Chirashi-zushi (home-style sushi) with prawn & avocado

This recipe has been very popular in my house over the summer months since it takes less time to prepare than rolled sushi. It can be served for lunch or dinner and also works well when entertaining at home. Try it and let me know how you get on. 

Ingredients:
For the sushi rice
2 cups of Japanese rice (320g)

2 cups of cold water
100ml rice vinegar
2 tbsp sugar
Half tsp salt

For the sushi fillings and toppings:
2 eggs (preferably free range or organic), beaten
Half a yellow pepper & half a red pepper (cut into small cubes)
1 avocado (cut into small cubes)
8 large prawns (cut into bite size pieces)

Vegetable oil (for frying)

Sesame oil and soy sauce (to garnish)

Instructions:

1. Click here to see how to make sushi rice.

2. To make the egg crepe, lightly oil a non-stick frying pan on medium to high heat. Depending on the size of your pan place about half the egg mix on the frying pan so you have a very thin layer of egg like a crepe. Now adjust the heat to low and leave the egg on the pan until the edges of the egg crepe start to break away from the pan. Set aside on a large plate. Continue to do this until all the egg mix is cooked. Place the egg crepes on top of each other as you cook them. When you're finished roll the pile of egg crepes together. Then using a sharp knife cut into thin strips to get shredded egg crepe.

3. Allow the seasoned sushi rice to cool to room temperature, and then mix half of the peppers, avocado and prawns into the rice. Place in a large serving dish. 

4. Scatter the remaining ingredients on top of the rice mix including the shredded egg crepe.

5. For extra flavour lightly drizzle sesame oil and soy sauce all over.

Tofu steak coated in Japanese seven spice flour - easy vegetarian recipe

This is a really simple meat-free/ vegetarian recipe that can be served with a salad or on top of a bowl of rice (tofu donburi).

Ingredients:
Block of firm tofu (500 - 700g), preferably GM free
2 tablespoons plain flour
1 tablespoon nanami-togarashi (Japanese seven spice)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil (for frying)
Chopped spring onion and grated ginger (to garnish)

Instructions:
1. Remove the packaging and water from the block of tofu and place on a chopping board.

2. Cut into thick slices (about 1 inch thick).

3. To remove excess water wrap each slice in kitchen towel, place on a large plate and set aside for about 5 minutes. Remove the wet kitchen towel and wrap in kitchen towel again. Set aside for a further 5 minutes depending on the type of tofu (you may need to do this for 10 minutes each time).

4. Mix the flour and nanami-togarashi on a large plate.

5. Remove the kitchen towel from the tofu and coat each tofu slice in the flour mix.

6. Heat vegetable oil in a non-stick frying pan on high heat.

7. Gently place the tofu slices on the pan and fry for a few minutes. Once nicely browned turn and fry on the other side for a few minutes.

8. Top with chopped spring onion and grated ginger then drizzle a little soy sauce over the tofu.

Tips:
- Put a heavy weight (e.g. book) on the tofu slices when wrapped in kitchen towel. This will help drain the water from the tofu in less time!

Homemade Vegetarian Furikake Recipe

During the Christmas holidays my friend came home from Japan with her three children and stayed with us for a few nights. On the first morning of their stay I asked the kids what they wanted for breakfast and they said rice and furikake!! Furikake is a mix of dry ingredients that Japanese people love to use to season rice. I didn't have any furikake in the house so I made this recipe with ingredients I had in the cupboard. You can buy furikake in Asian markets but I like to make my own as I can control the amount of salt and sugar and avoid MSG.

For this recipe, I'm using milled Irish dillisk which is made by an Irish company called Sea of Vitality. They have a great selection of seaweed products including the milled dillisk, ground kelp and a bread mix with seaweed.  I also use this milled dillisk for soups, stews and bread recipes. 

Ingredients:

8 tsp milled dillisk (dulse)

8 tsp black sesame seeds

8 tsp white sesame seeds

Freshly ground sea salt (to season)

Instructions:

1. Put all the ingredients in a bowl and mix well. 

2. Put in air tight container (e.g. empty jam jar).

3. It can be used as it is. Simply sprinkle over rice or add to other dishes/ salads.

Tips:

- You can use other dry ingredients for the furikake mix such as dry nori flakes, bonito flakes etc.

- Furikake can be sprinkled over a bowl of rice or onigiri (rice balls). It can also be mixed with breadcrumbs for coating fish and chicken.

Chicken skewers with Greek yogurt and miso paste recipe

I love to spend time in my kitchen creating new recipes fusing Western and Japanese flavours.  For this recipe I'm using organic Greek yogurt from a fantastic Irish company called Glenisk and one of my favourite Japanese ingredients to cook with miso paste.  These ingredients can be used separately to marinate meat but they work even better together making the meat unbelievably tender and tasty.

Ingredients
2 x chicken breasts, cut into bite size chunks (preferably free range or organic)
5 tbsp organic Greek yogurt
1 tbsp Japanese miso paste
Bunch of spring onion/ scallion (cut into 2″ lengths)
Sesame seeds (to garnish)
Wooden skewers

Instructions:

1. Soak the chicken skewers in water for about 20 minutes to avoid them burning in the oven.
2. Preheat a fan oven to 180 degrees Celsius. 
3. In a medium size bowl mix the Greek yogurt and miso paste together. 
4. Toss in the chicken pieces and completely cover in the marinade. 
5. Leave in the marinade for about 10 minutes.
6. Thread about 3 chicken pieces and 2 spring onion pieces through each skewer.
7. Cook in the oven for about 20 minutes.
8. Garnish with sesame seeds 
9. You can serve hot or cold. 

Notes:

You can use white or red miso paste for this recipe. White miso has a milder and sweeter taste compared to red miso. 

Japanese street food recipe - chicken karaage

There are lots of festivals (known as matsuri) celebrated in Japan throughout the year and at each festival you'll find popular Japanese street food including takoyaki (grilled octopus balls), yakisoba (fried noodles), okonomiyaki (Japanese style pancake), ikayaki (fried squid) and chicken karaage (Japanese fried chicken). At this time of year, the Obon festival takes place which is celebrated to honor the spirits of the dead. Here is my simple chicken karaage recipe to celebrate the Obon festival.

You can use chicken breast or chicken leg and thigh for this recipe. I prefer using chicken leg and thigh as it's much cheaper and tastier. Ask your butcher to remove the skin and bone and then just cut into bite size pieces.

Ingredients:
2 chicken leg and thigh or 2 chicken breast (boneless, skinless and cut into bite size pieces)
2 tbsp sake
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp grated ginger
Potato starch or cornflour (to coat the chicken pieces)
Vegetable oil (for frying)
Black or white sesame seeds (optional to decorate)
Few wedges of lemon (optional to garnish)

Instructions:

1. Mix the sake, soy sauce and grated ginger in a medium size bowl. 
2. Put the chicken pieces in the marinade and stir to make sure the chicken pieces are evenly covered in the marinade. 
3. Leave in the fridge for about 20 minutes or a few hours (the longer the chicken is left in the marinade the tastier and more tender the meat will be). 
4. Drain the marinade from the chicken pieces and pat with kitchen towel to remove the excess marinade.
5. Place the potato starch or corn flour on a large plate and generously coat the chicken pieces.
6. Heat the oil to 170 degrees Celsius and fry for about 5 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and a nice golden brown colour. 
7. Arrange the chicken pieces on kitchen towel to absorb excess oil.
8. Serve with lemon wedges, wasabi mayo or sesame seeds.

TIPS:
- If you like you can leave the skin on the chicken pieces.
- To check the oil temp drop a bit of potato starch into the saucepan if it drops to the bottom and immediately rises then the oil is hot enough. If you notice that the chicken pieces are starting to brown too fast then the oil temp is probably too hot.
- Do not overcrowd the saucepan or the temp of the oil will reduce.

OTHER INFO:

- Check to see what Japanese festivals are in your area every year to get a chance to try Japanese street food. There is a Hanami festival in Dublin every year with a great selection of Japanese street food. Click here for more details.

JAPANESE STYLE OMLETTE IN 10 MINUTES

Omu-raisu is a Japanese omlette with fried rice in the middle served with tomato ketchup. It is one of the many modern Japanese dishes brought into Japan from abroad. This is my version of the Japanese omlette with mixed vegetables instead of rice.

 

INGREDIENTS:
3 eggs (free range/ organic)
Half tsp soya sauce
1 tsp caster sugar
Few handfuls of spinach leaves
3 shitake mushrooms lightly fried 
Boiled edamame (soya beans) optional
Tomato ketchup to garnish 

Vegetable oil for frying 

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Lightly mix 3 eggs, soya sauce and caster sugar in a bowl using a fork or chopsticks. 
2. Put on a non-stick frying pan on medium heat and add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil.
3. Add the egg mixture to the frying pan and move around so the egg is evenly spread on the pan (cook the omlette slowly). 
4. When the egg starts to cook around the edges use the side of a spatula or chopsticks to draw the edge of the egg into the centre allowing the uncooked egg sitting on top to cook. 
5. Continue to do this a few times until there is a little liquid left sitting on top. 
6. Take the omlette off the heat. 
7. Place all the ingredients including the spinach leaves, mushrooms and edamame in a line down the centre of the omlette.
8. Fold the omlette like a wrap. 
9. Carefully put the wrapped omlette on a plate as shown in the picture. 
10. Drizzle tomato ketchup over the omlette.

 

TIPS:

1. Remember that the egg will continue to cook when it is folded so leave a little liquid on top before taking off the heat. 

2. You can eat this omlette without fillings or use another type of filling.

JAPANESE RECIPE: SALMON TERIYAKI WITH STIR FRIED UDON NOODLES & VEG

You can easily add flavour to a chicken or salmon dish by simply adding terikyaki sauce. Bottled teriyaki sauce is available in most supermarkets but you should really try making your own. It requires just one ingredient that you may not have in your kitchen cupboard called sake (Japanese rice wine). Sake can be bought in most Asian markets and if you invest in a bottle of sake there are loads of other recipes that you can use it for so it won't be wasted!

This recipe is a mild teriyaki sauce as I find some of the teriyaki sauces can be too strong. However you can add more/ less sugar or soya sauce to adjust the flavour if necessary. I'd love to hear back from you, let me know how you find it.

INGREDIENTS

2 cloves of garlic (peeled and finely grated)

Thumbsize piece of ginger (peeled and finely grated)

100g sugersnap peas

100g baby sweetcorn

Packet of udon noodles (can use other types of noodles)

Fillet of Salmon

Vegetable oil for frying 

Teriyaki Sauce (mix all the ingredients below in a small bowl)

3 tbsp sake (Japanese rice wine)

2 tbsp soya sauce

1 tbsp brown sugar

INSTRUCTIONS 

1. Place the packet of noodles in a bowl of boiling water and set aside for a few minutes. Gently separate the noodles while in the water and then drain.

2. Pour a little vegetable oil on medium/high heat on a non-stick frying pan. 

3. Add the garlic and ginger and fry for about 30 seconds.

4. Toss the sugarsnap peas and baby sweetcorn into the frying pan and fry for a few minutes leaving the vegetables nice and crunchy. Set aside in a bowl.

6. Add more oil to the frying pan and set the heat to medium/high again.  

7. Place the salmon fillet (skin side down) on the frying pan and seal both sides of the fish. 
 

8. When the fish is nearly cooked (place the salmon fillet skin side down at this point) pour the teriyaki sauce over the fish.
 

9. Use a large spoon to pour the sauce over the fish fillet while continuing to fry.

10. When the sauce is starting to get thick (but not as thick as syrup) add the noodles and veg. Continue to stir until the noodles and veg are completed coated in the teriyaki sauce. 

11. Garnish with sesame seeds. 

TIPS:

Keep a close eye on the teriyaki sauce when it is reducing as it can quickly reduce on high heat.

JAPANESE STYLE FRIED FISH FILLET

This is a quick and easy way to add flavour to a fish fillet dish without the hassle of following a complicated recipe. Don't worry if you don't have some of these Japanese ingredients at home as I've mentioned other ingredients which can be used as an alternative. 

INGREDIENTS:

Fish fillet (cod/ hake)

1 tbsp Japanese rice wine called SAKE (can use dry sherry or white wine instead)

Potato starch (can use corn starch or flour instead) 

Nanami-togarashi (can use other seasoning such as salt & pepper instead)

Vegetable oil for frying

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Pour sake over the fish fillet and using your hands make sure the whole fillet is covered in sake. 

2. Set aside for 10 minutes or longer if you have the time.

3. Pat dry the fish fillet with kitchen towel.

4. Then, coat in potato starch.

5. Sprinkle nanami-togarashi over the fish fillet on both sides.

6. Heat vegetable oil in a heavy based frying pan on high heat and add the fish fillet.

7. Seal the fish fillet on both sides until there is a nice golden brown colour. 

8. Reduce the heat to medium and continue to cook for 5-10 minutes until cooked (depending on the size of the fish fillet). 

HOW TO EAT:

Serve with a bowl of boiled white rice and some stir fried vegetables. 

NANAMI TOGARASHI - JAPANESE SEVEN SPICES

This spice mix includes chilli, orange peel, black sesame seed, white sesame seed, seaweed, Japanese pepper and ginger. It's often added to Japanese dishes to add a little kick and extra taste to the dish. 

 

   

    

BASIC JAPANESE COOKING: TEMAKI SUSHI HAND ROLLS

I love making temaki when I'm entertaining family or friends at home. Sometimes I prepare the temaki rolls in advance and other times I leave all the ingredients in the centre of the table and let everyone dig in and make their own temaki. My nieces and nephews eyes always light up when they're allowed to make their own temaki so it's a enjoyable way to encourage kids to eat a healthy meal. 

Temaki sushi is a cone shaped hand roll wrapped in nori seaweed and filled with sushi rice and your favourite ingredients.

INGREDIENTS:

Sushi rice and seasoning

160g sushi rice (uncooked)
Japanese white rice vinegar 50ml
Sugar 1 tbsp
Salt half tsp

Temaki

Half nori (roasted seaweed) sheets

Smoked salmon or raw salmon (make sure to source salmon which is suitable for eating raw)

Avocado (peeled and cut into long strips)

Mango (peeled and cut into long strips)

Sesame seeds (optional to garnish)

Soya sauce (optional as a dipping sauce)

 

INSTRUCTIONS:

How to prepare sushi rice

1. Click here to see my post on how to prepare and cook Japanese rice. 
2. To make the sushi rice seasoning pour 50ml of rice vinegar and 1 tbsp of sugar into a non-aluminium saucepan. 
3. Heat until the sugar is dissolved and then add half tsp of salt. Stir, take off the heat and allow to cool. 
4. Once the rice is cooked transfer it to a shallow non-metallic baking tray using a rice spatula or wooden spoon. 
5. Sprinkle the sushi rice seasoning evenly over the rice and then gently turn the rice with a spatula (try not to break the rice grains by gently using the spatula to cut into the rice at an angle and fold over the rice).
6. Fan the rice using a fan or a piece of cardboard to help cool the rice to room temperature and absorb the excess sushi rice seasoning. 
7. Try to use the rice as soon as possible and avoid putting it in the fridge as this will harden the rice. You can cover the rice with a damp tea towel and set aside in a cool place until needed.

 
Temaki
1. Cut the nori sheet in half placing the shiny side of the nori sheet down.

2. Put a heaped tablespoon of sushi rice on the left side of the nori sheet. 

3. Moisten your hands before spreading the rice evenly over nearly half of the nori sheet using your fingertips.

4. Place all the ingredients including the strip of salmon, avocado and mango at a 45 degree angle on the rice (try not to overload with ingredients as this will make it difficult to roll).

6. Slowly start to roll the temaki by taking the bottom left corner of the nori and fold it over towards the top right corner of the rice. Continue to fold as shown in the photos below. Place a few grains of cooked rice on the last corner of the nori (to stop the roll unfolding) and finish folding. 
 

 7. Sprinkle sesame seeds on top of the temaki. 

  
HOW TO EAT:
Serve as soon as possible so that the nori is still crispy. Dip into a little soya sauce and eat with your hand. 

TIPS:
You can roll the temaki by laying the nori on the palm of your hand but I find it easier to roll the temaki on a solid surface. 

Temaki is a perfect finger food to serve at a party. 

SPINACH, BEANSPROUT AND TOFU DONBURI

Donburi means bowl in Japanese but when referring to food it can mean a Japanese rice bowl dish. So when a dish is served sitting on a bowl of rice the name of the dish often ends with don (the abbreviation for donburi)!

Oyako-don (chicken and egg dish) and katsu-don (pork cutlet, egg and onion dish) are two of the most popular donburi dishes in Japan.

I made my own donburi dish one evening using leftovers in the fridge and was delighted to find that spinach and beansprouts go really well with tofu in a stir-fry. You can use whatever leftover vegetables you have at home for this dish once you have the rice and the seasoning. 

Serves 4
Prep time 10 mins
Cooking time 30 mins

Ingredients
Bowl of cooked rice per person serving
Vegetable oil or rapeseed oil (for frying)
Sesame oil (for frying)
150g tofu, preferably GM free (carefully cut into bite size rectangular pieces)
2 large garlic cloves (peeled and finely grated)
Thumbsize piece of ginger (peeled and finely grated)
150g Spinach/ Pak choi
150g Beansprouts

Seasoning:
2 tbsp sake (Japanese rice wine)
3 tbsp soya sauce
1 tbsp brown sugar

Roasted sesame seeds or nanami togarashi (optional to garnish)

Instructions:
1. Heat 1 tbsp of vegetable oil in a non-stick frying pan on medium to high heat. 
2. Gently place the tofu pieces on the pan and fry both sides of the tofu until slightly browned.
3. Carefully place the fried tofu pieces on a plate and set aside.
4. Heat 1 tsp of vegetable oil and 1 tsp of sesame oil in a heavy based saucepan.
5. Add the garlic and ginger and fry for less than one minute (do not brown).
6. Toss in the beansprouts, spinach and finally add the fried tofu pieces.
7. Pour the sake evenly over the veg and tofu followed by soya sauce and sugar. Then gently stir.
8. Fry for a few minutes until the seasoning has absorbed into the vegetables and tofu.
9. Serve on top of a bowl of white rice.
10. Sprinkle roasted sesame seeds or nanami togarashi over the dish.

How to eat:
This dish can be served immediately with rice. It can also be eaten cold like a salad and tastes great the next day!

Tips:
1. Freeze leftover rice in the freezer in portion sizes wrapped in cling film.
2. Try not to overcook the vegetables.

Notes:
Please see my posts on Basic Japanese Ingredients to understand the basic ingredients used for Japanese cooking.
Basic Japanese Ingredients Part I
Basic Japanese Ingredients Part II

Japanese hearty breakfast - miso soup with poached egg

Japanese people consider breakfast to be one of the most important meals of the day. A traditional Japanese breakfast includes a bowl of rice, miso soup and side dishes which are usually leftover from the previous day's dinner.

It's not always practical to prepare a full traditional Japanese breakfast but this hearty miso soup is a nice compromise!

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 litre homemade dashi stock or 1 litre water and 1 tbsp instant dashi granules

300g tofu, preferably GM free (cut into bite size cubes)
1 tbsp dried wakame 
1 poached egg (preferably organic or free range) per each bowl serving
2-3 tbsp miso paste (you can add more if you like a stronger taste) 
Scallions/ Spring onion (finely diced to garnish)
Sesame seeds or nanami togarashi (optional to garnish)

*Click here to see miso and dashi explained on my "Basic Japanese ingredients - what they are and where you can find them" post
*Click here to see my recipe for homemade dashi (fish stock) 

Instructions:

1. If you're using homemade dashi then click here to see how to make homemade dashi. Once the homemade dashi is ready put it in a medium sized saucepan and bring to the boil.
2. If you're using instant dashi granules then put 1 litre of cold water into a medium sized saucepan and bring to the boil. Then add 1 tbsp of instant dashi granules to the water and stir.
3. Once the dashi is boiling add the wakame seaweed and reduce the heat so that the water isn't boiling but simmering.
4. Gently toss the tofu pieces into the saucepan.
5. Dilute the miso paste in a cup of dashi taken from the saucepan. Then, add to the saucepan and gently mix all the ingredients. 
6. Pour the miso soup into a bowl.
7. Place the poached egg on top of the miso soup.
8. Garnish with scallions and sesame seeds/nanami togarashi 

How to eat:
Serve in a bowl with chopsticks or a spoon. Japanese people hold the bowl to their mouth to drink the soup. They use chopsticks to eat the bite size ingredients in the soup.
 
Tips:  
Never boil the miso soup only allow to simmer.

Why not: 

Put udon noodles or one large spoon of boiled rice in the bottom of the bowl before pouring the miso soup. 

GARLIC FRIED RICE TOPPED WITH A FRIED EGG

This is one of my favourite quick and healthy recipes. You only need three basic ingredients (garlic, egg and rice) to make this dish so it's perfect when the fridge is practically empty and you don't have much time to cook. 

Ingredients:

Bowl of cooked white rice (any type of rice)

2 cloves of garlic (peeled and grated)
1 egg (free range/organic preferably)

Vegetable oil (for frying)

Sesame oil (optional to season)

Soya sauce(optional to season)

Nanami togarashi (Japanese seven spices) or a mix of any of the following - salt, pepper, paprika, sesame seeds (black or white), bits of nori seaweed.

Instructions:
Garlic Fried Rice

1. Heat the vegetable oil on medium to high heat in a heavy based saucepan and add the grated garlic.

2. Fry the garlic for a minute or less (do not brown)

3. Add the cooked rice and mix with the garlic for about 1 minute.

4. Drizzle a little sesame oil over the rice and stir. 

5. Pour a little soya sauce evenly over the rice and stir quickly. Then take off the heat.

Fried Egg

1. Heat 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a non-stick frying pan on medium to high heat. 

2. Crack in the egg and fry until the white is cooked but the yolk is still soft. 

2. Toss the rice on a warm plate and place the fried egg on top. 

9. Sprinkle the egg with nanami togarashi or any of the alternative spices listed in the ingredients above. 

  

BENTO - JAPANESE STYLE LUNCHBOX

Japanese people take great pride in preparing bento for their families. Many Japanese mothers get up quite early in the morning to make bento. They put a lot of effort and time into creating a bento that is nutritionally balanced, tastes great and looks appealing. In Japan, the appearance of the food is just as important as the taste! Generally, the bento will have rice, fish or meat and some kind of vegetable or fruit. Since the bento box is divided into different compartments various dishes can be stored in the box together.

It is surprising how quickly you can become immersed in this bento culture. When I lived in Japan the thoughts of bringing my bento to work every day seemed like a chore but it didn't take long before I was looking forward to making my bento every night.

Here is a bento that I made for my family at the weekend. It is served in a bento box used by Japanese restaurants and can be used to serve a Japanese meal at home. I bought this online from Amazon! The bento box used for work/ school lunches is smaller and more compact.

BENTO BOX MENU

1. Japanese rice - click here to see my post on how to cook Japanese rice. You can use any type of rice of this meal.

2. Japanese style pan fried cod fillet 
Ingredients:
1 tbsp vegetable oil or rapeseed oil (for frying)
Cod fillet
2 tbsp sake

Pinch of salt

Thumb size piece of ginger root (peeled and finely grated) 
2 tbsp Japanese soy sauce

Instructions:
Marinate the cod in sake and salt. Leave for about 10 minutes before frying.
Heat the oil in a non-stick frying pan over medium to high heat. 
Place the cod on the pan and seal one side by frying for a minute or so. Then turn the cod over and seal the other side. 
Reduce the heat and continue to cook for another 5 minutes or less. 
Mix the ginger and soy sauce together in a small bowl and then pour over the fish when ready to eat. 

3. Japanese style stir fried spinach/pak choi with beansprouts

Ingredients: 
1 tbsp vegetable oil or rapeseed oil (for frying)
2 large garlic cloves (peeled and finely grated)
Thumbsize piece of ginger (peeled and finely grated)
200g Spinach/ Pak choi
200g Beansprouts

Seasoning (mix all in a bowl together):
2 tbsp sake (Japanese rice wine)
3 tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp mirin (Japanese sweet rice wine)
2 tsp caster sugar

Roasted sesame seeds (optional to garnish)

Instructions:
Heat the oil in a heavy based saucepan on medium to high heat. 
Add the garlic and fry for about 10 seconds. The quickly add the ginger and fry for another 10 seconds.
Toss in the beansprouts and stir. 
After less than one minute add the spinach. 
Pour the seasoning evenly over the vegetables. 
Fry for a few minutes until the seasoning has absorbed into the vegetables.
When ready to serve sprinkle roasted sesame seeds over the vegetables. 

4. Sliced melon and mango sprinkled with pomegranate (Japanese people often eat fruit as dessert)
Ingredients:
Honeydew melon 
Mango
Handful of pomegranate seeds

Instructions:
Peel and cut the chilled melon and mango into small bite size cubes.
Toss a handful of pomegranate seeds over the fruit salad.

How to eat:
Bento goes well with miso soup if you're eating it at home or in a restaurant.

Tips:
Pack a smaller version of this bento into a lunch box by using cupcake cases or tinfoil to separate the dishes.
Be adventurous by swapping the dishes in this bento with your favourite Japanese dishes.

Why not:
You can get takeaway bentos in a few places in Dublin including Kokoro on Lower Liffey Street in Dublin http://kokorosushibento.com/
Musashi noodle and sushi bar and Michie sushi in Dublin, Ireland have a reasonably priced bento lunch deal 

PUMPKIN (KABOCHA) & PEA RICE

Prep time 15 minutes

Cooking time 30 minutes

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS:

320g Japanese rice (or other type of rice), uncooked
Sesame oil, for frying
Thumb size piece of fresh ginger, finely diced
2 x garlic cloves, finely diced

200g pumpkin, peeled and cut into 1/2cm cubes

100g fresh or frozen peas

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Cook rice (please click here to see my post on how to cook Japanese rice).

2. Pour 1-2 tsp of sesame oil on a frying pan and turn the heat to medium. When the oil is hot add the garlic and ginger. Slowly cook for a few minutes on low/ medium heat.

3. Add the pumpkin cubes and continue to cook for another few minutes.

4. Season with salt and pepper. 

5. Turn the heat to medium/ high and add a few tbsp of water to allow the pumpkin to cook faster. When the water has almost reduced turn the heat to low/medium.

6. Add the peas, stir and continue to fry for a few more minutes.

7. In a large saucepan mix the hot cooked rice and pumpkin mix together and drizzle 1-2 tbsp of soya sauce evenly over the rice.

HOW TO EAT:

You can eat this dish as a main course or a side dish served with other dishes.

TIPS:

Try not to add too much soya sauce as it will over power the rest of the flavours.

WHY NOT:

Add king prawn or shrimp to this dish.