Miso Soup with Shrimp

This was supposed to be miso soup with shrimp and pea sprouts, but I didn't have any pea sprouts and I didn't feel like trying to go out and get some when TF and I were already hungry. I just wanted something quick and easy that I could throw together for lunch. So, I just did the miso soup without the pea sprouts. (I had intended to get some sprouts from Noki Farms to add to the leftovers when I was downtown later in the day, but then ended up meeting up with TM instead and didn't make it to the mall to get my sprouts in the end.)

Miso Soup with Shrimp (and Pea Sprouts)

Slightly adapted from Dish of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 1 (~15cm) piece of konbu
• 3 c. cold water
• 15g bonito flakes
• 2 Tbsp. white miso paste
• 125g shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 10g pea shoots (optional)

Directions

1. Bring the konbu and water to a boil over medium-high heat.
2. Remove from heat and remove and discard the konbu (or reserve for making second dashi).
3. Add the bonito flakes, stir once, and let stand for 5 minutes.
4. Strain the broth and discard the bonito flakes (or reserve for making second dashi¹).
5. Combine 1/4 c. of the hot broth with the miso paste and stir until smooth.
6. Pour the miso mixture into the rest of the broth and warm over medium heat until almost (but not quite) boiling. Do not let the broth boil!
7. Add the shrimp and cook until shrimp are pink and cooked through (3-4 minutes).
8. Stir in the pea shoots and serve.

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¹ To make second dashi: Take the konbu and bonito used to make the first dashi (which is what you've just made for this miso soup) and add it to another 3 c. of water. Bring nearly (but not quite) to a boil and gently simmer for 15 minutes. Strain and reserve the broth. Discard the solids. Second dashi is good in dishes with other strong flavours where the dashi stock is not front-and-centre. ^Back

Someone shared their method of making sourdough okonomiyaki in a bread forum a while back and I jotted the recipe down for future use. It's similar to my existing okonomiyaki recipe. The main differences being that this one contains neither oil nor soy sauce (just salt and pepper). It also includes leavener, which my previous recipe did not. And, of course, sourdough starter replaces the flour and water in the original.

All-in-all it worked pretty well. I used kale, shredded carrots, green onion, smoked tofu, and a little bit of frozen "spaghetti mix" for mine, but you could easily change up both the protein and the veggies depending on what you feel like or what you have available.

Suggested veggies (~2 1/2 c.): kale, spinach, cabbage, brussels sprouts, onion, bell pepper, shishito pepper, green onion/scallion, carrots, mustard greens, corn, cremini or shiitake mushrooms
Suggested proteins (60-120g): tofu, smoked tofu, Chinese sausage, hotdog, tinned tuna, SPAM, poached chicken or turkey, back bacon

Sourdough Okonomiyaki

Ingredients

• 280g sourdough discard @ 100% hydration
• 1 large egg (or 1 small egg + 1 egg white)
• 1 Tbsp. cornstarch
• 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt¹, ground
• 1/4 tsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1-2 Tbsp. water or milk
• 1-2 carrots, grated (probably ~1 c. total)
• 1 c. frozen chopped kale
• 1/4 c. frozen "spaghetti mix"
• 3 chopped green onions
• ~75g diced smoked tofu
• soy sauce, mayo, hoisin sauce, and/or furikake, to serve

Directions

1. Combine starter, egg, cornstarch, salt, pepper, and baking soda and mix well.
2. Adjust consistency with water (or milk) to form a thin batter.
3. Mix in the veggies and tofu (or protein of your choice).
4. Heat pan over medium heat.
5. Lightly grease or spray pan with cooking spray and pour in ~1/3 of the batter. Spread it out thin. This should form a large (~25cm/10") pancake.
6. Cook until underside has begun to lightly brown, bubbles form, and top begins to set.
7. Carefully flip the pancake over and cook until the other side and browned slightly and pancake is cooked through.
8. Remove from heat and repeat process with remaining batter.
9. Serve pancakes topped with soy sauce, mayo, hoisin sauce, and/or furikake.

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¹ I may consider replacing the salt with dasida next time. I have a bunch that I need to use up and I think it could be a nice flavour. ^Back

The grocery store tossed some free plant-based chicken-style nuggets into our grocery order a few weeks ago. They apparently came with a packet of barbecue sauce, but I decided that I'd rather enjoy them like this.

Sadly the Kidlet wasn't a fan of the plant-based meat and I do think it would've been better with freshly made chicken katsu. But this was a nice way to use up the nuggets and TF and I both enjoyed it.

Chicken Katsudon

From Aaron & Claire

Ingredients

• 100mL dashi stock
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. light (regular) soy sauce
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. mirin
• 1/2 Tbsp. sugar
• 1/2 small onion, sliced
• 1 piece chicken katsu, sliced (or 100g chicken nuggets)
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 green onion, chopped
• ~3/4 c. cooked rice

Directions

1. Combine dashi, soy sauce, mirin, and sugar and bring to a boil over medium heat.
2. Add onion and cook until onion has softened.
3. Add chicken.
4. Pour beaten eggs over and around chicken.
5. Sprinkle with green onion.
6. Cover and cook for ~1 minute.
7. Place rice in a large bowl.
8. Slide chicken-egg mixture out of the pan and onto the rice.
9. Serve with cabbage salad on the side.

I'm tired. This will be a short write-up.

Dashi Stock

From Just One Cookbook

Ingredients

• 10g konbu
• 10g dried bonito flakes
• 1L water

Directions

1. Use scissors to snip the konbu in a few places.
2. Add the konbu to the water and slowly heat it up over 10-15 minutes.
3. Just before the water boils, remove the konbu.
4. Add the bonito flakes and bring to a boil.
5. Reduce heat and simmer for 30-60 seconds.
6. Remove from heat and set aside for 10 minutes.
7. Strain the broth. Konbu and bonito flakes can be either discarded or reserved for another purpose.

I accidentally bought two cabbages. Now we have A LOT of cabbage to eat. We had this cabbage salad with dinner tonight. It was a big hit. Even the Kidlet liked it.

Cabbage Salad with Sesame Dressing

Slightly adapted from Aaron & Claire

Ingredients

• 1/4 of one small cabbage, shredded
• 1 Tbsp. sugar
• 2 Tbsp. toasted sesame paste¹
• 5 Tbsp. Japanese mayo
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
• 1 tsp. light (regular) soy sauce
• 1/2 Tbsp. sesame oil
• 1 Tbsp. toasted sesame seeds
• sriracha (optional)

Directions

1. Shred the cabbage and place it in some cold water. Set aside while you make the dressing.
2. Combine sugar, sesame paste, mayo, vinegar, soy sauce, and sesame oil and mix very well.
3. Drain the cabbage.
4. Place a portion of cabbage in a bowl and top with a spoonful of dressing and a sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds.
5. If desired, top with a little sriracha as well.

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¹ I had "mixed sesame paste", which is a mix of toasted sesame seeds and roasted peanuts. If you don't have any sesame paste, you can toast and grind some sesame seeds yourself. Alternatively, a good quality natural peanut butter (with no added sugar or salt) will also work. ^Back

Tamagodon (Egg Rice)

I'm not sure if this is meant to be a breakfast dish, but it involves eggs and rice, so I decided that it was going to be a breakfast dish for me.

I think I'd cut back on the water in the sauce next time. I found it a bit runny for my taste. It was good otherwise though. TF found it to be a bit on the sweet side, but I thought it was a nice mix of sweet and savoury. I'm not sure if the sugar content in this version is authentic to the usual Japanese preparation or if it's there as a result of adjusting the recipe to Korean palates. Either way, I quite liked it!

Photo goes here.

Tamagodon

Slightly adapted from Aaron & Claire

Ingredients

• 1/2 Tbsp. oil
• 1 small onion, halved and sliced
• 1/2 Tbsp. sugar (optional)
• 1 Tbsp. light soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp. mirin
• 1-3 Tbsp. water
• pinch of bonito flakes (optional)
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 c. cooked rice
• 1 green onion, sliced

Directions

1. If you don't already have some cooked rice on hand, get it going now so that it's ready by the time the eggs are.
2. Heat oil over medium-low heat.
3. Add the onion and cook until softened and beginning to brown. Longer is better, but try for at least 5 minutes.
4. Add sugar (if using), soy sauce, mirin, water, and bonito flakes (if using) and bring to a boil.
5. Lightly mix the eggs. Do not beat or fully homogenize them. You want the yolks to be broken and a little muddled, but it should like white and yolk swirled together, not fulled combined.
6. Pour the muddled eggs into the pan, cover, and cook until eggs reach desired doneness.
7. Serve over hot rice and garnish with green onion.