Mochi Day 2.
Today I had my toasted mochi dipped in sweet soy glaze, and then wrapped in roasted seaweed.
This is another traditional way to eat Mochi.
So good!!
I forgot to share this yesterday.
My sister brought these New Year ornaments a few years ago when she came to visit us in Minnesota.
Mochi, sticky rice cake, is eaten at the beginning of the year traditionally in Japan.
I was shocked to find out that Mochi was sold out on December 30th when I went to the Asian grocery store which typically carries a lot of Japanese foods including seasonal items!
I apparently underestimated the number of Japanese people living in this area.
However, the next day our neighbor came for a rescue!
They were able to find Mochi at a different store and got some for me.
There are many ways to enjoy Mochi, but Zenzai (you add a toasted Mochi to sweet bean soup) is one of the popular ones.
This Macha Zenzai is one of its versions.
I initially made this (picture above), where I used straight Matcha.
This was delicious as you can really enjoy the unique bitterness from Matcha and how well it goes with the sweet read beans which is added as a topping.
But I also wanted to try the Matcha “latte” version.
This was also delicious, and probably better received by non-Japanese or people who are not used to drinking Matcha straight.
Can you tell the Mochi was nicely browned and puffed?
Mochi was added to the Matcha latte as well as chestnuts and sweeet red beans.
You now know why Mochi is called “sticky” rice cake?
It’s sticky and stretchy!!
Be careful when you eat Mochi though because every year the number of deaths caused by choking spikes in January in Japan; people die from choking on Mochi.
I am looking forward to enjoying more Mochi dishes the next few days.
Happy New Year, everyone!
Making Sushi rolls is a good idea when there are several leftover dishes, each a small amount.
That was exactly the reason why I made these rolls.
I had a little bit of vegan “omelet,” a little bit of cooked tempeh, and some “Kanpyo” that needed to be used in the freezer, and a few spinach leaves.
Doesn’t it look perfect though when rolled together like this?
This one got the Mexican theme, with vegan chorizo, avocado, tomato, and cilantro.
Lunch is ready!
This pandemic sucks.
No doubt about it.
But I’m trying to stay positive and take advantage of this situation (of mostly staying home) as much as I can.
So I’ve been going through my bucket list, and today I crossed off another one, making Wagashi, traditional Japanese confections.
Wagashi is food, but also “art.”
So presentation is super important.
I definitely need to work on my skills, but I’m pretty happy with the results of my first attempt.
I made two types today.
This one is Camellia.
Luckily, my husband just recently bought me natural food coloring.
I hate to use artificial colors for my food, so I was very happy that I was able to add beautiful colors without guilt.
This is the leaf version.
Super happy with how the color gradation turned out.
As you can tell, beans are an essential part of traditional Japanese sweets.
What’s more perfect than Nabe, Japanese hot pot, on a cold cloudy day?
Nabe is so easy to prepare.
All you need to do is to cut up all the veggies and tofu.
We typically add some kinds of meat, fish, or/and meat(or fish) balls.
I don’t need them, but I thought it would be fun to add balls to Nabe today.
I made these balls with Renko lotus as a main ingredient.
They turned out great.
3D carrot flowers are a must!
They are super easy to make, but so pretty.
Now we wait…
This pot is way too big for two persons, but I love how well it shows off all the food, and I don’t mind having leftover.
My husband and I enjoyed this so much.
When we do Nabe, we actually sit at the dining table, which is an added bonus.
There are so many Japanese food products you can buy in the U.S. toady.
I typically lie to make my Inari pouches myself, but I have to confess, store-bought ones are convenient.
I bought a package a few weeks ago, put it in the fridge, thinking I would thank myself when I want a tasty meal but I don’t want to spend a lot of time in the kitchen.
The day came yesterday.
If you are not familiar with “Inari Sushi,” it is sweet soy sauce braised soy curd pouch stuffed with sushi rice.
This time I decided to dress them up a little on the top.
You can’t see it, but there is rice at the bottom.
This one is Hijiki seaweed and beans.
Scrambled turmeric tofu.
Sesame carrot.
The Inari sushi was served with miso soup, kimchi, and Rakkyo pickles.
Have a great weekend everyone.
This combination of sweet Azuki (red beans) and butter may sound strange to Westerners, but it’s hugely popular in Japan.
The key is to use a hunk of cold butter (not melted).
No, you do not count calories.
My homemade vegan butter.
You can buy sweet red beans from stores, but this time I cooked some myself.
Homemade sourdough scone, sweet Azuki beans, vegan butter, and strawberry jam.
The saltiness from the butter, sweetness from the red beans, and the tartness from the jam.
Mmmmm, so good!!
When I saw a show about Gyoza (Japanese pot stickers) on NHK channel, I knew that’s what I needed to make the next day.
I went grocery shopping to get all the ingredients, including wrappers, but at the last minute I decided to make wrappers myself.
It’s extra work and messy, but homemade wrappers make a big difference!
When I use store-bought wrappers, I can easily make over 50, but when I make my own wrappers, 20 is all I have energy (and time) for.
Still so worth though!
I also learned that pot stickers taste the best freshly cooked.
I used to make a lot of them and freeze some, but I no longer do that because they just don’t taste the same.
So I only make what we can eat in one meal.
So 20 is fine.
This time I cooked my pot stickers a bit differently, and they turned out perfect (probably the best ever)!
Do you see the “wings,” that’s what we call in Japan, the crispy thin fried edges?
Any good pot stickers are supposed to have them.
This side is most and chewy.
And this side is crispy.
You can enjoy two different textures in one piece.
I keep the filling simple.
Garlic, ginger, onion (microwaved for 1 min), cabbage (salted and then excess water removed), vermicelli, (corn starch, soy sauce, sesame oil).
I’ve tried other things, like tofu and mushrooms, but I decided that this is what I like.
The idea of adding vermicelli noodles came from a restaurant in Japan.
The particular ramen restaurant served vegan pot stickers which contained vermicelli and we absolutely loved them.
Another creation by hubby with his 3D printer.
Pretty cool, isn’t it?
This is a cookie cutter I designed for my friend, who has a handsome dog.
It took me multiple trials to draw his face right.
But it was a fun project.
My hubby did a good job with putting bars, instead of covering the whole bottom, which makes cookie-cutting easier.
Isn’t he handsome?
He always wears this cool scarf around his neck.
Yep, I still need to work on my icing skills.
Simple udon dish.
Japanese curry soup, scallion, and fried tofu (a-ge).
Finished off with a vegan egg.
Tasty!
Who wouldn’t want this beautiful vegan egg in your noodle soup?!
Ramen is usually served in soup.
But the ramen noodles can be dressed with oil-based dressing, and it’s delicious.
This is perfect when you want noodles, but you want something lighter.
This was served with homemade vegan chicken, bean sprouts, garlic chives, scallion, and vegan egg.
The dressing was simply made with soy sauce, sugar, vinegar, and sesame oil.
