I usually stock already cooked Udon noodles (frozen/vacuum-packed) and they are just perfect for one-person lunch. They only need to be warmed and loosened. While you are warming the Udon Noodles, you can cook this spicy pork. It’s quick, easy and yummy as always. Makes 2 Servings Ingredients Udon 2 servings Pork 200 to 250g …
‘Yakiniku’ means “grilled meat” in Japanese. The term can refer to grilled meat dishes, but most commonly it refers to the Japanese style BBQ. Bite-size meat and vegetables are cooked on the iron grid or plate over a flame of wood charcoals, or if indoor, gas or electric tabletop grill or hotplate. It’s a great …
A ‘Donburi (Rice Bowl)’ dish is perfect for my lunch. There was a small block of pork belly in the fridge. Left over rice would be hot and fluffy again when microwaved. So I made this ‘Pork Shogayaki Don’ today. The cooked pork mixture would cover the rice, so the pork needs to be sliced …
This is a very popular stir-fry dish in Japan. It’s a dish consisting of vegetables, pork, prawns, squid, etc. stir-fried and thickened with potato starch. The dish is called ‘Happō-sai’ in Japanese and that means ‘Eight Treasure Ingredients’ as the number eight is the lucky number in our culture. This is my family’s recipe which …
The sausages in Japan are mainly European style smoked sausages. I came across the uncooked raw English style sausages in Australia for the first time. I still prefer smoked sausages and I especially like German sausages. I used to cook this Curry Flavoured Potato Salad with German Sausages quite often in Japan, but it’s been …
This dish used to look like this dish. I used to always cut Daikon and Pork Belly into large chunky pieces. It takes quite long time to cook until those chunky pieces get tender. Pressure cooker method is good, but I really didn’t want to bother on the other day. What I did was slicing …
When I found a bunch of Garlic Chives getting wilted in the fridge, I decided to add them to Okonomiyaki. To make Okonomiyaki more colourful and nutritious, I also added Carrot. And the result was unsatisfying. It didn’t taste good with ‘Okonomiyaki Sauce’ and Japanese mayonnaise. Why? I tried the ‘Okonomiyaki with Garlic Chives’ with …
You don’t need the oven to make this yummy Pork for your Ramen topping. You just need a pot or a large saucepan and a ziplock bag. At many Ramen Shops in Japan, you would find that those slices of pork placed on top of Ramen noodles are actually not roasted but boiled. I first …
‘Sweet & Sour Pork’ is such a popular Chinese dish and there are loads of different recipes. I often come across the dish cooked with pineapple, which I do not like. I never cook meat with fruit. This recipe is based on a recipe I learned in Japan when I was at high school. Pork …
Have you tried any of my sauces? They are all so versatile and can be used for many dishes. ‘Sweet Miso Sauce’ is one of them. I simply stir-fry Eggplant and Green Capsicum, then add Pork Mince, and seasoned with the ‘Sweet Miso Sauce’ with chilli bean sauce for spiciness. So easy to cook and …
This easy-to-cook and yummy dish has been one of my favourites since I first discovered Kimchi, a staple in Korean cuisine. We Japanese love Kimchi and it is actually more popular than traditional Japanese ‘Tsukemono’, salted and fermented vegetables. Kimchi is very garlicky and spicy but I even add extra Gralic and Chilli. This dish …
It seems Pulled Meat and Slow Cooked Roast are trendy these days. But here in Australia, the cost of gas and electricity is sky-rocketing and I don’t want to cook for 8 hour or 10 hours. I want to cook quickly. Then a pressure cooker comes in handy. Makes 6 to 8 Servings Ingredients Boneless …
‘Necessity is the mother of invention.’ When I wanted to make ‘Okonomiyaki’ on the other day, I didn’t have enough cabbage. That’s why I used thinly sliced cauliflower and learned the cauliflower version was really nice. It is important not to over cook it because the texture can turn quite mushy. Makes 2 to 3 …
In Australia, there is a Chinese-inspired dumpling-style snack food called ‘Dim Sim’. It looks like a very large ‘Shumai’ dumpling. I have tried it. It is not very yummy and I really don’t know what is in it. Why don’t you make it yourself with lots of vegetables? Shumai skins are hard to find. I …
‘Okowa’ is the name of a type of steamed glutinous rice dish and it’s my favourite. I love ‘Okowa’ dishes. Especially the one my mother cooks by steaming. This Pork ‘Okowa’ recipe is inspired by Chinese rice dumplings made of glutinous rice stuffed with other ingredients and wrapped in large leaves. The triangular shaped dumplings …
‘Satoimo’, Taro Potato, has creamy & slimy texture. Because of allergy or something, my hands often feel itchy when I peel skin of ‘Satoimo’ potatoes. So I usually use Frozen ones that are already peeled and ready to cook. However, I have noticed that it takes quite some time to cook frozen ones until tender …
A Japanese word ‘Okazu’ is hard to be translated into English. There is no English word that has the same meaning. The Japanese principal food is rice (short grain). The most typical meal in standard Japanese cuisine is called ‘Ichijū Sansai’ which means ‘One Soup & Three Dishes’. This doesn’t include rice. These dishes are …
My Japanese style ‘Mabo Dofu’ recipe is quite versatile and you can replace Tofu with vegetables such as eggplant. All eggplant lovers should try this dish! It is very easy to cook but you need patience to precook eggplant pieces until they are tender as crunchy eggplant is not very nice. If you are OK …
Thinly sliced pork and beef are commonly available in Japan, but not here in Australia. Occasionally I find frozen sliced meat in Asian grocer stores but the ordinary butchers and supermarket stores don’t sell them. That’s why I sometimes purchase a block of meat, half freeze it, slice as thin as I can, then freeze …
‘Mabo Dofu Don’ is a dish of freshly cooked rice covered with Japanese Style Mabo Dofu. It’s one of my son’s favourites. I have tried some different types of Tofu for this dish, but our favourite remains Momen Tofu, which is medium to soft type, but naturally you can use your favourite type. Makes 4 …
‘Mabo Dofu’ has been adapted to Japanese tastes and it is quite popular. As you know it is originally a Chinese dish but this one could be very different from the authentic ‘Mapo Doufu’. It’s my family’s Japanese style recipe. Many people buy ready-made sauce, but you can cook this dish quite easily. Makes 4 …