As you can imagine, a lot has changed since I had my daughter a year and a half ago. I used to enjoy the challenge of recipes that took a bit of time, skill, and rapt attention and thought the extra work and care gave it the made-with-love charm. I’ve since revised that opinion and […]
For anyone who thinks rice is a little boring, I urge you to make this Mixed Rice with Pork and Bamboo Shoots. This maze gohan (mixed rice) is one of my favorites for its ease and short ingredient list. But more importantly it delivers in flavor. Today is the last day of my month-long challenge […]
When we have dinner guests, this Beer Beef Stew with Bacon and Shimeji is often on the menu. I didn’t think twice about including it in this month of recipes until my husband pointed out that he didn’t know it was Japanese. What makes a recipe Japanese? The source? The technique? The ingredients? The cook? […]
What’s great about this Kuwayaki Pork Donburi is how the sweet and sticky sauce clings to the pork and the way the shiso perfumes each bite. When I saw the recipe in one of my favorite cookbooks, I was immediately drawn to the photo. It looked amazing. So, you can imagine I was even more […]
Gyoza is one of the most convenient foods to have around. I make this recipe and freeze what I don’t use right away (it makes a lot!). Since I always have a bag tucked in the freezer, when I’m feeling lazy or there’s nothing else to eat in the house, I can make an instant […]
Ginger beef is good to have under your belt because it comes together super fast, it’s satisfying and delicious, and it only requires 4 ingredients. Pork is probably more commonly used in this dish, but I remember my mom making it with beef growing up. You could make a meal of it by pairing this […]
Korrokke are Japanese potato croquettes. They’re especially nostalgic for me because in junior high, my friends and I would stop by the butcher on the way home and order them as an after school snack. They were warm and crispy and felt like such a treat. If you’ve never come across korokke, they’re basically mashed […]
Chicken soboro is ground chicken cooked in shoyu, mirin, and sugar. It’s layered on top of rice and sprinkled with sake-cooked scrambled egg on top. It’s great for bentos and you could also use it as a filling for musubi without the egg. I made this the other day and my stepdaughter loved it, so […]
Hamburger steak is essentially Japanese meatloaf in patty form. Many of the ingredients are the same—softened onions, breadcrumbs, milk, egg, etc. The only difference is meatloaf takes an hour in the oven and this is cooked on a stovetop in minutes. I usually make a sauce that combines tonkatsu sauce, ketchup, and sake, but lately […]
I’m reserving Fridays of this month to spotlight a recipe from the archives. These are recipes that made a strong impression on me and ones that I’d like to incorporate into my regular repertoire more often. This week I’m taking another look at Sukiyaki Donburi. Growing up, sukiyaki was a leisurely meal. We’d fill our […]
