Japanese Food

by : Reiko Japanese Food, Rice/Grains

Weekend Sushi Rolls
週末寿司ロール

Last weekend we took a trip to New York City.

We got to try great vegan food there, and one of the memorable meals was the one at Beyond Sushi.

Their sushi was so creative and unique, and that really inspired me to be a bit more bold in my sushi-making.

I also found this vegan “caviar” at a vegan shop in the city, and I was excited to try with my sushi.

The “caviar” is made with seaweed, and it definitely satisfies my craving for the “ocean” flavor.

The texture is also spot-on!

Inside: avocado; sweet-spicy tempeh, Japanese Shiso basil leaves
Outside: cucumber; homemade vegan turmeric mayo; black “caviar”

Inside: pickled beets; avocado
Outside: radish; homemade vegan mayo, orange “caviar”; chervil

Inside: Tofu with sweet teriyaki sauce; black sesame seeds
Outside: Kanpyo

All were super yummy!

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April 19, 2019

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

Black bean Tea Soba
黒豆茶そば

I’ve been always a big noodle person, and I’m always up for good noodle soup.

Remember this Japanese black bean tea?

I had extra tea and beans kept in the freezer, and I thought it would be interesting to make them into a soba noodle dish.

I did add some stuff to the tea to taste more appropriate as “soup,” but I also made sure that the tea flavor is still there to be enjoyed.

I had cooked Kanpyo (dried shavings of calabash) and decided to make Kanpyo roses for garnish.

I hope everyone had a good start of the week.

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April 1, 2019

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

Hearty Udon Noodle Soup
ほっこりすき煮うどん

Okay.

I know I’ve been talking about spring on it way for a while.

But this week it really finally feels like spring is coming VERY SOON.

The weather forecast says we are going to have temperature finally above 50!!

So excited.

However, today it’s still below 32F in the Twin Cities, and this hearty noodle soup is very appropriate.

Various vegetables (Napa cabbage, carrots scallion, etc.), tofu, and seitan meat were slowly cooked in soy sauce based slightly sweet broth.

For this particular dish thick chewy Udon noodle is a great choice.

You can always enjoy this without noodles like soup as well.

Have a great weekend everyone.

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March 16, 2019

by : Reiko Japanese Food, Sweets

Oni-Monster Manju
鬼・鬼嫁・緑鬼まんじゅう

Manju is a general term for traditional Japanese confection.

This particular manju is called “Oni Manju.”

Oni is a supernatural fictional demon that often appears in traditional Japanese folk tales.

Why this has the name “oni” is unknown, but the rough look seems to have something to do with it.

The typical Oni Manju is a sticky base with chunks of Japanese sweet potatoes.

This time I decided to make a few different versions.

One with dry cranberries and walnuts in addition to potatoes.

The other is the same as the one above, but the base was Matcha flavored.

This was a perfect hearty snack.

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March 15, 2019

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

Mapo Tofu Ramen
麻婆豆腐ラーメン

I love Mapo Tofu, and I love ramen.

So this is a no-brainer for me!

The soup was made with slightly burned and caramelized onions and garlic, water, Kombu seaweed, soy sauce, salt, sugar, and hot pepper flakes (picture above).

The main ingredients of the “meat” part of this “Mapo” were tempeh and mushrooms.

This definitely has a kick to it, but is also super flavorful!

Super delicious!!

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March 10, 2019

by : Reiko Japanese Food, Rice/Grains

Early Spring Japanese Breakfast
初春和朝食

We had a few warmer days this week, but it’s still pretty cold for March, and we are expecting more snow this weekend.

It’s not fully spring yet, but I would like to think it’s right around the corner.

To celebrate and welcome this new season, I made this Japanese style breakfast.

I had some salted Sakura flowers, and I thought these would be perfect to decorate my rice.

Isn’t it just lovely?

I got some spring inspired props ready too.

What you see on this breakfast table are Sakura rice, miso soup, Kabocha salad, and braised black bean Hijiki seaweed.

Have a great weekend everyone.

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March 7, 2019

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

Green Tea Soba with Grated Naga-Imo
とろろ茶そば

If you are following this blog for a while, you probably know that I like Matcha.

These green tea soba noodles.

Its color and flavor are just wonderful.

Green tea noodles in soy-based broth, served with grated nagaimo, fried onions, scallion, and Shichimi spice.

Oh, and wasabi.

Wasabi goes so well with grated nagaimo.

Simply delicious.

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March 5, 2019

by : Reiko Breakfast, Japanese Food, Sweets

Amazake Spring Steamed Buns
桃の節句甘酒蒸しパン

It’s one day early, but tomorrow March 3rd is “Momo-No-Sekku”, or the girls celebration day in Japan.

Because of the time of the year we usually celebrate with things that indicate the beginning of spring.

Lots of pastel colors, particularly pink, are used, from home décor to food that day.

Inspired by the Sakura (cherry blossom) tea, I decided to make some steamed buns and then decorate them with the beautiful Sakura flowers.

These buns were sweetened only with Ama-zake, a traditional Japanese fermented rice, which has intense but unique sweetness.

The buns were accented with the Kuro-Mame from the previous post’s Kuro-Mame tea.

This time I made three flavors: plain; Matcha; strawberry.

All were tasty, but the strawberry was probably my favorite.

Steamed bun is one of my favorite snacks.

They are soft and moist, and satisfying, without oil.

I crushed freeze-dry strawberries and added to the batter.

The color is so pretty.

Have a great weekend everyone.

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March 2, 2019

by : Reiko Drinks, Japanese Food

Kuro-Mame Tea
黒まめ茶

I posted something I brought back from Japan in the previous post.

This is another thing that came back with me from Japan.

(You can tell I like tea!)

This tea is supposed to be vary good for your health, but it really doesn’t matter much, because I really like the taste anyway.

This is Kuro-Mame Tea.

Kuro-Mame literally means black beans, but this is a different kind from what is called “black beans” in the U.S., so I decided to keep the Japanese name, “kuro-mame.”

Tea is super easy to make.

You put a few beans in a pot and pour hot water over them.

Let it steep for a few minutes.