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. 

  

BASIC JAPANESE COOKING INGREDIENTS PART II

This post is a continuation of my first post on Basic Japanese Ingredients and gives a brief description of an extended list of basic ingredients used in Japanese home cooking. All these ingredients can be found in either Asian markets or large supermarkets. From my experience Asian supermarkets tend to be cheaper compared to supermarkets.

NORI - ROASTED SEAWEED

These roasted seaweed sheets are well known for wrapping sushi rolls. They can be shredded and sprinkled over dishes before serving. This type of seaweed is relatively easy to find and not expensive.

WAKAME - TYPE OF SEAWEED

Wakame is often added to Japanese miso soup and Japanese style salads. Be careful how much wakame you add to a dish as these tiny dry pieces of seaweed expand once they are added to water. 



HIJIKI - TYPE OF SEAWEED

Hijiki goes well with vegetables in a Japanese style stir-fry. It's important to soak the dried seaweed in water before adding to any dishes.

KOMBU - TYPE OF SEAWEED

This seaweed is used along with bonito fish flakes to make Japanese homemade fish stock called dashi.

KATSUOBUSHI - BONITO FISH FLAKES

Katsuobushi is used along with kombu seaweed to make Japanese homemade fish stock. It goes well with fresh tofu and soy sauce. Depending on where you live it can be difficult to get and a little expensive. I get it in my local Asian supermarket.

TOFU - PREFERABLY GM FREE

Tofu is made from fermented soya beans. It's low in calaroies yet high in protein and calcium. Try to buy tofu in an Asian store as the quality and the taste of the tofu tend to be much better. Fresh tofu can be eaten cold straight from the fridge or added to hot dishes. 

PANKO - JAPANESE BREAD CRUMBS

The biggest difference between panko and standard breadcrumbs is that panko doesn't contain the crust of the bread and the breadcrumbs are bigger in panko. Seemingly panko absorbs less oil than standard breadcrumbs! Panko is used for dishes such as Japanese style croquettes and tonkatsu.

ROASTED SESAME SEEDS

These are often sprinkled over dishes before serving.

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. 

 

SESAME OIL
Used to flavour Japanese Chinese style dishes such as fried rice

SHISO LEAF

A type of herb that is used in Japanese cooking. It can be difficult to find in supermarkets outside of Japan however if you can get shiso leaf seeds then you can grow your own!

WASABI - JAPANESE HORSERADISH

This is the green coloured mustard that is served with sushi. The wasabi root looks like a ginger root and can be hard to find. 

UDON NOODLES

A type of thick wheat flour noodle. Udon is usually served in a clear lightly seasoned soup with other ingredients.

 

RAMEN NOODLES

This is a wheat noodle used for Japanese Chinese style dishes including "Ramen" which is a tasty and very popular noodle soup. 

SOBA NOODLES

This is a thin brown buckwheat noodle which tends to be eaten cold during the summer months and hot during the colder times of year. 

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 

JAPANESE FOOD REVIEW: MICHIE SUSHI

If you like good quality sushi in a casual setting then you'll love Michie Sushi. It's not an easy place to find if you're not familiar with the Ranelagh area so make sure to look up the address before going there. It's located down a narrow lane called 11 Chelmsford Lane just off Ranelagh village. 

I went there for the first time last month with my husband and little boy. We started with the the salmon and tuna combo (€13.80) and miso soup. We enjoyed this so much that we decided to order more sushi!

My husband ordered the Michie Special (€13.80).

And I ordered the Ebi Fry Roll (€11.95). Our little boy tried a bit of everything!

I can honestly say this is one of the best sushi experiences that I've had in Ireland. 

Michie also serve traditional hot Japanese dishes. They provide a takeaway, delivery and catering service and won various awards including "The Bridgestone Best in Ireland 2011 & 2012" and the "Regional Winner Dublin Best Casual Dining 2011". 

I was delighted to hear that they recently opened another restaurant in Dun Laoghaire in Dublin. I've no doubt Michie's new venture will be a success and wish them the best of luck.

Website: www.michiesushi.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/michiesushi
Twitter: @MichieSushi
Email: info@michiesushi.com
Phone: (01) 497 6438
Location: 11 Chelmsford Lane in Ranelagh, Dublin 6 and Dun Laoghaire 

NOTES: All restaurant reviews posted on this blog are written by me without the prior knowledge of the restaurant. I visit the restaurant as an average customer and always pay for the food! 

JAPANESE MISO SOUP RECIPE: WHITE MISO SOUP WITH CARROTS & BEANSPROUT

White miso paste is a nice introduction into the world of miso if you don't eat miso regularly. This miso paste has a mild taste compared to darker coloured ones. Once you've managed to source miso paste and have it in your fridge it takes little time to make miso soup. It's traditionally served with a main meal however depending on what you put in the soup it could be served as a light lunch or main meal!

I buy Japanese miso paste in my local Asian market, however you can also buy it in health stores. I haven't seen it in supermarkets in Ireland yet but I think they sell it in supermarkets around the world including the UK, America, Australia etc.

Serves 4
Prep time 10 mins
Cooking time 15 mins

Ingredients:

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

200g carrots (peeled and cut into julienne strips)

100g beansprouts

2-3 tbsp white miso paste

Sesame seeds (optional to garnish) 

Spring onion (optional to garnish)

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 dashi granules then put 1 litre of cold water into a medium sized saucepan and bring to the boil. Then add 1 tbsp of dashi granules to the water and stir.
3. Once the dashi is boiling add the carrots. 
4. When the carrots are nearly cooked add the beansprouts and continue to boil for one minute (I like the vegetables to be crunchy rather than overcooked).
5. Before adding the miso paste lower the heat allowing the dashi to simmer only. 
6. Dilute the miso paste in a cup of dashi taken from the saucepan. Then, add to the saucepan and gently mix all the ingredients.
7. Garnish with spring onion and sesame seeds if you can. 

How to eat:
Japanese people drink soup directly from the bowl and then use chopsticks to eat vegetables in the miso soup. 

Tips:  
Once you add the miso paste never boil the miso soup only allow to simmer.

Why not: 
Add pork to this recipe.