soaked bread slice.
Season with lemon juice, chili and salt and mix once more. Chill for a couple of hours.
Serve sprinkled with fresh dill.

Egg, Pepper and Anchovy Salad

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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.

Pickled Fish with Allspice

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I used to think for long years that my mum was the only person in the world who pickled fish and I still haven’t met anyone who does it this way. Pickling was a way to preserve small, recently caught freshwater fish we weren’t able to eat quickly enough. She always pickled whole fish, with bones, and removed only the head. Then, after a couple of weeks, the bones softened and often even the spinal bones were edible, just like in canned sardines. I have always considered this process somehow magical and loved the crunchy, transformed bones, not to mention the marinated, sour flesh. My mum prepared these pickles usually in the summer and hot, sunny days still seem the best moments to enjoy this refreshing snack or starter.

I don’t have access to freshly caught fish, so for long years I haven’t even tried to make this pickle on my own. To be frank I didn’t eat much fish and usually bought the easy to prepare big fish fillets. Then I found an excellent source of many relatively fresh fish varieties (which for a city far from the ocean and sea means very fresh) and began to buy them regularly. When I started to explore the Japanese cuisine, such delightful dishes as fish in tempura, salted dried fish or fish in nanban zuke marinade made me rediscover the joys of eating small fish. Incidentally it’s the Japanese hot nanban zuke marinade (inspired by the famous Mediterranean escabeche) that reminded me of my mum’s pickled fish and made me prepare it about a year ago for the first time in my life. It was an indescribable pleasure, a couple of weeks afterwards, to open a jar of my own home pickled sardines.

After this first test, I have slightly modified my mum’s recipe, adding more vinegar (I prefer my pickles very strong) and deep-frying fish instead of shallow-frying. Since I am usually impatient to taste the food I prepare, I started to preserve fillets which are ready to be eaten in a couple of days. The only thing I have never modified are the spices. The mixture of bay leaves, mustard grains, peppercorns and allspice is simply perfect, the latter being particularly important here (hence its mention in the title). Garlic is not necessary, but advised especially for garlic fans. I think allspice is available in most parts of the world, but for those who have never used it, here is an old photo of allspice grains:

TIPS: This is a short-term pickle recipe and the jars should be kept in the fridge (they will keep for at least a month). I sometimes process jars in hot water and keep them afterwards in my pantry for a couple of months, but I have no idea for how long it’s safe, so I don’t recommend it.

The fillets can be pickled without skin, but they taste much better with skin on.

If you use whole fish (without heads), you should wait a couple of weeks before tasting it.

Preparation: 30 – 40 minutes + a couple of days

Ingredients (fills one 1/2 litre jar):

8 small fish fillets (skin on) or six very small fishes, gutted and without heads

salt, pepper

1 heaped tablespoon flour

oil for deep-frying

Marinade:

375 ml (1 1/2 cup) vinegar (I used 4,5% cider vinegar)

125 ml (1/2 cup) water

1 heaped tablespoon sugar

1 flat teaspoon salt

6 pepper corns

4 grains allspice

1/2 teaspoon mustard grains

1 big bay leaf (or 2 – 3 small)

(2 cloves garlic)

Heat some deep-frying oil in a pan.

Wash the fish fillets (or the whole fish).

Pat them dry.

When the oil is hot enough, quickly season the fillets with salt and pepper.

Dust them lightly with flour and deep fry until slightly golden.

Remove excess oil by placing the fillets on paper towels.

Place the fish in a jar.

Bring all the marinade ingredients to boil.

Let it cool down and when the marinade is still hot (but not boiling) pour it over the fish.

Close the jar. Let it cool down and put into the fridge for a couple of days or weeks, if you prepare whole fish.

Spring Rolls with Surimi Crab Sticks, Avocado and Lettuce

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Despised by many people, surimi crab sticks (or imitation crab sticks) are one of the rare processed products I regularly buy. They are the lightest snack I can imagine, have a long shelf – or rather fridge – life, they are easy and quick to use in salads, maki sushi and are quite enjoyable if paired with certain ingredients. There is also a question of brand because imitation crab can easily become awful. Among all the French brands I have tested, only one (Coraya) is edible. In short, I stick to one brand, I don’t expect too much from surimi sticks and they never disappoint me.

I often use surimi crab sticks in maki sushi and this was the first time I tested them in spring rolls. When a couple of days ago I saw A_Boleyn’s appetising Shrimp Summer Rolls, I thought I should write about my rolls which, apart from rice sheets, are completely different from hers. I left out glass noodles and even though I haven’t followed any recipe, I must have been influenced by the Japanese Nama Harumaki, raw spring rolls containing lettuce. The rolls were really good and refreshing, not as filling as the traditional ones (with glass noodles), but perfect as a light meal or snack or why not a breakfast on a hot summer day. Since they contain already mayonnaise, Worcestershire sauce and Tabasco, they do not necessarily need any additional dipping sauce, but a simple mixture of low-sodium soy sauce, chili oil and vinegar is the best option for me.

TIP: Do not use bitter lettuce here (I used here my favourite “rougette” with slightly violet leaves, but the international iceberg would be perfect too)

Preparation: 15-20 minutes

Ingredients (10 rolls):

10 (22 cm or 8 3/4 in) rice paper sheets

10 small lettuce leaves (or 5 big leaves, halved);

1 avocado

10 surimi/imitation crab sticks

1/2 big cucumber

mayonnaise

Worcestershire sauce

Tabasco

Cut both the avocado and the cucumber into thick strips.

Remove the thick and tough parts of lettuce leaves (they might tear the delicate rice sheets).

Fill a big wide bowl with warm (not hot) water.

Dip rice paper sheets one by one in the water, immersing them delicately so that you don’t break them.

As soon as the sheet softens ( after about ten – twenty seconds), put it onto a big chopping board.

Place first a lettuce leaf, then, horizontally (at the edge which is closest to you) cucumber strips, avocado strips, some mayonnaise, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco and a crab stick. Roll tightly starting from the edge which is closest to you.

Proceed in the same way with the remaining rolls.

Serve them immediately as they are or cut in two horizontally.

If you wish to serve them later, wrap them individually in cling film because they dry out very quickly.

Sesame Coated Tuna Nuggets (Maguro no goma age)

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As you can see I’m getting really obsessed with rolls, skewers, finger food and all types of snacks. In fact, I start serving them more and more often as a part of main courses and find them much more fun to prepare and to eat. Some of you might remember the Sesame Coated Chicken Nuggets I wrote about a couple of months ago. Even though I named them “nuggets”, the recipe is Japanese and was found in my favourite cookery book (Japanese cooking. A simple art by Shizuo Tsuji). The chicken nuggets were coated in egg white, than in sesame seeds and then deep-fried, i.e. prepared according to the “kawari age” or “variation frying” methods described by Tsuji and consisting in coating deep-fried food in different, sometimes very surprising products. Until now I have tested and adored chopped nori seaweed (Scallops Fried in Nori) and my beloved sesame seeds, which proved wonderful with chicken, but too bitter and strong with scallops.

Last week, when I saw red tuna sold on special price (otherwise it’s horribly expensive), I decided to treat it exactly like chicken breast. I have cut it into cubes, coated with egg whites, sesame seeds, quickly deep-fried and loved it! The fish was soft, juicy and the sesame seeds formed a crunchy, slightly nutty crust. Moreover, just like chicken nuggets, these were not soaked in fat because sesame seeds do not absorb as much oil as certain coatings.

I had these nuggets twice: first with a bottle of white wine along with other snacks, and then, the following day, I prepared them once more and served with rice and pickles for lunch. They can be dipped in any sauce of your choice, but I found my Hot Mango Sauce a perfect pairing. (It can be substituted by a quick mixture of mango, chilies and vinegar.)

TIP: This is an excellent way to use up egg whites!

Preparation: 20 minutes

Ingredients (serves two):

300 g tuna steak

1 flat tablespoon flour

1 egg white

4 heaped tablespoons (or more) white sesame seeds (it depends how thick you want the crust to be)

salt

oil for deep-frying

Preheat the deep-frying oil (it’s hot enough when a tiny piece of bread thrown into the fat doesn’t “sink” and stays on the surface, instantly browning).

Cut up the tuna steak into bite-sized cubes.

Season the cubes lightly with salt.

Beat the egg white slightly with a fork.

Dry the tuna pieces well with paper towels.

Dredge them slightly in flour, shake off the excess, then in the egg white and at the end roll them in sesame seeds.

Deep fry them for about 30 seconds in small batches (the time depends on the temperature of your oil and the size of your pieces).

Smoked Mackerel and Egg Spread

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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.

Carrot and Canned Tuna Salad

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This salad is another very simple, but surprisingly good dish I have found on the Humble Bean blog. Azusa adapted it from a Japanese cook’s recipe (Harumi Kurihara’s) and even though at first sight the salad seems European, its simplicity, its perfect choice of ingredients and the method have a typical Japanese touch. The recipe was published in January, but during this particularly cold Winter light salads were the last thing I craved. Somehow it stayed engraved in my memory and proved excellent at this warm beginning of the Spring.

Even though I have prepared it only twice, I already feel this salad will become a staple in my house. Carrots are available all year round, they have quite a long storage life, not to mention the canned tuna I always have, so this will be convenient in any season. It is light, but surprisingly filling and if served with crunchy, buttered baguette (in my opinion the best choice), it works not only as a healthy snack, but even as a light main course. I think what I love the most about this salad is the difference of textures. The partly cooked crisp carrot, combined with soft tuna and mustard – or sesame – seeds, create an exceptional effect. Even though I have slightly modified it (click here to see Azusa’s original recipe), the result was stunning. Thank you, Azusa, for one more extraordinary and simple recipe!

Preparation: 15 minutes + 1 hour in the fridge

Ingredients (serves two for main course or four as a starter):

1 can tuna, drained (white tuna works better here)

4 medium carrots, julienned

1 onion or shallot thinly sliced

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 tablespoon oil

Sauce:

5 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce

1 heaped tablespoon whole grain mustard (or smooth mustard + 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds)

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar (I used rice vinegar)

ground pepper

In a big bowl combine the sauce ingredients with the crumbled tuna.

Heat oil in a pan and fry the onion until it softens.

Add the garlic and the carrots.

Stir-fry until the carrots are a bit softened (about 5 minutes).

Let the carrots cool down.

Put the carrots into the bowl and stir well.

Refrigerate for one hour.

Serve with crunchy bread and butter.

Jansson’s Temptation (Janssons frestelse)

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I still remember the first time I read about Jansson’s Temptation and it was at least ten years ago. Since then I have been meaning to make it at least hundred times, so when I saw it on Charles’s blog (Five Euro Food) I felt it was high time I realised what was so special about it. This mysteriously named potato gratin is one of the biggest stars of the Swedish cuisine and, known as Janssonin kiusaus, it also appears on Finnish tables. According to wikipedia, some say it has been named after Pelle Janzon, a famous XIXth century Swedish singer, others claim the name comes from the 1928 film titled “Janssons frestelse”. I have also read some stories about a saint called Jansson… Whatever the origins, Jansson’s Temptation is much more than just another potato gratin.

Traditionally served for Christmas, but apparently also throughout the rest of the year, Jansson’s Temptation sounds as simple as most of the Swedish dishes. It is composed of layered potatoes, onions and pickled sprats (or anchovies), baked in a mixture of milk and cream. These outwardly ordinary ingredients produce an incredibly aromatic, complex and flavoursome gratin. Whoever Jansson was, I totally understand why he was tempted. Thank you, Charles, for making me discover the Swedish cuisine and its simple, but surprising delights! (Click here to see Charles’s recipe and photos.)

Even though the gratin is terrific in its traditional form, I must confess the second time I made it something pushed me towards slight modifications (I hope Charles will forgive me). First of all, since I am very fond of canned anchovies, I doubled their amount. The biggest modification however was the addition of white wine, which resulted in a sharper and less “homely” aroma and taste, but I loved this version. I strongly encourage you, however, to try it first without wine.

TIP: The original recipe calls for pickled sprats, difficult to get in certain countries, but I was delighted to use my beloved canned anchovies, advised by Charles as an excellent substitute.

Preparation: about 2 hours

Ingredients (serves four-six):

1 kg peeled potatoes, cut into matchsticks or into very thin slices (easy to make with a mandolin)

1 can (50g) pickled sprats or anchovies (or two cans if you love anchovies), cut into small pieces

200 ml liquid cream

about 200 ml milk

2 medium onions, finely sliced

salt, pepper

30 g butter

breadcrumbs

(200 ml dry white wine)

Preheat the oven to 190°C.

Drain the anchovies/sprats and cut them into small pieces (do not throw the liquid/oil away).

Put a layer of potatoes in a baking dish, cover with onions and anchovies, sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Repeat this once or twice, ending with a potato layer on top.

Place small butter knobs on the top of the dish and bits of anchovies, if you still have some left.

Combine the cream with the drained pickling liquid or oil (and white wine, if using) and pour onto the gratin.

Bake for 30 minutes.

Take the dish out of the oven and lower the temperature to 140°C.

Cover the gratin with milk so that it arrives just below the last potato layer.

Sprinkle with bread crumbs and bake for about 1 hour until the top is golden brown.

Serve as a main course with a salad or as a hearty side dish.

Layered Herring Salad

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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.

Salt Cod Fritters (Acras de morue)

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“Acras de morue” (pronounced “akh-ra de morew“) is probably the most famous Carribbean dish from French West Indies. At least this is the only one I have known very well for years, since it can be easily bought in mainland France. Acras are fritters made with salted cod (“morue” in French; fresh cod is “cabillaud”), flour and seasonings and apparently a similar preparations exist in Portugal and Spain (and maybe in other countries?).

Salting and drying is a fish preserving technique with a very long history. Apparently Basques were the first in Europe to trade internationally the salted cod already before the year 1000. (If you want to read a fascinating cod trade history, I strongly advise “Cod. A biography of the Fish that Changed the World” by Mark Kurlansky. It’s an incredibly absorbing, extraordinary book.) This method allows a longer fish preservation, but there is also a collateral benefit: the normally bland and tasteless cod acquires an interesting and complex flavour. I have never liked fresh cod, but once salted and dried, it climbs up to the top of my favourite fish list. Salted cod has also a strong smell, but it puts off only those who haven’t tasted its miraculous transformation.

Even though salted – salt – cod is almost always in my fridge (it keeps for ages), I cannot say I prepare it often. This is due to the obligatory desalting stage which is either long or tiresome. There are two main methods. The first is the most popular and consists in soaking the fish for 24 hours, changing the water at least three times. The second consists in boiling the fish in several changed water batches until it is desalted. I prefer the former, which is much easier. If I tell you that apart from desalting, these fritters are the best if the dough is kept 12 hours in the fridge, you will understand why I don’t make them every week.

This recipe (a bit modified) can be found in Festins Créoles, which has an English version entitled “Creole” by Babette de Rozières, a French chef with Guadeloupe origins. She advises refrigerating the dough for 24 hours, but I think 12 hours is enough.

These fritters are simply addictive and worth all the effort and time. If the oil temperature is well adjusted they will be crunchy, soft inside, but not greasy. They are delicious served with garlic mayonnaise, hot mango sauce, apricot and chili jelly or pepper jelly… I always serve them also with Pickled Sweet Pepper or Pickled Hot Pepper and recently with Moomins Cucumber Salad.

Preparation time: 1h+ 24h desalting+12 hours in the fridge

Ingredients (makes a starter for 4 people or a main dish for 2):

250g salted cod fillet (without skin or 300 g if it’s with skin)

200g flour

150 ml milk (or more)

1/2 package baking powder (or enough baking powder for 250g flour; usually the packages I buy are each for 500g flour)

salt

2 small hot chilies, finely chopped

1 small onion, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

3 tablespoons of chopped parsley

oil for deep-frying

Cover the salted cod with cold water and put into the fridge for 24 hours.

Change the water 3-4 times during that period.

Once desalted, put the cod into a pan with cold water.

Bring the water to boil and let the cod simmer (on a low heat) for 10 more minutes.

When the cod has cooled down, shred it throwing out the bones.

Mix the flesh in a food processor, add the chilies, the onion, the garlic, the baking powder, the milk and salt (taste the mixture and if it’s not salty at all, start with 1/2 teaspoon salt; you will add more just before frying; if it’s salty, skip the salt).

The dough should be thick, but possible to stir a bit with a spoon.

Put the dough into the fridge for 12 hours.

Take it out several hours before frying (it will burn less).

Heat the oven to the lowest temperature.

Put a baking dish with a paper napkin. This hot dish will allow you to keep warm all the batches while they are waiting for the last one.

Heat the oil in a pan. Make a test: if you throw a small bit of dough and it stays on the surface, creating bubbles and puffs, then the oil is usually hot enough.

Take the dough’s portions with a teaspoon (a heaped teaspoon makes a very good sized fritter) and fry them until golden brown.

(Some people manage to make acras light golden and well cooked inside, but I have never been able to do this).

You might have to check the first fritter if it’s well cooked inside and adjust the heat, the frying time or the number of fritters fried at the same time.

Drain on paper towels and place in the baking dish in the oven to keep every batch warm.

Serve hot.

Aji no hiraki (鯵の開き), or Salted and Grilled Horse Mackerel

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Aji no hiraki (鯵の開き) is probably the least photogenic dish I have ever made. This is the reason why I have waited several months and went through at least a dozen of long photo sessions before posting this recipe. Every time I prepared this dish I took photos and every time they looked as scary and as uninviting as the one you see above. I decided to post it anyway, hoping you will believe me if I say it has an extraordinary taste and figures on the top 5 list of my favourite fish dishes. In short, appearances can be deceptive.

The first time I stumbled upon aji no hiraki was on Hiroyuki’s blog on Japanese Cooking. It was on the long list of dishes featured in my beloved Japanese manga and film series, Shinya Shokudo 深夜食堂 (Late-Night Diner). Unfortunately, the manga wasn’t translated, so I cannot read it, but the film is moving, full of subtle humour and if the bar where all the episodes are filmed existed, I would love to be there every night. Every episode focuses on a particular dish and a character and I really regret the series has only one, short season. Here is the theme song I also adore:

Anyway, aji no hiraki (鯵の開き), or cut-open and grilled horse mackerel, is featured in the manga 68th episode and the 9th episode of the series (thank you, Hiroyuki, for the correction!). After my questions about the mysterious dish, Hiroyuki kindly promised to make it, take the photos and publish the recipe, the things for which I will always be very grateful. (See here his detailed photos and helpful instructions). The preparation consists of cutting open the whole fish (head included), soaking it in a brine and then drying it in the sun. Afterwards the horse mackerel is grilled.

Drying in the sun requires two factors: a sunny, warm weather (but not too hot and preferably a bit windy) and a drying net. Unfortunately I don’t have a special drying net, which keeps off the flies and other bugs (not to mention the lack of the sun the first time I made it), so I decided to dry my fish in a slightly warm oven (65°C). I suppose sun-dried mackerel tastes better, but I was completely satisfied with my oven drying too! Of course soaking, drying and grilling are easy steps, although time-consuming. The stage I find particularly tricky is cutting open the fish If you have a good fishmonger who knows how to cut open the fish (something i have never seen in Europe), you will skip the only difficult part. If you don’t have this possibility (like me), Hiroyuki referred to this website (in Japanese) with very helpful fish preparation photos.

Even after several times the cutting open process is not an easy one for me, but the final result is definitely worth it. The mackerel acquires a very deep, buttery taste, reminding me of a slightly smoked fish. Even though it’s a Japanese recipe, after many tests I must say it tastes the best with crunchy baguette spread with butter. I hope you will not be shocked if I say it’s a wonderful, nourishing and healthy breakfast dish. Thank you, Hiroyuki, for introducing to me this fantastic and unusual delicacy!

Special equipment:

a toothbrush to clean off the fish blood

(a drying net if you dry the fish in the sun)

Preparation: 5-6 hours (can be done in two days)

Ingredients (serves 2-4):

4 medium-sized horse mackerels (aji)

1 litre water

50 g salt

Cut the fish belly and remove the innards.

If you want, you can scale it, but I didn’t.

Cut the fish lengthwise from the head to the tail, very carefully so that you don’t cut it through.

Remove the gills (at this step the head sometimes falls off… so be careful) and wash the fish with a toothbrush, removing the slightest traces of blood.

(Look at this website for a detailed description.)

Dissolve the salt in the water and soak the fish for about 40 minutes. (If the final result is too salty or not salty enough, the following time increase the soaking time).

Dry the fish with paper towels, but don’t rinse it.

Put it in the net and sun-dry first open side up, then open side down for minimum 4 hours up to half a day (it depends on the sun and temperature).

If you want to dry the fish in the oven, preheat the oven to 65°C.

Put the fish on a sheet of baking paper.

Dry for about 4 hours, first the open side up, then the skin side up.

(At this stage you can grill the fish or put it into the fridge and grill it the following day.)

Preheat the oven upper grill (broiler), put the fish the open side up and grill until slightly golden (I like mine a bit drier, so I grill it more).

Serve with whatever you want, but do try with buttered crunchy baguette.

Sakana no Nanban-zuke (南蛮漬け), or Fish in Barbarian-Style Marinade

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The first time I saw a photo of nanban-zuke on Hiroyuki’s Blog on Japanese Cooking I instantly felt I would love it. It was original, not at all what I imagined to find in the Japanese cuisine, but certainly very promising. Hiroyuki kindly told me to look for the recipe in my beloved Japanese Cooking. A Simple Art by Shizuo Tsuji. Actually, he gave me even the exact page number (here I must add I was extremely proud to discover we had the same cookery book, although we probably use it and see it in a different way). Anyway, as all the Tsuji’s recipes, nanban-zuke proved excellent, so thank you, Hiroyuki, for one more useful tip!

Shizuo Tsuji explains the name “nanban” comes from the XVIth century when Spanish and Portuguese missionaries arrived to Japan. These “nanban-jin” (Southern barbarians) introduced hot red peppers to Japan and, since then, dishes containing these peppers often have the word “nanban” in their name. “Zuke” means “marinade” and Nanban-zuke (南蛮漬け) consist of frying fish or meat and then marinating it in a mixture of dashi (Japanese stock), soy sauce and vinegar with onions and, of course, hot peppers. During the time spent in the fridge the fish absorbs the vinegared hot marinade and becomes one of the most cooling Summer dishes I have ever tasted.

I was surprised, but when I first tasted nanban-zuke, it brought my childhood memories. In fact, when I was a child, my mum – who is far from being Japanese – would fry small fish and then put it into a jar filled with vinegar and spices for several weeks. I used to love this home-pickled fish as much as I adore the slightly different and more delicate Fish in Barbarian-Style Marinade.

This recipe can be made with both whole fish (gutted, scaled) or fillets. I opted for small fish fillets and cheap whiting (Merlangius merlangus) proved perfect here (alas, I haven’t found the Japanese name). If you use whole fish, you should keep it for one or two days in the fridge (the bones have to soften so that you can eat them too). Fillets require 3-4 hours only. I am sorry to tell the Japanese cuisine purists i didn’t like it with rice. The best company proved to be fresh French crunchy baguette with a thin layer of good quality butter…

(I have slightly modified the proportions and added more peppers and more onion.)

Preparation: 1 hour + 3-4 hours in the fridge

Ingredients (serves 4):

600-700 g small fish fillets

salt

wheat flour

oil

Marinade:

125 ml rice vinegar

170 ml dashi

2 tablespoons mirin

3 tablespoons soy sauce (or more if using low-sodium soy sauce, I have put 6 tablespoons)

3-4 dried hot red peppers (or more if your peppers are not very hot or if you like hot dishes, keep the seeds if you want it really hot)

1 big onion

Slice the onion and fry it until it softens.

Crush the red peppers.

Bring to boil the vinegar, the dashi, the mirin and the soy sauce with red peppers. Put aside.

Add the onions to the marinade.

Salt the fillets slightly on both sides and leave for 15 minutes.

Pat dry the fillets, cut them into 2-3 pieces (not obligatory, but I found it easier to handle with chopsticks), dredge them in flour, shake off the excess flour and deep-fry about 5 minutes or until they start becoming golden.

Put the warm fish in a shallow dish.

Bring the marinade to boil and pour over the fish.

Let the dish cool and then put into the fridge, covered, for at least 3 hours.

Serve with whatever you want, but do try the crunchy baguette and butter.

Herring and Potato Salad

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Herring has been preserved in brine since the Middle Ages, but the salt concentration was so high, the fish had to be desalted bo soaking before it was consumed. In the XIIIth century the Dutch have improved this process creating a light brining technique, which doesn’t require desalting. “Maatjesharing”, often called “maatjes” is an example of this curing technique and is now readily available in many European countries, usually sold covered in oil.

Together with vinegared herring, lightly cured herring plays a big role in Northern European, German and Slavic countries and is often associated with the Jewish cuisine. People who didn’t grow up in these cultures may be put off at first by the cured herring’s strong smell and taste, but they usually end up in succumbing to its addictive, complex flavour and mellow, meaty texture. While the vinegared herring is usually served on its own, in different sauces, the lightly cured herring is also often found in salads and this is the way I prefer it.

I love cured herring, but usually crave it on cold days. However, watching the infinite variety of herring dishes on Three-Cookies blog, I simply couldn’t resist the temptation to make a herring salad in spite of the hot weather. Thus, I have discovered that a herring and potato salad is a very refreshing dish, well adapted to sunny Summer weather. This salad is probably the oldest and the simplest one I have ever made. I have been preparing it since I was a teenager and whenever I want a simple herring dish, it is the first thing I think of. The reason is simple: potatoes, onions and mayonnaise are simply the winning company for cured herring. I usually have this salad as a main dish with bread (black bread is particularly advised here!), but it can be also a starter, in which case it serves 6.

If you want to see myriads of herring cold and hot dishes ideas, visit either Three-Cookies (a great day-by-day read) or Easily Good Eats (a collection of recipes), both blogs by the same author, a real herring connoisseur, who I hope, will decide one day to write a herring cookery book. (I am already queueing up for a signed copy!).

Just before the recipe details I would like to share with you this funny and scary fragment of a Japanese cartoon, featuring not the herring but a very courageous potato:

http://youtu.be/1gD8nV8RlPU

Preparation: 30 minutes + 2 – 3 hours chilling in the fridge

Ingredients (serves 3 as a main dish):

400 g cured herrings in oil

1 medium onion

1 kg potatoes

a couple of tablespoon mayonnaise

pepper, salt

Cook the potatoes, peel them and cut into bite-sized pieces.

Drain the herring, cut it into bite-sized pieces too.

Chop the onion.

Combine the herring, the warm potatoes, the mayonnaise, add salt, pepper, the onion and put into the fridge for at least 2 hours.

Daikon Leaves Furikake (大根葉振り掛け)

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Even though I grow my plants only in balcony boxes, I have several herbs (chives, mint, dill, basil, marjoram… and even mitsuba!) and such weird things as… daikon. A kind friend send me once several packages of grains from Japan and among those was daikon the big white radish). I suppose I should say rather daikon leaves, since only leaves were featured on the package and I suppose this variety is not supposed to have huge radishes, just like the parsley I have on my balcony, which contrary to my other parsley variety, doesn’t grow big roots.

Anyway, my daikon leaves grew extremely quickly and frankly even though their taste was pleasant, I didn’t know what to do with them. Imagine my joy when Robert-Gilles, from Shizuoka Gourmet blog kindly offered to help me and posted a Daikon Leaves Furikake recipe. Thank you, Robert-Gilles, for this thoughtful gesture and for the excellent recipe! This furikake was so good I made it already several times.

Furikake (振り掛け) means “a condiment sprinkled over a dish” and is something between a condiment and a topping put over the rice (I must say I had problems with classifying it in my Western categories…). It was the first furikake I have ever made, but thought it was an excellent idea and will certainly look for some more furikake recipes in the future.

I have slightly modified the recipe and used some leftover rice combined with green peas instead of white rice. Dried shrimp or fish is not obligatory and since I didn’t have either, I skipped it.

It’s a great way to use leftover rice and to avoid throwing away the daikon leaves if your radish has them.

Preparation: 10 minutes

Ingredients (serves one):

a big handful of finely chopped daikon leaves with stems (they will shrink)

1 1/2 tablespoons sesame oil

2 tablespoons cooking sake

1 tablespoon mirin

1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce (or more if, like me you have a low-sodium soy sauce!)

3 tablespoons katsuobushi (shaved bonito)

2 tablespoons roasted white sesame seeds

(dried small shrimps or dried small fish)

Heat the sesame oil in a pan.

Fry the chopped leaves over high heat until they become soft.

Add sake, mirin and soy sauce, stirring before adding each of them.

Fry the fish or shrimp in a separate pan.

Add the fish/shrimp, the sesame seeds and katsuobushi to the leaves mixture and fry, stirring, for 30 seconds.

Put over a bowl of rice and serve.

(It can be kept in the fridge and served cold too).

Ajiten or Horse Mackerel Tempura

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Horse mackerel, or jack mackerel (aji in Japanese, Trachurus genus in Latin, chinchard in French) is highly praised in Japan, but treated as a cheap, secondary fish variety in most European countries. I have recently noticed my fishmonger carries horse mackerel almost all year round, especially the smaller ones. Following Hiroyuki’s kind advice (from Hiroyuki’s Blog on Japanese Cooking), I decided to make aji tempura or ajiten.

Until now my only experience in tempura was asparagus (see here), shrimp and tiny fish fillets. Ajiten means frying the whole fish only with head removed and I was afraid that both the preparation and frying would be tricky. I needn’t have, since this tempura proved quite simple. Thanks to Hiroyuki’s research I learnt here and here how to prepare the fish, while coating and frying it was easier than in the case of asparagus. The fried fish was juicy inside, slightly crispy outside and, surprisingly, not greasy. I took to horse mackerel at once because it has a delicate flesh and doesn’t have the overwhelming typical saltwater species smell. Moreover, its taste brings me back to my childhood holidays, when I would ask my mum to fry for me freshly caught small river fish for breakfast every day…

I don’t know if my ajiten looked or tasted as it should, nor if my decision to make a thicker tempura mixture was right. I had this tempura only with the Tomato and Shiso salad (click here) and it was one of the best meals I can remember. Thank you, Hiroyuki, for your help!

Preparation: about 20 minutes + 20 minutes marinating

Ingredients (serves 2):

6 smaller horse mackerels (mine were about 15 cm long)

3 tablespoons cooking sake

salt

5 tablespoons tempura mixture + 3 tablespoons ice cold water

Wash the mackerels.

Gut them and prepare them, scaling them, cutting off the head, removing the main bone and spreading them flat, see here how to make it:

or here:

Wash the mackerels, pat them dry, sprinkle some salt and sake on the open side and let it marinate for about 20 minutes.

Combine very roughly and quickly the tempura mix with ice-cold water (the chopsticks are here perfect, since they will not produce a smooth batter, but a lumpy one).

Check the oil temperature by dropping a bit of the batter. If it stays only a bit under the surface and then quickly moves up and starts bubbling, the temperature is good.

Pat dry the mackerels, dip them in the batter keeping the tail in your hand, and deep fry for about 5 minutes.

Drain with a slotted spoon and put on paper towels before serving.

Mackerel Simmered in Miso (Saba no miso ni サバの味噌に)

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Mackerel is a beautiful and quite easy to handle a fish. The one I buy has beautiful blue patterns on a soft, scale – free skin and no sticky disgusting mucus covering some fish species. I must also add the mackerel is one of the healthiest fish species. It is very high in omega 3 acids, apparently not endangered and it is often the cheapest item at the fishmonger’s. Even though this fish is widely appreciated in Japan, in many Western countries only smoked and canned form of mackerel is known. Even though I am a curious person (especially when it comes to food products), I am particularly cautious with fish experiments, since, badly prepared, they can easily end up inedible. Mackerel is quite a recent guest in my kitchen and for a long time I used to simply fry quickly the fillets. That was before I learnt about the Japanese simmering in miso method.

As a reminder, miso (味噌) is a thick paste and it has three main colour types: white (shiromiso), red (akamiso), black (kuromiso), and also mixed miso (awasemiso). In general, the lighter the colour, the more delicate it tastes. There are myriads of different misos, depending on the brand, the ingredients, the region… Even my small Japanese grocery shop in Switzerland carries many miso varieties, most of which I haven’t tasted yet. Miso is very healthy, packed with protein, vitamins and minerals. It is however important to choose it with a lesser amount of salt, otherwise it is no longer very healthy and may be difficult to cook (the miso’s coulour doesn’t have anything to to with its saltiness, my black miso being the least salty of all). Miso soup is usually the first dish in which foreigners discover this Japanese staple. I find miso’s flavour highly addictive, probably because it is rich in the umami, or fifth taste, made famous by a Japanese professor.

Mackerel Simmered in Miso (Saba no miso ni サバの味噌に) is a very popular dish from the nimono, or “simmering dishes” family, very badly known side of the Japanese cuisine (at least in Western countries). It is a pure delight and one of the most surprising outcomes of all the cooking experiments I have ever made. Following the recipe from No Recipes website, I simmered firs my mackerel with all the bones. According to the author they should soften so much that the fish can be eaten whole. Since I haven’t used the advised pressure cooker, at my first attempt the bigger bones were still too tough after four hours of slow simmering. A couple of days afterwards I removed the spinal bone and other big bones (it was actually quite easy!). The result was much better, even though the fish didn’t keep its shape as well as before.

In short, either you have a pressure cooker or I would advise removing the biggest bones. Actually I think even fillets cut up into pieces would make a delicious meal. Even though this long simmering method seems more adapted to cold days, it is definitely not a heavy dish and I would recommend it even in the Summer. I have slightly modified the ingredients’ amounts. It went perfectly well with thin decorative strips of ramsons (wild garlic, read more about this plant here).

Preparation: 2 1/2 – 3 hours

Ingredients (serves 2):

about 800 g gutted mackerel, heads removed

5 tablespoons mirin (sweet cooking sake)

5 tablespoons sake

3 cm piece of ginger, grated or finely chopped

1 shallot (finely chopped or sliced)

1 clove garlic, crushed

5 heaped tablespoons red or white miso

250 ml water

Cut the mackerel into 2-3 cm thick chunks (you can remove the bigger bones).

In a pressure cooker (or a simple pot) bring to boil the sake, the mirin, the garlic, the ginger and the shallot.

Let it boil for 2 minutes.

Add the water, the miso and stir well.

Add the mackerel.

If using a pressure cooker, set it to the highest temperature and let the fish simmer for 45 minutes.

If using a simple pot, cover it with a lid and simmer the fish on low heat for at least 2 1/2 hours.

Serve it with rice and a spicy salad (the Spicy Mustard Salad on No Recipes looks perfect, although I haven’t tried it yet).

I sprinkled it with thin strips of wild garlic (ramsons).

Primary Dashi, or Japanese Stock (Ichiban Dashi, 一番出し)

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Dashi (出し) is the Japanese word meaning more or less “stock”. However dashi cannot be compared to the Western countries’ stock’s concept. Dashi is THE cornerstone of the Japanese cuisine. Without dashi cooking Japanese is not possible, “it is merely à la japonaise”, says Shizuo Tsuji. In his extraordinary “Japanese Cooking. A Simple Art“ the author very justly explains that using the instant dashi is understandable, but it is very important to understand how the traditonal dashi is made and how it tastes when prepared according to the state-of-the art rules. Thanks to Shizuko Tsuji I learnt the dashi recipe I had been preparing for years (as in the Simplified Miso Soup, using only katsuobushi, or shaved bonito fish flakes) was a shortcut used by many home and restaurant cooks. This popular method skips the first of the two stages, the one where konbu 昆布 seaweed plays the crucial role.

Konbu/Kombu 昆布 kelp, also called giant kelp (Saccharina/Laminaria japonica in Latin), is a kind of seaweed found at Japanese and Asian grocer’s and in health food shops. It is used in the stock preparation, the sushi rice preparation, in side dishes, cooked as a vegetable… The one used in stock is sold in dry, thick, almost black strips, it is also commonly consumed in Korea (다시마) and is quite popular in other East Asian countries. The earliest known written mention of the use of konbu in Japan dates back to the VIIIth century and gives an idea on how important konbu is in the Japanese cuisine. Click here to see different types of konbu. These are hidaka-konbu strips (also called mitsuishi-kombu) I used in my last dashi:

Following the steps in Shizuo Tsuji’s book, I prepared the Primary Dashi (Ichiban Dashi, 一番出し) and realised the stage I had been missing for years is very short, very easy, but makes a huge difference in flavour and aroma. In fact, one can wonder how a piece of wrinkled seaweed and dried fish flakes can create something so extraordinary… Closing my eyes, inhaling the cooled dashi I found myself in my childhood years smelling the freshly caught, river fish… I closed my eyes once more and remembered the first time in my life I saw and smelled the fresh mediterranean sea breeze…

The explanations are long and detailed, but the process is very simple. Both ingredients used in primary dashi can be reused to make another stock! Click here to read the secondary dashi (niban dashi) recipe.

Preparation: 10-15 minutes

Ingredients (for 1/2 litre dashi):

1/2 litre cold water

15 g konbu strip(s)

15g dried bonito flakes (katsuobushi かつおぶし)

Put the konbu into the cold water in a pan (don’t wash it!). Hat uncovered for about 10 minutes and when it is just before the boiling point, remove the konbu.
If inserting your thumbnail into the konbu you feel the flesh is soft, it means the water has the sufficient flavour.

If it still remains tough, out back for 1-2 minutes into the water adding some more (2 tablespoons) cold water to stop it from boiling.

Remove the konbu.

Bring the stock to a boil.

Add 2 more tablespoons cold water and add immediately the bonito flakes.

Bring once more to a boil and quickly put aside.

Wait for the flakes to fall down to the bottom of the pan (it will take at most 1 minute).

Remove the foam and filter the stock through a sieve line with a piece of gauze.

Reserve both the konbu and the dried bonito flakes for the secondary dashi.

Grilled Toast with Canned Tuna

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Canned tuna is probably the most versatile canned fish I can imagine. Contrary to sardines or anchovies, it is equally good in both hot and cold dishes. To all those crying I shamelessly promote an overfished species, I have two words: Katsuwonus pelamis. This latin name refers to skipjack tuna, also called striped tuna or arctic bonito, the one usually canned and apparently not endangered. Those who have ever had a chance to taste it grilled know it is definitely not the highly praised, red, succulent tun. Striped tuna is dried in Japan, and then becomes katsuobushi, “shaved” and used to prepare the Japanese broth, or dashi (read more here).

Grilled toasts with toppings (or grilled open sandwiches) are my staples whenever I need a hot, but quick meal. They are the only reason I keep the vilified toast bread, ideal for this preparation. Since this kind of bread keeps quite long, and given into consideration the cans’ shelf life, I always have the ingredients necessary to prepare a toast with tuna. (I do not mention the gruyère you see melted above, since living in Switzerland I couldn’t possibly not have it in my fridge!). The remaining items can be freely substituted or omitted.

This grilled toast can be served for any course. With a green salad it makes a complete and light lunch or dinner (of course unless you put tons of cheese on top).

Preparation: 10 – 15 minutes

Ingredients (serves two):

1 can tuna (in water is the one I prefer)

2-3 slices toast bread

a couple of tablespoons capers or chopped olives

a couple of tablespoons mayonnaise, cream cheese, yogurt or sour cream

salt, pepper

50-70 g or more gruyère (or any other melting cheese you have, even mozzarella will do; personally I find gruyère the best here)

(gochujang, tabasco or chili powder)

Preheat the upper grill in the oven.

Drain the tuna. Put it in a bowl and squash it with a fork, add the capers (or the olives), the mayonnaise, salt, pepper, gochujang and mix well with a fork.

Cut the toast bread into halves (I like the triangles’ cut) or into four pieces if you prefer.

Spread the tuna mixture (a 1 cm or thicker layer) over the bread and arrange the sandwiches on a baking tray or a piece of aluminium foil.

Grate the cheese over the sandwiches or cut it into thin slices and put it over them.

Put the sandwiches under the oven grill and grill them until the cheese melts and the bread crust becomes golden.

Serve with ketchup or hot sauces (plum sauce goes well) and with a green salad.