Shoyu tamago, or hard boiled eggs steeped in soy sauce is one of the simplest okazu (Japanese dish) that can easily be enjoyed as a meal, especially in a bento lunch, or on it’s own as a mid-day snack or even for breakfast. In my youth, my mom hardly ever made shoyu tamago for us, instead preferring to make tamagoyaki (sweet and savory egg roulade; my recipe available here). I enjoy eating both types of egg, but for lunch when...
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I firmly believe there is a Japanese sushi chef somewhere in California that woke-up one morning and decided to mix a few pieces of fresh sashimi-grade fish and abalone with some mayo, throw in some masago (caviar) for good measure, and baked it all together in his little toaster oven. (Photo Credit: Hideki Ueha) This sushi chef, after tasting one bite of his crazy creation yells at the top of lungs, “D-Y-N-A-M-I-T-O-H!!!!! Kore wa...
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Of all the foods my Mom makes, the more I think about it, the more I’m certain that gyoza, or potstickers, are hands down my favorite dish. Sometimes my Mom would set aside a few gyoza for lunch the next day which she would simply boil in a hot pot of water. It only takes a few minutes for the sui-gyoza to cook, which are quickly drained and then served with a simple sauce of ponzu (citrus – soy dressing) and spiced with Japanese...
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BOO! Every year around this time, I profess my love for the Halloween holiday and this year is no different. Until I had the little one, Halloween was fun, but now that she’s getting older and Halloween is filled with crafts, decorations, costumes, and of course, candy and treats, it’s even MORE fun. For starters, there’s the costume (hers I mean). This whole year has been all about The Little Mermaid, so not surprisingly, she...
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Seriously, how could you NOT want to read more about a post entitled “Smelt Fish with Many Eggs”? It’s the perfect “come back” post after a long absence don’t you think? :) [Ok, yes, I am indeed being a little sarcastic.] I considered, the post title “Pregnant Smelt” since that’s almost the literal Japanese to English translation of “Komochi” which means, “fish bearing...
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Kabocha, or Japanese winter squash (also referred to as pumpkin), is a vegetable that I never really appreciated. It was only in my young adulthood that I grew to love very thinly sliced pieces of kabocha fried with a light tempura batter. (Photo Credit: Hideki Ueha) Although I have vivid childhood memories of my Mom cooking kabocha-ni, which is simmered squash, sadly, this was a Japanese dish that I never enjoyed, yet these days I find myself...
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Once again, despite all my early preparations, Christmas seems to have just crept up behind us as I take care of last minute details, and it’s now less than a day away. The excitement in our household is high, yet Bebe E is sad that her Elf will return to the North Pole on Christmas Eve, and she will not return until next year’s holiday season. It was magical having our little Elf stay with us during this special season. I admit, it...
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I’m not sure about everyone else, but I definitely feel like the holidays are upon us. Yet, at the same time, I can’t believe it’s already that time of the year. This week flew by so fast, and was filled with so many things, I feel like I didn’t get to half the things I needed to do. However, despite the “holiday crunch” that I’m starting to feel, yesterday I spent a fabulous hour with Bebe E, during...
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