by : Reiko Japanese Food, Mushrooms

Oatmeal-Tofu Okonomiyaki
オートミール豆腐お好み焼き

I’m not on the gluten-free diet, but this movement has made many including myself realize that you can make so many things without gluten (flour).

I still stick to flour when the gluten version tastes better, but I’ve also discovered dishes that I actually like better gluten-free!

Okonomiyaki is a great example.

I always thought flour was a must ingredient, but then I started experimenting with other ingredients, and I now like the non-flour version.

I’ve made Okonomiyaki mainly with tofu and chickpea flour, but this time I decided to add some oatmeal.

The addition of oatmeal was such a hit!

It added the unique texture, and I really enjoyed it.

For the batter I used…

Tofu, chickpea flour, oatmeal, water, salt, pepper, nutritional yeast, cumin, turmeric, onion powder.

This time I added cabbage, garlic flower, scallion, mushrooms.

It was covered with Okonomiyaki sauce and served with hummus-like paste, fried onion, and fresh scallion.

This was so delicious!!

This is probably my favorite Okonomiyaki I’ve ever made.

Who knew I find the vegan and gluten-free version better than the real thing!

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by : Reiko Fruit, Japanese Food, Rice/Grains

Plant-Based Chirashi-Sushi
菜鮮ちらし寿司

Chirashi literally means “scattered”.

Chirashi-sushi is a bed of sushi rice with various things (usually fresh fish) scattered over rice.

As I said above, it’s usually fish (especially those found at Japanese restaurants in the U.S.), but in Japan a lot of people use other things, including a lot of vegetables.

The one you find here is still a bit unusual even for Japanese people, mainly because it contains fruit.

I actually really enjoy fruit with sushi rice.

It’s delicious, especially when they are also with wasabi soy sauce!

Yum!!

I always like to have a bowl of miso soup with my sushi.

This one has a lot of vegetables and Wakame seaweed.

And more seaweed!

This one is called “Hijiki”, braised.

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by : Reiko Japanese Food, Rice/Grains

Plant-Based Sushi Lunch
プラントベース・寿司ランチ

Why not paying extra attention to lunch when you have extra time.

I could have just make a rice bowl, but at the last minute I decided to make sushi.

Pretty ones.

Pickled beet slice with homemade vegan cream cheese and parsley.

Teriyaki tempeh.

Vegan egg with a seaweed belt.

Kiwi.

(Surprisingly makes a delicious Sushi.)

Strawberry.

Lightly picked radish and black sesame seeds.

Sauteed Enoki mushrooms with a seaweed belt.

Homemade vegan bacon.

In addition, there are tomato x Shiso basil and Edamame.

I wish I could have lunch like this everyday, or rather someone could prepare it for me!

But I had fun making this.

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by : Reiko Japanese Food, Rice/Grains, Vegan Egg

Futon (Folded)Sushi
ふとん（折りたたみ）寿司

If you can make a wrap with a tortilla, why not make a wrap with roasted seaweed sheet?

I used the same idea.

Vegan “egg”, tempeh steak, homemade vegan cream cheese, pickled beets, avocado slices, sushi rice, and Aojiso Japanese basil leaves.

To tell the truth, this is my second attempt on this sushi wrap.

The first time I placed sushi rice to cover the whole sheet.

As a result, it got too “fat” and I was not able to fold it nicely to make a wrap.

Learning from this mistake, this time I placed rice only on the left side that becomes the top and the bottom layer when folded.

Ta-da!

This time it’s folded beautifully.

This was a fun project, and it was delicious!

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by : Reiko Breakfast, Japanese Food, Mochi

Mochi Pancake
餅ホットケーキ

I call this “pancake”, but this is a much thicker version that I grew up with eating.

We call it “hotcake” in Japan, and whenever I eat it, it brings back all the memories from my childhood.

I still remember exactly what pan my mother would use to make us hot cakes.

I was in the mood for a hot cake, and when I found an interesting recipe that uses Mochi, I had to try it.

Remember a few days ago I said I used the last pieces of Mochi.

Well, I still wanted to eat more, and I decided to make some myself.

I learned from my Instagram friend, Ms. Tomomi, that it is possible to make Mochi in the U.S. without a Mochi maker.

It turned out great!

It is somewhat a shame that you cannot really see the Mochi in the first dish I made with my first homemade Mochi, but I was super happy with how this Mochi pancake turned out.

It’s soft, moist, and slightly sweet.

It’s thick but not heavy at all.

It was so good that I only used vegan butter.

It was delicious as it was, and I didn’t want to cover it with syrup.

I thoroughly enjoyed my first Mochi pancake.

This black tea was the perfect beverage to accompany the pancake.

This is my absolute favorite black tea, “Hot Cinnamon Sunset” by Harney & Sons.

The sweetness and warmth created by the blend of spices is so wonderful.

It’s so sweet that I have to check the ingredients listed on the tin frequently to make sure there is not added sugar or sweetner.

The ingredients listed are…

“Black tea, orange peel, natural and artificial cinnamon flavor, cinnamon, cloves.”

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by : Reiko Japanese Food, Rice/Grains, Tofu

Koya Miso Katsu Rice Bowl
高野味噌かつ丼

I like to keep Koya Dofu, freeze-dried tofu, in my pantry because it doesn’t go bad for a long time, and it can be used to make many “meat” dishes as it has the right texture.

Katsu, or dee-fried meat, is a popular dish in Japan, and my husband and I both like it too.

Doesn’t this look great?

I use Panko for the crunch.

You can use any type of sauce, but this time I decided to go with sweet dark miso glaze.

This is popular in the Nagoya region, where I grew up.

This sauce goes so well not only with the Katsu but also with the shredded cabbage (and rice).

I’m so glad that now a few local Asian grocery stores carry the type of dark miso from the Nagoya Region, “Haccho”.

I made extra, because I knew we would enjoy this on other things as well.

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by : Reiko Breakfast, Japanese Food, Mochi

Cinnamon Sugar Butter Mochi
シナモンバター餅

Yes, I’m still eating Mochi.

In Japan we typically celebrate New Year over three days, from the first to the third of January, so I’m doing things correctly.

This time I decided to serve Mochi in a nontraditional way.

Toasted Mochi was served with melted vegan butter, cinnamon, and date sugar.

A great thing about Mochi is that you can enjoy different textures.

Some part is crunchy, and the other is soft and chewy.

This was delicious!!

Loved my Mochi with this wonderful combination of butter, cinnamon, and (date) sugar.

I’ve been really enjoying my date sugar.

Because it doesn’t dissolve into liquid, it cannot be used for everything, but I try using it in as many things as possible.

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