Bratkartoffeln. Roasted potatoes = comfort food

Busy, stressed, fighting the heat and humidity. Summer has kicked in with a vengeance and after two rather stressful business trips in a row, I needed some wholesome comfort food. All it took were a couple of May Queen potatoes (cooks quickly and doesn’t lose its shape,) ground beef, onions and green peppers. Bratkartoffeln is […]

Spicy Honey and Kurozu marinated Chicken

It’s been a while. Teaching, concert and a whole lot of other work related things have kept me busy. Suffice to say, there wasn’t much time or inspiration to cook. It’s rainy season here and this means a steady increase in temperature and humidity. It means switching from hot coffee to iced coffee for breakfast. […]

About Mozuku and Konnyaku

Mozuku (Cladosiphon okamuranus) is an edible seaweed harvested in the oceans of Okinawa. During my trip to Okinawa, I had it every day and brought home a pack of thick and healthy looking Mozuku (太もずく). Mozuku is extremely healthy and is said to have cancer preventative, anti-aging properties, among other various health benefits. Unlike the […]

Bukkake-udon: Cold udon with grated radish

Even though there are still some colder days, it’s definitely springtime. Temperatures during the day go higher, the sun feels stronger, cherry blossoms are blooming, pollen flying around, allergies acting up…and on those warmer days, one again feels like a bowl of cold noodles instead of the steamy hot bowl during winter days. So here […]

Pinchos at Lizarran

Yesterday, I had dinner between two events at Lizarran in Shimbashi, Tokyo. A nice Spanish restaurant known for their pinchos. Suffice to say, it was excellent! A call for reservations a week in advance wasn’t early enough to get a table, so we were seated at the bar, which turned out to be just fine, […]

Big sandwich au jus

So what if I feel like a big sandwich for dinner? Usually my preferred lunch, but why not for dinner? I love homemade sandwiches. Especially ones that feature deli meats, cheeses, veggies and sometimes eggs. What goes into a sandwich depends on what happens to be in my fridge. Sometimes I put a whole fried […]

Marinated thin sliced pork with green veggies

It’s been a while but here is another improv meal I cooked up for dinner. First, I marinated the pork in: Soy sauce Sake Ginger Small amount of black bean sauce Even smaller amount of red chili sauce (doubanjian) After browning the meat with sesame oil, I added green beans and green peppers. After turning […]

Stir fried spicy udon with beef, vegetables and black bean sauce

Beef and black bean sauce go well together, so tonight’s improv cooking result was this. I used flat green beans, leeks and spinach for vegetables. For the sauce I combined black bean sauce (甜麺醤) with a little bit of sake and soy sauce and added chili sesame oil (rayu) before serving. I used to love […]

Pasta with Spinach and White Wine Sauce

Another little improvisation in the kitchen today. I had a bunch of fresh spinach and not much else available so I made a pasta sauce. Ingredients: Garlic Onion Tomato Spinach White wine Lemon juice Vegetable bouillon Salt and pepper Herbs I used only a small amount of garlic and onion, heated in olive oil before […]

Beef with onions and shirataki noodles

This is a traditional Japanese dish. Beef cooked in dashi with onions and shirataki noodles. Served over rice, it’s called “Gyudon,” or rice bowl with beef topping. A sort of Japanese comfort food… I prefer eating the beef and rice separately but it’s tasty both ways. Ingredients Beef Onions, sliced Shirataki noodles Dashi Sake Mirin […]