SWEET SOY BEEF AND VEGETABLE HOTPOT – SUKIYAKI

Serve 4
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes

In cold weather or rainy days, it is really good idea having a hotpot spicy soup like sukiyaki. Even the ingredients below already have assorted vegies and beef, you could always add anything you preffer to give the ultimate taste for this famous japanese soup.

INGREDIENTS:
10 dried or fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems remove and discarded
500 g beef tenderloin, thinly sliced
250 g glass noodles (shirataki)
250 g firm tofu, cut into cubes
2 small leeks, rinsed and sliced diagonally
120 g spinach, wash and coarsely cut in sections
4 large eggs (optional)
2 tbsp oil

SAUCE:
180 ml (3/4 cup) soy sauce
60 ml (1/4 cup) sake
60 ml (1/4 cup) mirin
125 ml (1/2 cup) water

HOW TO MAKE:
1. If using dried mushrooms, soak in hot water for about 15 minutes. Drain the mushrooms and squeeze out any excess water before use.
2. Arrange prepared ingredients on a serving platter. Break 1 egg each into 4 small serving bowls.
3. Combine the sauce indgredients in four small batches – mushrooms, beef, glass noodles or shirataki, tofu, and spinach – into a hotpot on a table-top hotplate.
4. Heat the oil into a hotpot on a table-top hotplate. Stir-fry the ingredients in batches, stirring continuously until foods are cooked to desired doneness.
5. Diners can then remove cooked meat or vegetables from the hotpot, using the egg as a dipping sauce for the hot food. If you prefer, use ponzu dipping sauce instead.
6. Replenish the cooking hotpot with remaining ingredients as needed. Ready to serve.

MISO SOUP WITH TOFU AND DRIED SEAWEEDS

Serve 4
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes

To complete a Japanese dish, usually we include miso soupin a plate dish. This time, I will give you a miso soup recipe combining with tofu and dried seaweeds (nori).

INGREDIENTS:
180 g soft tofu, cut into cubes
1 piece dried seaweed (nori), sliced
1 liter basic dashi stock
3 tbsp miso

HOW TO MAKE:
1. Place basic dashi stock in a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook for 1 minute and add the tofu.
2. Place miso in large ladle and dissolve it with some of the hot soup, stirring it with a wooden spoon. Stir the miso into the saucepan, and add the soy sauce and dried seaweeds.Bring the soup to a boil and ladle it into four bowls. Do not overcook. Serve immediately.

GRILLED SKEWERED CHICKEN – YAKITORI

Serve 4
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes

One of the most popular dishes of Japanese food is grilled skewered chicken or yakitori. It is served best on a daily meals at dinner time or it’s so great having it on barbeque party.

INGREDIENTS:
1 tbsp sugar
60 ml mirin
125 ml soy sauce
125 ml sake
500 g chicken fillet
200 g chicken liver (optional)
4 fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems removed
2 bell pepper, cut in 3 cm squares
1 leek, cut into 2 ½ cm pieces
16-20 bamboo skewers , 20 cm long
Seven-spice chili powder
Lemon wedges for garnish

HOW TO MAKE:
1. To prepare sauce, combine sugar, mirin, soy sauce, and sake in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and cook for about 15 minutes, reducing the sauce to 1 cup.
2. Dice the chicken fillet and liver (optional), then thread onto skewers, alternating with pieces of leek and bell pepper. If bamboo skewers are used, soak in water at least 10 minutes before use.
3. Heat the broiler. Baste the ingredients with the sauce.
4. Broil the skeweres for about 2-3 minutes, turning three or four times and basting each time, until the chicken and livers (optional) are just cooked. Do not overcook.
5. Remove from the heat. Sprinkle the skewers with seven-spice chili powder and serve with lemon wedges.