by : Reiko Japanese Food, Tofu

Japanese Curry with Tofu Katsu
ルーから作ったよ、豆腐カツカレー

I was craving for Japanese curry for a while.

Luckily, they sell a lot of Japanese brands’ curry roux at grocery stores in Bangkok, but unfortunately, I couldn’t find any whose ingredients I was happy with.

So I decided to make from scratch.

I kept it simple and chose the veggies that are traditionally used for this type of Japanese curry: onion, carrot, potatoes.

Instead of beef or pork I added soy meat.

The secret ingredient was a little mango powder.

It is common that people add some kind of fruit (apple is a popular one) to curry in Japan.

It’s so subtle, so you don’t know you are tasting mango, but I think it contributed to creating the depth in the flavor.

Remember the cucumber pickles I made (the one on the upper left in the picture)?

A few days later they absorbed the marinade well and were ready to eat.

I like to serve my curry with pickles.

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by : Reiko Fruit, Japanese Food

Trying to Eat More Sustainably
サステイナビリティに目を向ける

I’ve been interested in eating more sustainably for a while, but I wasn’t quite sure where to start until I found Happy Grocers.

It’s a store/organization in Thailand that focuses on organic farming, locally sourced produce, and seasonal consumption, all of which are things I’m very interested in.

They offer delivery service, so I decided to order some online.

You can choose items from their list, but while I was doing it, I came across something called “surplus set”.

It’s a mix of vegetables and fruits that need to be eaten or cooked right away.

It seems like a great way to help reduce waste, so I got that along with a few other items.

Because of the area where we live and how much spend, I qualified for free delivery.

My bags arrived on the day, during the time slot that I specified.

I was pleasantly surprised by the amount and the variety.

The quality was overall very good, too.

Other than one ear of corn which was past its prime, everything else was fresh, and many of them looked so fresh that I didn’t feel the need to eat or cook right away.

In addition to the surplus set, I bought tofu, tempeh, soy meat, and a Jerusalem bagel.

Since you don’t know what you get until they arrive, once they arrive, you have to make a game plan quickly.

Since I got them at 11:00 a.m. I decided to cook some for lunch and some others after lunch.

I thought ratatouille was a good way to utilize the yellow pepper, zucchini, eggplant, and onions.

I also decided to make another dish with the sweet potatoes.

The fruits were perfectly ripe and ready to eat.

They were so sweet!

This was my first time trying Jerusalem bagel.

It came with za’atar spice mix.

It was very tasty.

I love trying new things.

It turned out to be a great meal!

After lunch I prepared a few more dishes by using other vegetables.

Once cooked we could enjoy them for the next few days.

Like this.

This is miso eggplant x soy meat.

My husband is not a big fan of eggplant, but he liked this and had a second helping.

I served this over rice.

Celery kinpira.

Kinpira is a type of Japanese side dish, typically made of root vegetables.

Japanese style potato salad.

The mayo is home-made and vegan.

Pickled cucumber and shio-konbu.

I’ve also prepared a few more dishes with the produce from the surplus set.

Trying to come up with dishes to make based on what are provided is a challenge and fun.

It kind of reminds me of the old TV show, “Iron Chef” (lol).

Happy Grocers – https://happygrocersbkk.com/

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by : Reiko Japanese Food, Sweets

Vegan Taiyaki London Fog
Vたい焼きロンドンフォグ

My oven was delivered and placed in our kitchen, but emotionally I’m not ready to bake with it yet.

It’s always a bit intimidating to use a new appliance.

So, I made a treat by using something that was a little more familiar to me.

When we moved from the U.S., we got rid of a lot of things because we wanted to bring only what we “needed” and “absolutely wanted”.

This probably won’t make it into most people’s suitcases, but it did into mine. 🙂

The traditional filling is sweet Azuki paste.

But this time I wanted something a bit different.

It’s always fun to experiment with new things in the kitchen.

I decided to make earl grey flavored pastry cream.

It smelled so good in the kitchen.

I had to restrain myself from keeping eating after quick tasting.

They are so adorable!

They look so cute from this angle, too.

The spilled-out part is called “Hane”, which literally means “wing” in Japanese, and often times people purposely try to create it.

I like “Hane” too because it’s so crispy and yum.

Do you start with the head?

Or the tail?

When we moved in our new home, we needed a pot and a pan.

After looking at several options, I picked this Fika brand.

I’m so happy with the decision.

It’s a Korean brand, and the quality is superb!

I also love its look including the wood handle.

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by : Reiko Japanese Food, Noodles/Pasta, Soup/Stew

Kitsune Soba with Crispy Enoki
カリカリエノキののったきつね蕎麦

Soba soup is one of comfort foods for me.

It’s hot in Bangkok, but we keep our place comfortable thanks to air conditioners.

So, I decided to make hot soba noodle soup.

When we switched mostly to a plant-based diet, it took me a bit to figure out how to make broth without using any animal products.

Traditionally most people use some kind of fish products to make the base stock (or “dashi”).

To keep the dish plant-based I use seaweed.

You can buy dried “kombu” seaweed that is sold specifically for making stock; it’s usually called “dashi-kombu”.

I also like to use “shio-kombu” which literally means “salted kombu”.

I just grab a tablespoon or so and add it to water.

I won’t even bother to take them out.

Then, I flavor the dashi with soy sauce, sugar, and a little salt.

Simple, yet delicious.

This is my recent favorite things to keep in my pantry.

You can buy it at White Story Shop.

I believe there are several locations in Bangkok.

These are crispy Enoki mushrooms.

It’s delicious as is, and I often snack on it late at night.

The crispy enoki is packed with Umami, and I sprinkled it on my noodles.

It’s delicious as a crunchy topping, but when it sinks in the broth, it disperses umami to the broth.

By the say, I had an oven delivered a few days ago.

So I’m hoping to start baking soon!

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by : Reiko Beans/Lentils, Breakfast, Japanese Food, Rice/Grains, Vegan Egg

Natto Rice with Vegan Egg
納豆ご飯、ヴィーガン”卵”のせ

Lately, I’ve been eating bread (multi grain whole wheat) for breakfast, but Natto rice is still one of my favorite breakfast meals.

I had some leftover vegan “egg yolk” from Sukiyaki (previous post), and I generously placed it over my Natto rice.

I used to add just soy sauce to my Natto rice, but now I like using both soy sauce and vinegar.

This exceeded my expectations!

What’s your favorite breakfast food?

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by : Reiko Japanese Food, Mushrooms, Soup/Stew, Tofu, Vegan Egg

Autumn Sukiyaki
秋のすき焼き

Sukiyaki is a popular Japanese Nabe(pot)-style dish.

You cook various meats and vegetable in a soy sauce based sweet broth.

Thin sliced beef is usually the main ingredient.

As you can see, in my plant-based version you won’t see any meats, but instead there are a lots of mushrooms (three kinds!) and two types of tofu (fried and extra firm).

You can basically use any vegetables, but the ones you see here are probably often expected in Sukiyaki pot: Napa cabbage, Shungiku, mushrooms, tofu, carrots, and yam noodles.

Luckily, I can get all these ingredients at the local Asian grocery store today.

One thing that is not authentic is the addition of an apple.

Since it’s in the season and I got beautiful fresh apples from a farmers market that morning, I decided to add some to the pot.

I also used a little bit of the apple cider I also got from the farmers market to the broth.

Not everyone, but many people enjoy Sukiyaki with a raw egg as a dipping sauce.

The Sukiyaki broth tends to be quite strong, and the egg balances it.

I did grow up with this tradition, but I never liked the egg white.

So this time I made my vegan “yolk” with carrots and it worked great!

It was rich, creamy, and the beautiful orange color was bright and appetizing.

It was so delicious!!

Let me share some pictures from my last weekend’s trip to the local farmers market.

What’s your favorite kind of squash?

Love this one!

So beautiful.

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by : Reiko Japanese Food, Soup/Stew

Autumn Chestnut Curry
秋の栗カレー

What food come to your mind when you hear “autumn”?

In Japan people list…

Mushrooms, persimmon… and chestnut.

The chestnut is probably one of the most loved fall foods.

It’s usually used for sweets (there is a popular chestnut cake called “Mont Blonc”).

I was tempted, but since I’m watching my sugar intake, I decided to use it for a savory dish.

I made the curry from scratch this time, without using the store-bought “roux”.

My husband said it was better than the store-bought one, which made me relieved and happy.

I got these roasted chestnuts from an Asian grocery store.

Along with the chestnuts, in this curry you’ll find onion, carrots, mushrooms, and Renkon lotus root.

It was finished with spiced roasted crispy chickpeas.

I liked the idea of adding chestnuts to curry, but these particular chestnuts were not as sweet as I had expected.

I will probably use the rest to make something sweets after all.

Do you like chestnuts?

How do you like to eat them?

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by : Reiko Japanese Food, Vegan Fish

Vegan Fried “Oyster” Japanese-Style Lunch ヴィーガン”牡蛎”フライ定食風

I’m not a big fan of “fake” food, especially those store-bought processed ones.

On the other hand, I do enjoy some of the homemade “fake” food made from scratch.

This vegan fried “oyster” is one of my favorites.

They were served with Japanese Worcestershire sauce and tartar sauce.

They are so good!

This was the main dish of our lunch.

Others included on the tray were Japanese rice, onion-sweet potato miso soup, roasted veggies, soy sauce koji cucumber, and green tea.

The roasted peppers and zucchini were topped off with pecan Bolognese sauce.

We had friends over for dinner last week, and they surprised us by bringing this bag of rice!

I got so excited because this was the brand I had wanted to try for a while.

It’s called “Yumepirika”, and many Japanese people living in the U.S. agree that this is the best (or one of the best) Japanese rice available in the U.S.

The rice was very good.

My friend told me that the good flavor remains even when it cools down, so you don’t have to warm it up.

Can you tell how crunchy they are?

Panko crumbs work wonders.

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by : Reiko Air Fryer, Japanese Food, Rice/Grains, Tofu

Tofu Karaage Onigiri Lunch
豆腐唐揚げおにぎり定食

It was a busy week, and I was glad that I decided to give myself a day off today.

You need to listen to your mind and body, right?

Instead of working, I decided to make a nice lunch for myself and my hubby.

This salted Kombu seaweed is one of my favorite things to keep in my pantry.

It’s not always easy to find in the U.S., so when I find it, I always buy it.

The salted Kombu and chopped pickled beets were added to freshly cooked Japanese rice.

Taste it first and then add salt if it’s needed.

The salted Kombu is quite salty, so you want to make sure if additional salt is needed first.

These Onigiri turned out so pretty with the pink color from the beets.

But they are also super tasty!

Kombu Onigiri is one of my favorites.

I also made Karaage with the extra firm tofu from Costco.

The Costco tofu is so firm, firmer than the regular extra firm one I buy from other stores, and it works great for this dish.

Karaage is a Japanese fried chicken.

You marinade the chicken first, and I do the same with my tofu.

I used my air fryer to fry the marinated and floured Tofu.

It works every time.

Also found the lunch tray are miso soup, kimchi, and curried chickpea salad.

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by : Reiko Japanese Food

Homemade Takuan (Japanese Pickled Daikon)
自家製たくあん

Growing up I ate a lot of pickled vegetables.

We call Japanese pickles, “Tsukemono”, and since I loved it so much that my mom would call me “Ms. Tsukemono”.

Takuan is one of the tsukemono I loved.

It was always yellow, but I never gave a lot of thought to that.

For some reason as a kid I vaguely believed some Daikon was naturally yellow, although I never saw yellow Daikon sold at stores.

When I found out later that the yellow color was usually artificially added, I was shocked.

So I decided to make Takuan myself.

First, I got a Daikon from the largest Asian grocery store in this area, United Noodles.

Just pickled.

Day 1.

Day 5.

You may ask if I used artificial yellow dye.

Well, the answer is NO.

I still wanted my Takuan yellow, so I used Turmeric.

So it’s a “natural” yellow color.

My first homemade Takuan turned out great!

I don’t know why I didn’t make it sooner.

I used this recipe (Japanese) ↓　

https://cookpad.com/recipe/2570586

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