My family's latest food fad: Okonomiyaki: (pronounced "Oh-ko-no-me-ya-key") Literally, it's "[cook] what you like." Defining okonomiyaki is a bit more tricky. Omelette? Pancake? Pizza?
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Okay, okonomiyaki isn't the only thing on this Japanese dinner menu. There's also edamame, miso soup, and goma-ae.
No sushi, sorry to say. But don't forget to make a pot of good Japanese rice, which is a bit sticky, since it's glutinous rice. And for dessert, I cheated and bought some mochi ice cream. Fruit would be good, too.
Before we get too far, let me mention that oriental cooking, more than most other cuisines, is 90% preparation and 10% cooking. It's important to have everything in the recipe already ready to add in, before you start cooking.
And especially with Japanese food, presentation is important. You are feeding the eye as well as the nose --and the mouth.
Perhaps some of you don't care very much for Japanese food. For some, it seems to be an acquired taste. Read through the okonomiyaki recipe anyway. If you notice all the possibilities for fillings, I am sure you could make it with barely a hint of Japanese flavors.
Many of us do enjoy the astringent flavors, the striking taste ingredients used in Japan. They seem to be connected in a way to Japanese aesthetics, where astringency is one element in wabi. Wabi is a Zen aesthetic concept (important in the Tea ceremony) where one finds beauty in something that is simple and austere. Thus, one focuses on the object itself, rather than just letting it flow by in the haze of everything else.
It's a stretch to apply that idea to food too directly, but on the other hand, I think Japanese food has a related presence. It's usually not so incredibly rich and lush like many European foods, where you get that feeling that if some is good, then more is even better. Japanese foods have a certain singularness that seems to fit very well with a pared down view and an approach to the world that is more about simple living close to the ground, as opposed to total luxury and entitled consumption.
Try thinking of that aesthetic the next time you sit down for nihonshoku. It may or may not be enlightening. Especially if you get some really good, strong wasabi. (The best kind clears your sinuses, if not your thinking.)
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Okay, on to dinner plans. Sad to say, you're going to need a few specialty food items to make these things, so you need to plan ahead a bit. If you can't get items locally at an Asian food market, some of them are available on the internet. Here's examples of some things I used in this group of recipes.
Edamame --edible soybean appetizer
Soybeans are rich in proteins and vitamins A, B, and C. Easy to prepare. Fun to eat, and goes fine with beer.
Ingredients:
1 pound fresh (or frozen) edamame in the pod
salt, preferably kosher or sea salt
Directions:
Cut off the stem end of edamame pods. Wash edamame and drain.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add in small amount of salt and stir to dissolve. Add edamame and continue boiling until beans are crisp-tender, about 7-10 minutes (for fresh beans.) To prevent overcooking, start checking for doneness approximately 7 minutes after starting. (To check, remove one carefully, dip in cold water to cool, and taste.)
When done, drain in colander and run under cold water, or put in a bath of ice water, to stop cooking. Drain well. Pat excess moisture off, and sprinkle with salt to taste. (Start with 1/2 teaspoon.) Serve at room temperature.
To eat, hold one pod by stem end, and slide the individual beans out into your mouth with your teeth. Discard pod. 6-8 servings.
Miso Soup
Miso, a Japanese food staple, is made from fermented soy or other grains, which is then cultured. It is high in protein, and contains other important nutrients.
For a soup like this, shiro (white) miso is most commonly used, but other varieties of miso would be fine.
Ingredients:
3 c. strong hon dashi stock (made from reconstituted powder)
or make niboshi soup stock (sardine stock, below)
1/2 block tofu (med.firm)
2 oz. (or less) miso (soy paste)
1/2 oz. (or less) wakame seaweed (soaked, if using dried)
green onion, sliced thinly
sliced shiitake mushrooms to taste, soaked for 25 minutes if dried
Directions:
Cut tofu into 1/2" cubes. Drain the wakame and cut into 2/3" lengths, if needed.
Heat soup stock. When hot, ladle out some soup stock into a bowl and add miso paste. Stir to dissolve miso in the stock. Gradually add this mixture back into the pot. Remember not to boil the soup after you put miso in. Add the tofu. Just before it reaches a boil, add the wakame and chopped green onion and shiitake. You could also add a few lightly cooked seasonal vegetables, such as spinach or mushrooms.
Remove from heat before it boils. Serve hot. 4 servings.
For niboshi stock:
12 dried sardines
3 c. water
To make niboshi stock: Remove heads and innards of 12 niboshi (dried sardines). Wash and cut in half. Add to saucepan with 3 c. water. On medium heat, bring to a boil. Skim off bubbles and remove from heat. Remove and discard the niboshi, saving the stock.
Horenso no Goma-Ae (Goma-Ae for short) Spinach with sesame dressing.
The dressing may also be used with other green vegetables, such as broccoli and green beans. So suit your own preferences.
Ingredients:
1 lb. fresh spinach, washed
Dressing:
2 T. (or more) sesame seeds (toasted or not)
1 t. sugar
1 T. sake
1+ T. rice vinegar
1 T. soy sauce
1 t. sesame oil
a few sesame seeds to scatter on top
Directions:
Boil about 3 quarts of water in a large pot. Immerse spinach (in batches) in the boiling water, just until softened. Drain and rinse the spinach in cold water until cool. Drain the spinach again and squeeze lightly to remove the excess liquid. Set aside.
Grind 2-3 T. sesame seeds with a mortar and pestle. Add sugar and grind well together. Transfer to small bowl and stir in sake, vinegar, soy, and sesame oil. When well mixed, add boiled spinach and mix it well with the sauce.
Arrange on a serving plate with an impervious surface in a round flat shape. Use a sharp knife to cut spinach up in a cross-hatch style, making squares about one and a quarter inches in size (3 cm). Sprinkle some sesame seeds on top. Makes 4 servings.
Okonomiyaki
Left: batter & fillings all stirred together. Right: Second side is browning.
Okonomiyaki
Many restaurants in Japan cook this on a griddle at the table. The diner chooses which fillings she wants added to the base, including these or others. Shredded or chopped cabbage is essential, though.
Okonomiyaki sauce is quite tasty. The complex flavor includes tomato, apple, carrot, cabbage, molasses, shiitake extract, soy, kelp, yeast, cinnamon, clove, and twenty other things. Some think you can substitute worcestershire sauce. NOT recommended. (Worcestershire is too strong and doesn't have the fruity flavors and spices.)
Ingredients--
5 slices thick bacon (optional)
Batter:
1 c. AP flour
1/2 t. baking powder
1 c. minus 1 T. dashi stock (use hon dashi powder to make it)
or, use water from soaking dried shiitake mushrooms
2 large eggs
1/2 med. cabbage head, removing thick ribs & then cut in 3/8" pieces
2 T. shredded green onion
4 T. canola or other oil
Possible filings: (I used this group)
2 dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked, & shredded
1/2 c. beni shoga (pickled ginger), chopped
5 lg. cooked shrimp, chopped
or, 1 can baby shrimp, drained
1/2 c. carrot, shredded
1/2 c. canned corn, drained
Other fillings you could use:
grated daikon radish
sakura ebi (dried shrimp)
tenkasu (tempura flakes)
dried squid strips
bean sprouts
shredded green pepper
thin slices teriyaki beef
1/4 c. shredded mozzarella cheese (!)
Condiments:
okonomiyaki sauce
green onion, thinly sliced
ao-nori (green seaweed)
mayonnaise (best to use Japanese style: it's squeezable)
katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes)
Directions:
Cook bacon over med-high heat, turning as needed for 4-5 minutes. Cut each slice into 4 equal pieces & set aside.
In large bowl, use whisk or fork to stir together the flour, baking powder, and water. Beat in eggs until well mixed. Sir in cabbage and green onion.
Stir in other chosen fillings--use only 4 or 5 of them.
Use a tablespoon or so of oil to coat bottom of 10" nonstick skillet, or well-oiled skillet. Heat to med-high heat. When hot enough to make batter sizzle when added, use a ladle to spread about one third of the batter in center of skillet, to create a pancake that is 6"-7" in diameter and 1" thick. Press 6 bacon pieces into top.
Cover and cook for about 5 minutes, and lightly browned on the bottom. for about 5 minutes. When set, flip over --it make take 2 pancake turners--to cook other side 4 to 5 min. longer, until it is also lightly browned.
When nearly done, use a brush to spread okonomiyaki sauce all over the top surface. Scatter green onion over that, then sprinkle on ao-nori. Squeeze the mayonnaise on, making a zig-zag pattern on top, both lengthwize and crosswize, making a grid pattern. Just before serving, while still very hot, sprinkle on katsuobushi flakes. It should be hot enough for the katsuobushi to sort of dance and wave around. Everyone thinks it's fun to watch this.
Serve immediately, while still very hot. Each round pancake can be served cut in wedges. Continue cooking remaining batter when desired.
Nearly finished: sauce, green oinion and ao-nori added.
Now with mayonnaise and katsuobushi on top. Ready to cut in wedges and serve!
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If you prefer, watch an expert make it. Complete with an audience.
This method of cooking is pretty similar to what I've used above. Here's the list of ingredients they used in "Cooking with a Dog" in case it was hard to understand the narrator. Note that I used eggs to hold my batter together instead of the yama imo.
Batter:
3.5 oz. flour
¼ t. baking powder
5 oz. dashi soup base, granulated
water
1 T. grated yama-imo (Japanese mountain yam)
bit of salt
Fillings:
7 oz cabbage
"welsh onion" (leek?)
boiled octopus
8 fresh deep-water shrimp
sakura-ebi (dried pink baby shrimp)
tenkasu (fried tempura batter bits)
beni shoga (pickled ginger)
2 eggs
3/12 oz sliced pork (bacon)
Toppings:
okonomiyaki sauce
green onion
mayonnaise (Japanese style)
ao-nori (green seaweed flakes)
katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes)
There are many other ways to make okonomiyaki. And that's just a start. . . .
Regardless, it's Oishii! (Delicious!)