• Spaghetti & Pasta Vegetables

    Cold ‘Gazpacho’ Spaghetti

    On a hot day, I made ‘Gazpacho’ for dinner, and I had no more energy to prepare anything else. ‘Gazpacho’ was not enough for my hungry children. I needed to make it more filling. How could I make ‘Gazpacho’ more filling? What I did was cooking thin spaghetti and mixed with the soup. That’s how …

  • Azuki (Red Beans) Mochi & Dango Dumplings Sweets

    Daifuku Mochi

    ‘Daifuku Mochi’, or Daifuku, is a Japanese sweet consisting of a small round glutinous rice cake stuffed with most commonly ‘Azuki’ Red Bean paste which is quite sweet. On the other day, I made ‘Matcha & Azuki Roll Cake’ and there was some left-over ‘Azuki’ paste. What could I use it for? The first thing …

  • Other Soup Vegetables

    My ‘Gazpacho’

    The weather in Melbourne, Australia, is famous for its unpredictability. It is said to have four seasons in one day. Sometimes it is absolutely true. It can be rather cold, but it might turn scorching hot next day. The temperature can easily go over 40℃. I don’t like hot weather as I lose energy to …

  • Chicken Mazegohan

    Chicken & ‘Shiso’ Mazegohan

    ‘Shiso’ (Perilla) is so difficult to find where I live. It is something you can’t use for cooking if you are not growing yourself. But now I know one Asian grocery store that sells Perilla. It is a different type from Japanese ‘Shiso’, but it has same texture and fragrance. If you have ‘Shiso’ (Perilla) …

  • Azuki (Red Beans) Baked & Fried Sweets Matcha

    Matcha & Azuki Roll Cake

    This cake recipe is almost identical to ‘Butter Beans Cocoa Cake’. I simply replaced Cocoa Powder with Matcha Powder. ‘Azuki’ Red Bean Paste is a very common and popular ingredient for Asian sweets. Canned ‘Azuki’ paste is available from most Asian grocery stores. White Chocolate Ganache or Muscovado Whipped Cream are also great fillings for …

  • Baked & Fried Sweets

    My ‘Gateau Au Chocolat’

    I do not know the reason why this type of chocolate cake is particularly called ‘Gateau Au Chocolat’ in Japan. It’s French and it means ‘Chocolate Cake’. ‘Gateau Au Chocolat’ is quite rich as it usually contains plenty of chocolate, butter, cream and sugar. But my ‘Gateau Au Chocolat’ is quite light as the recipe …

  • Vegetables

    ‘Gomamiso-ae’ Radishes

    ‘Gomamiso-ae’ is a dish of vegetables seasoned with sweet miso sauce with aromatic toasted sesame seeds. The soy sauce version ‘Goma-ae’ and ‘Gomamiso-ae’ both are very popular and they can be made with so many different vegetables, even with the juicy fresh vegetables such as Tomato and Radish. Some people don’t enjoy fresh radish because …

  • Notes & Tips

    How To Grind Sesame Seeds Using A Plastic Bag

    I use sesame seeds for cooking a lot. I always toast them first, then keep the toasted sesame seeds in an airtight container ready to uses. When I need to grind sesame seeds, I use ‘Suribachi’. ‘Suribachi’ is a Japanese mortar. My suribachi is a small one, about 10cm in diameter. This is one of …

  • Chicken Dressings & Vinaigrettes

    Onion & Balsamic Sauce

    Along with the Japanese rice vinegar, Balsamic vinegar is an essential vinegar for my cooking. On the other day, I bought a bottle of ‘Aged Balsamic Vinegar of Modena’, and it was so sweet and rich. I was glad that I had spent extra dollars for it. This sauce is great for everything, chicken, pork, …

  • Vegetables

    Spicy Cabbage Outer Leaves

    When I buy cabbage, I select a fresh head of cabbage. When I cook it, I take off withered and discoloured outer leaves if there are any. The problem is I often have darker green and fresh looking outer leaves, that are actually quite tough and woody, but I feel so bad to throw them …

  • Bread

    Pull Apart Garlic Bread

    I used my ‘1-Hour Focaccia’ recipe to make this ‘Pull Apart Garlic Bread’, so this yummy bread can be made in 1 hour. To achieve the crusty bottom of the bread, you’d better use a cake tin or a baking tin. The ceramic pie dish like this one in the photo looks nice but the …

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